The Mayoral candidates and City Council candidates came together last night for a community forum, held in the Ballard High School auditorium. Put on by the Ballard and Magnolia/Queen Anne District Councils, community members were invited to ask the candidates questions about their policies and future plans. Moderated by Seattle Channel’s C.R. Douglas, the forum was comprised of questions submitted beforehand by the community, audience queries and a series of “lightening rounds,” where candidates held up one of three cards: “Yes,” “No,” and “Waffle” (Literally. The card showed a picture of waffles).
First up were the eight City Council candidates. Beginning promptly at 6:30 p.m., each candidate was given one minute to summarize why they wanted the position. Some topics of particular interest included the Viaduct construction, the proposed tunnel, and whether or not these projects should come before or after critical and much-needed maintenance of other citywide infrastructure, such as the Magnolia Bridge.
The candidates also discussed a recent statistic stating that violent crime in Seattle went up 22 percent in the first six months of the year, debating over how the city should expand it’s law enforcement programs – if and how the numbers should be increased, if the city should revamp the way it utilizing its officers, and whether money should be taken from other programs to fund an increase in law enforcement.
The candidates also discussed the proposed Mercer Street Corridor, budget prioritizing, public transportation and district representation. In the lightening rounds, all favored expanding the park ranger program in the city, and Mayor Nickels’ gun ban in Seattle owned properties such as parks, city run buildings and the Seattle Center. They all agreed that developers should be required to provide public open space, and that foot and bike patrols should be expanded in neighborhood business districts. None of them believes that human services should be cut in order to balance the budget.
Next up were mayoral candidates Joe Mallahan and Mike McGinn, who took that stage for the second half of the forum, demonstrating, along with Douglas, that they could have a little fun amidst a serious discussion. During one of the the lightening rounds, McGinn held up the back-side of his waffle card, to show a blank white page. After a few moments, Douglas poked a bit of fun at the candidate, asking him what the blank page meant, to which McGinn responded “I don’t know what it means. I think we have to look at it. Some questions actually require answers.” Rather than moving on to the next lightening question, on several occasions each candidate began to explain their reasoning to the room, at which point Douglas had to intercede jokingly, “No talking,” and “Soon we’ll have questions that actually allow answers.”
This showed an eagerness on the part of the candidates, who expanded on key issues like the transportation, education, jobs, citywide environmentalism, low income housing and crime (to name just a few) when the floor was opened up to community questions. And, of course, one of the biggest topics was the Viaduct, its optioned plans, and other proposals to better public transportation and ease congestion. This also happened to be where the two candidates disagreed the most. Mallahan is in support of the expansion of current highway systems and the Viaduct tunnel plans, while McGinn is against the tunnel, saying it’s too expensive, instead opting for the development of a comprehensive network of strong mass transit systems, including the expansion of Light Rail across the 520 bridge.
Both candidates concluded with strong words against the others’ transportation position.
“He’s not thinking about people,” Mallahan said of McGinn’s stance on the proposed Viaduct tunnel, and his plans for the future of public transport. “His vision is impractical, and it’s the worst thing we could do in this economy.”
McGinn emphasized the need for a new system. “We haven’t learned from 50 years of experience from highways,” he said. “High capacity transit is where the future is.” Though, he emphasized that his work would be reflective of the peoples’ opinions. “I think we should listen to the people, and if elected as mayor my goal is to work with the people just like I’ve been working for the last 20 years, to try to create the kind of communities we both know and love.”
A video of the candidate forum will be available in its entirety on Seattle Channel’s website.
![](https://www.myballard.com/wp-content/uploads/2024-My-Ballard-Tile-Ad-Troop-100.png")
Could. Could it be? Are we actually, finally, moving forward with the tunnel? Surely someone is trying to stop this..this progress. Please tell me someone is trying to stop this action for no good reason while simultaneously making the citizenry skateboard everywhere (or some other useless body-odor inducing means of transportation). The Seattle I know wouldn't let something like this be done without another study or vote of sometype. Can somebody please set us back 8 years. It needs to happen quick -something *gasp* is about to be done! OH THE HUMANITY!
