Tacoma Council Will Choose Click! Option

After last week's recommendations by the Tacoma Public Utilities Board, the Tacoma City Council will consider two proposals this Tuesday night for future action on Click!.

The two resolutions are distinct choices and have significant consequences for Tacoma Power ratepayers, Click! users and businesses.

As noted in the Chamber's correspondence to the Councilmembers below, the Chamber recommends the lease option for the best future course of action.  The Chamber was an initial supporter of establishing Click! as a means to bring broadband service to Tacoma.  As an industry-defined "second city," that was an unlikely outcome at that time. The subsequent existence of a competitive marketplace is frequently cited for lower rates locally.  But, the marketplace has changed.

With continuing financial losses, Tacoma Power ratepayers have subsidized Click!'s operational losses.  The "all in" option, which represents Tacoma's substantial development of Click!, represents a $38 million bill over 10 years to bring Click! up to desired standards of service.  Even the City's attorney has opined that the existing subsidy of Click! by Tacoma Power may contravene state law.

Additionally, local small, family-owned firms providing ISP in partnership with Click! are expected to be adversely impacted by the "all in" option.  These local firms also represent jobs and investment, as well as their history of partnership.

The operation and fate of Click! is a continuing conflict between the Tacoma Public Utilities Board and the Tacoma Council.  To resolve these continuing disagreements, resolve possible legal conflicts and simplify the oversight of Click!, the Chamber suggests that Click! be reorganized under the auspices of general government with direct oversight and responsibility by the City Council.

Reminding Tacoma of Campaign Promises before Tax Implementation

Before Tacoma Council action to implement the utility tax portion of the recently voter-approved Prop. 3 to Fix Tacoma's Roads, the Chamber reminded Councilmembers of promises to voters to apportion dollars among all types of road and transportation projects.

It is important that from the very beginning of this Tacoma roads package that promises be kept with voters and all the advocates for the needed and necessary transportation projects.

ST3 Project List Considered

The conversation about the future of mass transit in our region took a big step forward Friday with the release of detailed studies for all the projects that could be part of a ST3 ballot measure next November. 

Sound Transit released details of the ST3 candidate projects, including cost and ridership estimates for each project along with other decision factors such as opportunities for transit-oriented development and non-motorized access options.

The Sound Transit Board identified the candidate projects last summer following a broad public involvement period. The Board focused on priorities for expanding regional transit services as the region’s population grows by a million people in the next 25 years.
Over the coming months, the studies will inform work by the Sound Transit Board to further narrow in on priorities and discuss the funding and size of a ballot measure. Stay tuned for details on how to provide input on a draft package the Board expects to release in March. Input next spring will shape a final measure planned for voter consideration in November 2016.

Check out the study results through the interactive map and full list of projects, where you’ll find more information including summaries comparing options for specific corridors. Visit the document archive for information about funding ST3, including Sound Transit’s cost methodology and track record of constructing projects on time and within budget.

Tacoma Voters Pass Prop 3 and Prop A for Street Repair and Improvements

Today, certified results show that Tacoma voters said yes to repairing Tacoma’s streets and passed Proposition 3 and Proposition A. 

These propositions will work together to repair and improve city streets through a number of methods including pothole repair, street resurfacing and building missing sidewalks. In addition, Proposition A provides additional funding for transportation projects outlined in the Six-Year Comprehensive Transportation Plan. 

“Tacoma voters have demonstrated that they want to be part of the solution. By approving Props 3 and A, they're saying yes to safe and better streets, civic pride and family-wage jobs,” said Mayor Marilyn Strickland.  “The poor condition of Tacoma’s roads have been decades in the making and we now have dedicated funds to repair and maintain them in a significant way."

