Nickels Newsletter - August 2005

Dear Friends,

What a summer! I hope you took full advantage of all the activities Seafair had to offer. I went to parades and heritage festivals, hosted the traditional reception for members of the U.S. and Canadian Navies, and Seafair royalty, and was awed by the performance of the Blue Angels. I hope you enjoyed it too.

You'll notice a recurring theme in this newsletter: Keep Seattle Moving. It's one of my four priorities, and transportation is one of the most important issues facing our city.

Seattle is expected to grow by nearly 100,000 people over the next 20 years. My Center City Strategy is helping us prepare for this growth by increasing housing in and near downtown and investing in downtown parks and open spaces.

But lots of new people also means greater demands on our transportation system. That’s why projects like replacing the Alaskan Way Viaduct, the expansion of the Burke-Gilman Trail and the creation of the citywide transit plan are so important.

We also need to keep people safe, and I’m glad to report the pedestrian safety campaign is moving forward. You may have seen one of our great public service announcements by now, and you’ll see our speed trailers all over the city for the next several months. I’m also going to be joining police officers as they visit community centers to teach kids about being safe when they cross our busy streets.

So whether you bus, drive, bike or walk, we're making sure Seattle keeps you moving, and keeps you safe. Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Sincerely,


GREG NICKELS
Mayor of Seattle

Creating more parks and open space part of Center City Strategy

We know Seattle’s going to grow -- a lot -- in the next several decades, so we need to make sure our parks and open space keep up with the growth. I’ve proposed an impact fee on developers, which means they will help pay to build parks and open space in the Center City, University District and Northgate neighborhoods. The proposed impact fees could generate more than $57 million to ensure our public parks and open space keep pace with housing and job growth over the next 20 years. This is a way for growth to help pay for growth, and to make sure we have the kind of public spaces that make Seattle a special place to live.
Read the news release or visit the Center City issue page.

$231 million in federal funding secured for Viaduct replacement

Our congressional delegation’s relentless efforts to help Seattle replace our crumbling Viaduct have paid off! The Viaduct will receive $220 million from a new federal program that will help pay for major projects, plus another $11.2 million secured by Rep. Jim McDermott. I want to thank Sens. Maria Cantwell and Patty Murray, and Reps. Rick Larsen, Norm Dicks, Dave Reichert, and McDermott, and the rest of the delegation for their perseverance and determination. This is a huge victory and a tremendous beginning.

Improving customer assistance on Seattle’s new home page

More and more people are using the Internet to find services, including City services. To make sure people can find the help they need, we redesigned the City of Seattle's new home page (www.Seattle.gov) to put a stronger focus on customer service.

Our services for non-English speakers are also growing. Seattle City Light has a whole new Web site for Spanish-speaking customers, as does the Office for Civil Rights. We've also created a language portal which helps non-English speakers navigate public services in 26 languages.

We're going to continue to add services and information in a variety of languages so that all communities have real-time, practical access to City government.
Read the news release

Winter shelter in City Hall

Even though we are basking in beautiful summer weather now, we haven’t forgotten how cold winter can be, especially for our homeless residents. I don’t want to see anyone die on our streets, which is why we’re going to open City Hall as a severe weather shelter. During the coldest nights of the year, those in need will have a warm, dry and safe place to spend the night. I’m committed to ending homelessness in our region in the next 10 years, but in the meantime, we’re going to keep people safe.

Emergency assistance pilot project for utility customers

Seattle Public Utilities customers at risk of having their water shut off may now qualify for emergency assistance. Families caught in a financial bind have been able to get help with their electric bill, but not with water -- until now. We unveiled a pilot project last month that could cover half the utility bill for a needy family. The pilot, which will run through the end of the year, will provide immediate assistance for water bills, and will help us develop a long-term emergency assistance program.
Read the news release

More Burke-Gilman Trail

It was a pleasure to cut the ribbon on the third segment of the Burke-Gilman Trail, connecting the Ballard Locks with Northwest 60th Street in northwest Seattle. The Burke-Gilman Trail is the most popular bike route in Seattle and helps make Seattle one of the top-10 bicycle-friendly cities in the nation. The next link is the section of the trail between Northwest 60th Street and Golden Gardens Park. Once the last section is completed, the trail will stretch from Golden Gardens to Redmond.
Read the news release

Slow down, stay sharp!

In our continuing efforts to make Seattle safer for walkers, we have speed trailers in place throughout the city. You’ve seen them before: they are mounted display boards showing the speed limit and your speed. Summer is a great time for kids and adults to be walking around Seattle, and we’re doing everything we can to make it a safe experience. By helping drivers be aware of how fast they are going, we can also remind them to slow down. After school starts, the trailers will also be placed on school routes.
Read the news release or visit the Pedestrian Safety Campaign issue page

Providing easy transit service throughout Seattle

Seattle is a city full of growing neighborhoods where people live, work and play, and to accommodate growth and keep our neighborhoods livable, I unveiled a new transit plan to keep Seattle moving. The first phase of the plan is to create transit hubs throughout Seattle that will provide easy transit services every 15 minutes, 18 hours a day, seven days a week. This will make it easier for people in North Seattle, Ballard and the University District to choose transit over driving to reach the Center City, Southeast and West Seattle neighborhoods.
Read the news release

West Seattle Junction Festival

Summer and Seafair in Seattle provide some of the best opportunities to get out into our neighborhoods, celebrate the season and get to know our neighbors. The big Seafair events, such as the Torchlight Parade and the hydro races are great, but I also love the neighborhood festivals. At the West Seattle Junction Festival, you can eat, meet local craftsmen and women, and buy raffle tickets for fabulous prizes!