There was a lightning round question on extension of the Burke-Gilman trail. McGinn held up 'Yes' and Mallahan held up 'No.' I heard that the lobbyist for Salmon Bay Sand and Gravel has maxed out on his donation to Mallahan. Go figure.
Apparently under McGinn I'll have to take the bus to Seatac for business trips so I can save the planet…either that or he'll fund magic unicorns.
The lobbyist for SBS&G? Right!
(Caveat, this is second-hand knowledge) Surprise of the night:
Mallahan said that he did NOT support the expansion of the Burke-Gilman (presumably through Ballard).
I know this guy loves his car but come on! Give the bikers something. We have been fighting legal challenges for years to make this happen, shouldn't he respect the decision and help this move forward?
Maybe Mallahan's hands are tied now that he's accepting funding from SBS&G?
My biggest question is how Mallahan can support the tunnel without the slightest plan for how Seattle is supposed to pay its share? McGinn is far more realistic. As far as the federal portion goes, that's like giving a pauper an expensive house when there's no money to buy groceries or pay the utility bills. So what if there's federal money if it comes with stupid strings attached.
This is getting tricky. I want the tunnel and the missing link built. Hmmmm. What to do.
I am pretty sure our next mayor will be put in a strangle hold by the city council anyway. Anyone else feeling screwed by this craptastic election?
and your point is?
I agree, the options are tricky. I disagree with the tunnel because of the cost primarily and secondly because it doesn't serve Ballard, but think the surface street option that McGinn proposes is ridiculous. So do I vote for McGinn to stop the tunnel boondoggle but have no replacement viaduct, or vote for Mallahan hoping he can manage the tunnel better so less cost overruns? The choices are hard but I'm still happy Nickels isn't one of them.
Suzie Burke maxed out her donation to Mallahan, and has held a fundraiser for him too.
She has singlehandedly stalled the Bicycle Master Plan on Stone Way using her influence over our current mayor (who she donated to as well) and nearly illegally closed the Burke Gillman Trail in Fremont for a full year before cyclists pushed the city to review their easement agreement with her.
Just to clarify, Mallahan has zero, zip, zilch control over cost overruns; so he couldn't put his magical “effective management” skills to work on this one.
Also, don't assume that Mallahan's is a good manager just because he says so. He's never managed more than 30 people (he's a glorified upper level manager), has no examples to point to of his success (couldn't name one in a recent debate, not one) as a manager and is running one of the worst and least cost-effective campaigns in the history of our city.
Lol. “just to clarify”, how many employees do you think McGinn has managed. Few people have managed over 10 employees.
Similar to Mallahan's sudden change of heart about the Mercer restructuring. It's a pet project of Vulcan, and their favorite candidate is out of the picture now (thank goodness for that though). I wrote a little bit about it on my website, see link to the Mercer Mess article.
99 needs a decent n/s replacement, not a friggin' boulevard with lights, parks and 30 pedestrian crossings.
Actually you'll have a fast, reliable, comfortable Light Rail to take, which you already helped to fund, so you might as well use. You'll also be able to safely and legally use your cell phone on the trip over, so you might even be able to save some time.
Last I checked, “management experience” was a central part of Mallahan's campaign. If he doesn't really have any, then what's left to run on?
Ha ha ha ha, oh, that's rich!
Have you ever actually flown out of Seatac, there Josh?
Right – you're off on a business trip – or a vacation, for that matter. You're going to walk 6 blocks in the rain, wait for the bus, squeeze on that bus (2 transfers), get on that wonderful light rail, and ride that to Seatac – all while dragging your suitcases. Time from home to the airport: 2 hours. Riiiiiiight, sounds like a great way to start a trip! Good luck with that.
Personally, I'd put my money on the magic unicorns before I'd expect more than a handful of loonies to use the light rail to get top the airport (certainly from this part of town).
The “light rail to the airport” demonstration project is exactly that: a demonstration. It's for show, not practical (just like the SLUT). It was built so Nickels and Simms could point to it in their quest for re-election and say “see? I fixed the transportation problems…now let's get to work wrecking state highway 99!”
Light rail in Ballard? What have you been smokin' , it ain't no where need Ballard. Or do you think I should take a bus downtown, then hop on the train to Seatac? THanks for the laugh….