To achieve funding goals, Proposition 3 (Resolution 39249) will raise funds through an increase in property and utility earnings tax while Proposition A (Resolution TBD010) will raise funds through an increase in sales tax.  All taxes associated with the propositions will expire after 10 years. Over this time frame, these propositions combined are projected to generate $175 million of new revenue. In addition, these measures would leverage an estimated $120 million in grants and matching funds and the City will commit an additional $30 million. The accumulation of all these sources would raise a total of $325 million for Tacoma’s streets.

“With the approval of Props A and 3, Tacoma voters have expressed that the time has come to invest in our city’s streets,” said City Manager T.C. Broadnax. “Over the next 10 years this work will be a major focus for the City and we are committed to keeping residents informed about how these funds will be used to address much needed streets and infrastructure improvements.”

For City staff, next steps include developing annual reports, web pages and using Tacoma Data to connect residents to efforts related to these propositions. The Transportation Benefit District is also required to report back to the City Council annually on projects funded by the district and the spending plan for the upcoming year.  The additional funding sources associated with these propositions will not go into effect until 2016 and the City will use the Six-Year Infrastructure Maintenance Plan, Six- Year Comprehensive Transportation Plan, Transportation Master Plan and the recent pavement condition survey as documents to guide investment in transportation infrastructure.  

Cong. Reichert on Highway Bill Conference Committee

Yesterday, U.S. Congressman Dave Reichert was selected to serve on the conference committee for the long-term highway bill.

In this role, Rep. Reichert will work with other lawmakers from the House and Senate to negotiate and come to an agreement on legislation to reauthorize and fund the nation’s highway and transit programs.

After hearing news of his appointment, Rep. Reichert said, “I am looking forward to working with my House and Senate colleagues from both sides of the aisle to complete a long-term highway bill. Doing so is critical for our roads, bridges, economic competitiveness, and public safety. Here in Washington State, folks not only depend on strong infrastructure to get to and from work, but with one of the nation’s leading trade economies, our growers and producers need a dependable, efficient freight and transportation system to move their goods safely to market. Today’s conference meeting will be an important step toward meeting these goals.”

Volunteers for Voter's Pamphlet Statements

The City Clerk's Office is seeking volunteers to serve on committees to prepare statements "for" and "against" the following measures in order to comply with the requirements for RCW 29A.32.280:

City of Tacoma Initiative Measure No. 1B
Initiative Measure No. 1B is an alternative the City Council has proposed to the Citizen Petition Initiative No. 1 regarding minimum wage in the City of Tacoma.

Citizen Petition Initiative Measure No. 2
Initiative Measure No. 2 is an amendment to the City Charter relating to a change in the form of government and other organization changes.

City of Tacoma Proposition No. 3
Proposition No. 3 is a property tax levy rate and gross earnings tax increase for street improvements.

Governing Board of the Tacoma Transportation Benefit District Proposition No. 4
Proposition No. 4 imposes a sales and use tax to fund street improvements.

Each of the measures will be on the General Election ballot of Tuesday, November 3, 2015. The statements prepared by these committees will appear in the Voters' Pamphlet. Statements are due on or before August 7, 2015 and rebuttal statements are due August 11, 2015.

To be considered, please submit a letter of interest indicating whether you are advocating "for" or "against" one of the measures, which measure(s) you would like to be considered for, your place of residence and why you would like to serve on a committee.

Letters must be received in the City Clerk's Office at 733 Market Street, Room 11, Tacoma WA 98402 or via email to cityclerk@cityoftacoma.org by 5 PM on Tuesday, July 21, 2015.

For more information, or to read the petition language, ballot titles, and resolutions transmitting the measures to the Pierce County Auditor, please go to www.cityoftacoma.org/cityclerk.

Thank you for Passing Transportation Package

Outreach about Transportation & Education

Have you heard AWB’s radio ad? 

AWB's 60-second spot, “System in Crisis,” is airing on radio stations throughout the Puget Sound, encouraging lawmakers to approve a bipartisan transportation package to reduce congestion and lower carbon emissions. 

You can listen to it HERE. 