I can legally use my phone now when I drive in 25 mins to Seatac, thanks, just need the bluetooth plugged in.
Mike has neither the temperament, personal habits, nor the aptitude of mayoral material. I know because I worked with him for 10 years in the Greenwood Community.
My .02
I've heard rumors of his totalitarian ways with numerous groups, yet no specific instances were mentioned. Could you share an example or point to an article somewhere?
Handsfree may be legal, but it's still unsafe – you'll be 4 times more likely to cause a crash.
I realize you're getting important work done and your time is very valuable to you, but if you choose to operate heavy machinery on your way to the airport, do us all a favor and pay some attention.
From the excellent NYT series “Driven to Distraction” (http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/technology/s…
“Extensive research shows the dangers of distracted driving. Studies say that drivers using phones are four times as likely to cause a crash as other drivers, and the likelihood that they will crash is equal to that of someone with a .08 percent blood alcohol level, the point at which drivers are generally considered intoxicated. Research also shows that hands-free devices do not eliminate the risks, and may worsen them by suggesting that the behavior is safe.”
As for Nickels and Simms wrecking highway 99, I think it was actually the earthquake that left us with an array of unattractive options. I'd just rather not spend 4+ billion dollars shaving 10-20 minutes off your airport run.
Why would anyone in their right mind actually drive to the airport? You have to pay for parking and deal with all of that mess!
Even when I had a car, I always used the bus or Shuttle Express because they are so much more convenient than driving.
Most of us don't know much at all about Mike McGinn. Speaking for myself, I would greatly appreciate some insight into the man. If you worked with him for 10 years, you would indeed know him well. You've said this much, are you willing to say more? Please?
“shaving 10-20 minutes off your airport run.”
Ahhh, the arrogance of the Greens. Add up all those 20 minutes for 100,000 cars a day and how much lost productivity and CO2 are we talking?
Driving is a breeze, straight into the lot, park and walk into the terminal. For longer trips, I take a cab.
Shuttle Express? Sorry, but I don't want to wake up 4 hrs before a flight, spend 1hr driving around picking up people, and then arrive 2 hrs before my flight leaves. Did it once, never again. I'd rather pay an extra $20 and save 2 hrs of my time; my time is worth more than $10 an hour. Shuttle Express is useless with a family, $140 for a family of 4! Cab is $50-60 which a business traveler can expense.
Some folks can pay attention and use a legal, handsfree phone, some can't. Some people can talk to their passengers, some people can't. Some people can apply makeup and drive safely, some can't. Life is full of mysteries and dangers, we can't live in a padded room forever and make life 100% safe. Live with it.
Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't realize you were special, and that those of us you're putting in harm's way need to “live with it”. I'm well aware that life isn't 100% safe – I'm the one riding a bicycle on roads with exceptional drivers like you.
If you have any room for some knowledge in there with all those firmly held opinions (for example, there's a real safety difference between talking to passengers and talking on a phone), please read just a little bit about distracted driving. Here's an easy link:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/19/technology/19…
You'll find your special case (actually, not so special, as most drivers think they're “above average”) discussed here as well: the driver that thinks they have extraordinary multitasking powers that others lack. Quick summary: you don't.
Concerning temperament, I have found Mike to be vindictive, arrogant, divisive, destructive, argumentative, and rude. When Mike wants your opinion, he'll give it to you. I think it's worse for women than men. The people who have taken the most grief from him in the neighborhood and beyond are the women, though plenty of guys get it from him as well. I’m certainly not fooled by that tone he's trying to use in his campaign monologues. Ratchet that up to a punishing whine and that's what everyday brings you from Mike. The less you agree with him, the more the tone gets annoying, demeaning, and dismissive.
When it comes to personal habits, he's disorganized, late or absent most of the time, sloppy, and forgetful. He can't even remember people's names. It was always embarrassing when neighborhood folks would show up for the community council meetings and he'd not know their names. Most meetings whether he was president at that time or not, he'd arrive late (or not at all sometimes). After arriving late, he'd rudely blather about some self aggrandizing thing he was doing in Nickels' office or at “Great Cities” – all sycophantic grandstanding-style ranting I figure one thing you gotta know how to do when you're late is to slip in silently, appologetically, and uninterruptingly. And late better be the rare exception to the rule of attendance. Mike is chronically late or absent.
I see no aptitude for the mayoral job in Mike's skill set.
What I see in him is a tendency to set up feifdom's at a time when we actually need major cross-boundary collaboration. He’s no planner either. As president of the GCC, he refused to make agendas for the year and refused to have executive committee meetings. His idea was that the GCC was sort of ad hoc when an issue (usually one he was on) came up and then in remission when there wasn't one. Therefore, results that come from long term efforts were not realized.
He's no environmentalist either by the way in my opinon. Mike is a lawyer and lobbyist. Also it’s important to remember how easily the density argument can be made by a politician who is in need of stuffing the coffers at city hall with new revenue at any expense. It’s called addicted to growth (for the wrong reasons). I’m pro growth, but to me planning for it is more than distributing density. I’m for healthy human habitat, not 2 dimensional “smart growth” arguments.
Somehow The Stranger said he stopped the FM big box back in 2004. That's not true. It was Greenwood Market refusing to sell out their lease to FM that stopped it. Mike made a lot of meetings come together at the City’s expense, but nothing environmentally striking about any of it. Mike actually could have made progress on getting the auto oriented zoning off that land, but he's more a schmoozer who likes to sit around the pickle jar with the big boys than an activist who might have something to say at that table of environmental consequence. I have never seen him doing anything but working on “a case” or “issue”. He is even the anti-vision guy. Whenever long range visioning has been at hand in Greenwood or beyond, he was no where to be found (I don't count 1998 neighborhood planning as long range visioning – more density distribution than visioning). He pretty much just works on his “case” or “issue”, goes to a hundred other meetings (late) with no follow up work plans coming out of any of them. When you show up late or not at all for an advisory or oversight committee you have been appointed to, it’s a form of squatting in my opinion. The point of these meetings is not to see how many you can attend, but to see how well you can follow up on with work plans and action.
When he sued Safeway (I believe on behalf of the Greenwood Community Council) to get $30K for his block of sidewalks and traffic calming when all of North Greenwood West was sinking from the dewatering of the bog, his “case” was traffic on N 87th from the Safeway that was going in not the dewatering which was the much larger issue at hand. As mayor you have to have a bead on a million issues and be at an altitude that allows you to survey them all and connect them to each other. The drilling down on single issues till it’s beat to death leads to people crawling from the wreckage and wondering where their lives went decades later. He’s sort of Mike “Eyman” McGinn in this issue fixation way. For the record, that Safeway building in Greenwood pumps 24 / 7 / 365 from the groundwater into the sewer through a 4″ pipe that consumes a lifetime of human use of water every couple of days. He couldn’t keep attention to that at the same time he was worrying about how he was going to get sidewalks and traffic calming on his own block and this kind of thing can be traced to all of his years in Greenwood. He’s looking at his next square to move to all the time and I would say that Mike should just stay a “recovering attorney” and lobbyist and let someone with better temperament, personal habits, and aptitude run this city through these difficult years we’re in and will be in for at least this 4 year mayoral term.
Sorry to go on and on, but I actually have quite a bit to say on this topic.
“that those of us you're putting in harm's way “
Judging by the awful way most cyclists ride in Seattle, Darwin will take care of most of them.
What about tuning my radio, is that safe in your perfect little world?
“I'm the one riding a bicycle on roads with exceptional drivers like you”
What is it about getting on a tricycle that makes so many adults so insufferably preachy?
Thank you. This is more than the all the local news sources combined. Why cover the mayoral elections for more than 45 seconds when there IS HUSKY FEVER SWEEPING SEATTLE!!
Feel free to continue.
Haha- Mallahan will single-handedly control the world concrete and steel markets if elected.
This is a sad and bitter rant from a spiteful person who didn't get her way at one time or another. I too have worked closely with Mike, and find nothing in this rant to be true at all.
Kate Martin, please tell us how that election for president of Greenwood Community Council turned out, that one where you ran against Mike. Could this be sour grapes?