AWB also joined with Keep Washington Rolling to place this full-page ad in last Sunday’s Seattle Times, and is part of a coalition called Recover Washington that’s airing this ad encouraging lawmakers to fund education without raising taxes. 

This is an unprecedented advertising round for AWB and it reflects the importance of the issues they’re dealing with this year.

Second Opportunity to Meet w/ Legislators

Chamber Members are invited to join the Chamber's delegation to Olympia for Legislative Advocacy Day #2 on Monday, April 6.

Registration with Karissa HERE.

House Takes Up Transportation Package Revenue

The Transportation Package is moving along in the Washington State House of Representatives.

Chamber Pres. Tom Pierson and the Chamber’s state lobbyist Michael Transue have scheduled meetings with almost every Pierce County legislator Tuesday and Wednesday this week. Several members of the Chamber’s Government Affairs Committee have volunteered to join the appointments these two days. Our thanks to these volunteers for their help in achieving better transportation infrastructure for the success of our businesses and the creation of more job opportunities in our community.

In other developments, the state House Transportation Committee has confirmed that it is holding a hearing at 3:30 p.m. Thursday, March 26 on the transportation package’s two revenue bills that have passed out of the Senate (ESSB 5987 and ESSB 5988). The meeting will be in House Hearing Room B (John L. O’Brien Building, Capitol Campus, Olympia, WA 98504). The Chamber’s Pres. Chamber Pres. Tom Pierson will be present as an advocate for improved transportation supporting businesses and our economy.

We strongly encourage you to attend and testify—keeping up momentum on a package is critical. If you or a colleague plan to go, please let the Chamber's Manager for Business & Political Gary Brackett know.

And, the SR-167 Completion Coalition (including the Chamber) along with stakeholders of the JBLM/I-5 project, will be hosting a stand up reception Thursday in Olympia.  This reception will be attended by a number of transportation leaders within the Washington State Legislature. 

We encourage an open discussion with our Legislative leaders about the outlook of the legislation in the House and ways in which we can help move the transportation package forward.

Pacific Ave I-5 Bridge Closure Monday

UPDATE: MARCH 27

Ramps will close for prep work for Pacific Avenue demo in Tacoma

In advance of the scheduled April 6 nearly year-long total closure of the Pacific Avenue overpass spanning Interstate 5 in Tacoma, crews have additional work that will require night ramp and lane closures. The closures could result in some delays during the week of March 30.

In addition to the below closures, three around-the-clock ramp closures remain in place:
• Southbound I-5 to State Route 7
• Northbound SR 7 to southbound I-5
• A Street to Interstate 705

Wednesday, April 1
• At 10 p.m., the southbound State Route 167/Portland Avenue on-ramp to southbound I-5 will close until 6 a.m. the following day.
• At 11 p.m., the northbound I-5 collector/distributor exit to southbound SR 7 will close until 4 a.m. the following day.

Friday, April 3
• At 12:01 a.m., the northbound I-5 collector/distributor exit to SR 7 will close until 4 a.m.

Lane and shoulder closures
From Monday through Thursday, March 30-April 2, drivers may encounter night lane and shoulder closures on I-5, SR 7, and the northbound I-5 collector/distributor lane (from State Route 16 and South 38th Street).

City of Tacoma streets
From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, April 1, drivers will see single lane closures on East 27th Street and Wiley Avenue.

Know before you go
Stay informed with nearly 200 specialized alerts from Washington State Department of Transportation. Other roadway information is available via WSDOT’s travel alerts web page and Twitter account.

Hyperlinks within the release:
• Tacoma Traffic web page: www.wsdot.wa.gov/construction/pugetsound/tacoma.htm
• WSDOT self-subscribe alerts: https://service.govdelivery.com/accounts/WADOT/subscriber/new
• Travels alerts web page: www.wsdot.com/traffic/trafficalerts/
• Twitter @wsdot_tacoma: https://twitter.com/wsdot_tacoma

ORIGINAL

Monday, April 6, WSDOT will close Pacific Avenue in Tacoma at Interstate 5 for almost a year.  WSDOT takes this opportunity to give you a heads-up about the closure, and to explain why it is necessary.