I completely agree with your comments on Shuttle Express, but when you have to pay for this stuff out of your own pocket the parking adds up quickly.
I've taken the bus to the airport on those rare occasions where I'm flying out in the middle of the day and it was an absolute breeze. Cheap, fast, convenient.
On the flip side, I've stood around waiting forever for a cab that was so late I almost missed a flight, had my car dented in the parking lot, stood around forever waiting for the parking lot shuttle, and paid far too much over the “advertised price” for parking.
Kate –
Weren't you sued by SDOT for an illegal skate park in public right of way? And, because this made you so offended that you could not do whatever you want with public right of way, didn't stomp your feet and scream, to all the city that you are leaving all community activity?
And WTF made you so insufferable that you wish death to cyclists and insist that you are a uniquely perfect safe person who can do whatever you want?
I'm being totally transparent and responding to a request for specifics in relation to my comment that Mike McGinn has neither the temperament, personal habits, nor aptitude for mayoral material.
Why not focus on him instead of me? I am more than happy to respond to any questions about me, perhaps in a separate thread or under conditions when people aren't anonymous, but right now we have an election at hand and I'm giving a general summary and specific examples of my experience. I'm taking the long view forward and backward. I invite others to do the same.
Thanks for your candor Kate. I have heard much the same about McGinn. I can't and won't vote for him. I wish Mallahan was for the Burke Gilman trail completion, but maybe we can work on him. My vote is for Mallahan.
Umm Kate isn't running for Mayors office. This is a nice attempt to use a Bush tactic though. When someone has evidence, ignore it and attack the individual.
Nice.
Larry–Nice realistic approach. I get the sense that Mallahan can work with people. Interestingly, the comments about McGinn being difficult confirm what I already supspected and was concerned about. Neither candidate has the levl of experience we all wish for. The decision will come down to who do we think can play well with others, get things done, think critcally……and listen.
Kate:
If you look at the big picture, you would realize that A) McGinn's stance on transportation/land use is WAY closer to what you want – and have advocated for — for years, and B) Mallahan's empty suit is not going to give you what you want– better infrastructure and more money for it. He's not even in support of completing the Burke-Gilman trail. HOW EFFING RIDICULOUS IS THAT?
I think it's pretty insufferable for a walkability advocate to continually try to take down our best hope for getting a walkability/transit advocate in office who will be truly progressive, not just progressive in public relations.
Please, Kate Martin, for the love of god or whoever else, GET OVER IT ALREADY! It's so tiring.
Kate –
The comment is to you because you are attacking someone who shares the same views as you because you have some personal vendetta against him (maybe because he won an election against you). And, this path of irrational personal vendettas seems to be a common thread in your work. Your anger at SDOT is an example of how you react when you don't get what you want.
Sir sir….you're repeating McGinns BS. The money Seattle is putting up is for the sea wall and adjacent utilities and other items that are spent even in a street only option. The tunnel is fully funded with a 27% buffer included in the number. AAAAAK you guys!!!!
Why do you disagree with the cost? It's paid with a 27% buffer and we're only paying for the stuff related to seawall, road and utilities that we have to do anyway? I'd have preferred an entrance/exit on Elliot but this is a pretty spartan compromise when you consider how other options cause huge disruptions that lead to huge overruns.
Well someone did ask Kate to elaborate. Can you elaborate as well about your experience. I've read before that you like his ideals and that's all good but I just get the impression that his style is more geared toward city council work like Licata.
People will use a system when there is one. The current one is not. Support the tunnel so you can ride on the waterfront.
Yeah Joe's a terrible guy. Besides his T-mobile experience here from his web site: At the age of 31, Joe was appointed President of Century Supply Co. a home improvement retailer with 250 employees and 10 stores throughout Chicago. During that same time, he became an active community organizer and helped establish United Power for Action and Justice, a 10,000-member civic organization. He was trained in community organizing by the Industrial Areas Foundation—the same group that trained President Barack Obama. Joe worked with church members, neighborhood organizations and unions to press city and state officials to improve services for the poor and working class. This experience instilled in Joe the firm belief that empowering neighborhoods creates safer and better communities, and forces city government to deliver services more efficiently.