The closure is part of WSDOT’s I-5 - M Street to Portland Avenue – HOV project, in which they are widening I-5 to accommodate HOV lanes. The columns supporting the overpass conflict with the alignment of the future widened highway, so the overpass will be demolished and rebuilt during the long-term closure.

WSDOT has worked with the City of Tacoma to create a detour route. It fully recognizes this will be an inconvenience for drivers who will need to modify their travel plans, and thanks you in advance for your patience while this work is under way. This project is one piece of a larger effort called the I-5 - SR 16 Tacoma/Pierce County HOV Program, which is a substantial investment by WSDOT to increase highway capacity in Pierce County.

I-5 Expansion Will Close Pacific Ave. Overpass

April’s showers won’t dampen the demolition of a four-lane overpass spanning Interstate 5 in downtown Tacoma. The Pacific Avenue overpass will soon be turned into a pile of rubble to make way for high occupancy vehicle lanes.

The bridge demolition is part of the Washington State Department of Transportation’s I-5 - M Street to Portland Avenue – HOV project. The Pacific Avenue overpass is one of two bridges that will be removed and rebuilt in this project to create HOV lanes through Tacoma.

Pacific Avenue will close at I-5 Monday, April 6, and remain closed until March 2016, while crews demolish and rebuild the overpass. During the closure, drivers can cross I-5 using a signed detour route to nearby McKinley Way. Once the new overpass at Pacific Avenue is open to traffic, WSDOT will close the McKinley Way overpass for 18 months while crews replace it.

“We know this lengthy Pacific Avenue closure will affect Tacoma businesses and residents, which is why we won’t close both Pacific Avenue and McKinley Way at the same time,” said WSDOT Olympic Region Administrator Kevin Dayton.

Demolition of the Pacific Avenue overpass is expected to take approximately three months. Construction crews will first demolish the bridge approaches and then the bridge, working overnight hours when I-5 traffic volumes are lowest. Crews will start on the northbound side of I-5 near the Interstate 705/State Route 7 interchange. Drivers should expect lane and ramp closures on I-5 during demolition, and details of the lane closures will be forthcoming.

Help for drivers
Real-time travel and traffic information are available.
• Online tools that provide traffic camera images and a map of highway incidents and closures.
• The 511 travel information hotline. For out-of-state callers, it’s 1-800-695-ROAD (7623).
• The WSDOT mobile app, email alerts and other tools, such as Twitter.
• Overhead and roadside electronic signs.

Hyperlinks within the release:
• Project web page: www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/piercecountyhov/i5_msttoportland/
• Online tools: www.wsdot.com/traffic/
• Mobile app: www.wsdot.wa.gov/Inform/mobile.htm
• Travel info: www.wsdot.wa.gov/inform
• WSDOT regional Twitter account: https://twitter.com/wsdot_tacoma

WA State Senate Passed $15B Transportation Package

The Washington State Senate passed the $15 billion transportation package yesterday afternoon by finalizing their efforts with *Senate Bill 5987 and 5988 to bring funding to key mega-projects around the State. 

On Friday the Washington State Senate took eight votes to adopt pieces of legislation that are necessary components of a new transportation revenue, expenditure and reform package for Washington state **(SB 5990 – SB 5997).

While Senate session was ended on Friday due to a procedural question on Rule 67, which caused delay in consideration of the gas tax, bond and additive funding bills, the final passage of the package was expected and completed Monday.

The Chamber encourages members to thank their Pierce County representatives for their efforts in funding the transportation package to their emails listed below. Senators Angel, Becker, Dammeier, Miloscia, and O'Ban dutifully represented Pierce County interests by continuing to vote yes on reform bills and complete their efforts by supporting the funding measures. 

This transportation package funds the clearing of traffic and port related congestion alike for both ends of Pierce County. It allocates necessary monies for upgrades to the SR-167 and the JBLM-Corridor, as well as other regional projects across the State.

Currently the bill heads to the House for its consideration. We urge our State Representatives from Pierce County to keep the goal of this package in site. Funding transportation will boost Washington’s economy by building projects necessary to compete globally as well as creating new jobs critical for citizens and workers. 

Transpo Package: Action Now & Results (So Far)

UPDATE:  Mar. 3, 8:28 a.m.

For the most comprehensive update, go HERE.

UPDATE: Mar. 2, 3:16 P.M.

WA Senate passed final two bills in the Transportation Package:

Senator	5987	5988
Senator Jan Angel	Y	Y
Senator Randi Becker	Y	Y
Senator Steve Conway	Y	Y
Senator Bruce F. Dammeier	Y	Y
Senator Jeannie Darneille	Y	Y
Senator Mark  Miloscia	Y	Y
Senator Steve O'Ban	Y	Y
Senator Pam  Roach	N	N
TOTAL VOTE	27Y-22N	41Y-8N

YOU ARE ENCOURAGED TO SAY "THANK YOU" TO SENATORS, ESPECIALLY THOSE IN THE PIERCE COUNTY DELEGATION, FOR VOTING "YES."

Friday, the Washington State Senate took eight votes on final passage to adopt pieces of legislation that are necessary components of a new transportation revenue, expenditure and reform package for Washington state (SB 5990 – SB 5997). 

While Senate session was ended due to a procedural question, which caused delay in consideration of the gas tax, bond and additive funding bills until Monday, we expect final passage of the package to happen on Monday.

What we need is for you to communicate to your Senators (LIST and EMAILS BELOW) and thank them for their vote, if appropriate.

Passing these reforms bills is critical to the success of the entire package.  We know we need to upgrade our infrastructure and not allow our highways to deteriorate.  The full package under consideration will build projects necessary to compete globally.  These projects will increase the health of our state economy as well as deliver a return on investment for Washington State.  Additionally, the package will create new family wage jobs, critical for the many.  Please keep the goal of this package in site. Yes votes are votes to boost Washington’s economy today and for generations to come.

Tell them to keep up the good work on Monday by voting in favor of the remaining bills in the package (SB 5987 – SB 5589)!

Tell them we applaud your efforts so far.  Now let’s cross the goal line. Keep up the great work on Monday by voting in favor of the remaining bills in the package (SB 5987 – SB 5589)!

  

Senator	Email	5992	5991	5993	5990	5995	5997	5996	5994
Senator Jan Angel	jan.angel@leg.wa.gov	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Senator Randi Becker	randi.becker@leg.wa.gov	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Senator Steve Conway	conway.steve@leg.wa.gov	Y	N	Y	N	Y	Y	Y	N
Senator Bruce F. Dammeier	tellbruce@comcast.net	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Senator Jeannie Darneille	Jeannie.Darneille@leg.wa.gov	Y	N	Y	N	Y	Y	Y	N
Senator Mark  Miloscia	miloscia@comcast.net	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Senator Steve O'Ban	steve.oban@leg.wa.gov	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Senator Pam  Roach	roach.pam@leg.wa.gov	Y	N	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
TOTAL VOTE		48Y-1N	27Y-22N	48Y-1N	26Y-23N	49Y-0N	49Y-0N	47Y-2N	30Y-19N
Bill Number	Title
5992	Ferry Vessel Construction
5991	DOT/env Leg
5993	Public Works - Labor
5990	Sales Taxes on Transpo Projects
5995	Mobility/Transit
5997	Transpo Project Delivery
5996	DOT Stakeholders
5994	DOT Corridor Permitting
Pending Bill Number	Pending Title
5987	Transpo Revenue
5989	Transpo Bonding