Yes, we've all heard about his bio, from his website. I'm curious to hear from folks who have actually worked with him so they can tell us about his management style, skills, and experience. Where are these people?
Well that's another layer of question. I'm just saying it's not honest to say he has no experience. I'm finding that he is laying out priorities, talking to those who have disagreed with him like the unions (which represent people who work like me) and others and is showing leadership skills during the runup to this election.
better future
Walkability? Are you suggesting that those of us who will miss the viaduct, but accept the tunnel should walk to where we need to go? The viaduct is used by thousands to bypass downtown and avoid going cross-town to get to points south or north–to the airport, to jobs, to deliver goods, etc. This obsession with walkability makes me crazy. Don't get me wrong–I deliberately live in Seattle because I can walk much of the time. I grew up in the suburbs and would never want to be that car dependent again, but get real! A legitimate bypass through downtown is absolutely vital. All those people you think are going to start walking or driving are just going to be driving east to I-5. Not everyone can be without a car–not everyone sits at a desk–commercial goods cannot walk themselves to your local store. Do the farmers market people walk with their crates of vegetables?
Ahem. McGinn has a plan to extend light rail to Ballard.
So the state is drilling a hole in the ground, but it will take another billion tax dollars from Seattle residents for it to be built safely and move everything. Sounds like a wonderful deal for a state highway that has no exits downtown and doesn't connect to Western.
Since when are blog comments evidence? You're some lawyer.
It might take more than your $700 to get Joe to change his mind. The anti-trail people are giving the max.
The tunnel will have no Western entrance, so either way Ballard residents will drive east to drive south. Improving walkability increases transit ridership, relieving congestion for freight and other critical trips.
The Unions only support Joe because he supports the tunnel and they think that will mean jobs. And, not all unions support Joe. SEIU is likely going to come after him becuase T-Mobile it very, very anti-union; and they recieved an F from the better business bureau for customer service, but that's another story.
Well no, that's not what I said. The money is being spent because of seawall, utilities and street stuff that we must do in Any case. You're saying we're doing it so it can be built safely not me. It has to get done if nothing at all is done including leaving the AWV standing.
the walkability that i speak of is about neighborhoods and Seattle, not the tunnel.
Right, like that's going to happen, like anyone wants that to happen.
A train that runs on unicorn tears.
Fantasy land again. Complete break from the real world.
Look, I live in Ballard and drive the viaduct at least several times every week. Occasionally that trip includes a stop downtown, but I can tell you (since you don't appear to use the highway or understand how others use it), getting into and out of downtown is not easy as it is, and is not the primary use of that route. It's primarily used to get PAST downtown Seattle, not into or out of it. And it carries a hell of a lot of traffic.
I usually get on 99 in Wallingford or Fremont, and bypass downtown, doing my business in the industrial area south of downtown. Only once in a long while do I go via Western (honestly, Western is too traffic-choked to be that useful).
While I would prefer a viaduct solution that included more direct access to downtown, that's a lot less critical than maintaining the road capacity through the city that the viaduct currently provides. I can live without the downtown access – I'll simply stop going downtown (it has become such a pain in the ass to go there anyway it's barely worth it now). So I'll stop spending my money downtown and will take my business elsewhere. I'm sure my money won't be missed when all the rich folks move into the multi-million-dollar condos that will be built on the viaduct site (the REAL reason that everyone wants to tear down the highway – nothing this town needs more than more million dollar condos).
Like I said, I can live without direct downtown access from Highway 99. But if the Highway 99 through route bypassing downtown was destroyed – as McGridlock wants – then many important things I currently do (things I've built my life around over the past 20 years) would really become impossible for me.
The idea of driving over to the U-District and getting on I-5 is laughable – and that's with traffic as it is now. But when the traffic on I-5 doubles (with all the Highway 99 traffic diverted there), that's just insane. Traffic would be backed up from Everett to Tacoma 18 hours a day – meanwhile all the traffic trying to squeeze onto I-5 would back up for miles. The cars lining up to get on I-5 on 85th and 80th would be backed up all the way to Golden Gardens – I'm serious. Nice “walkable” city this will be then….
Those who keep putting their heads in the sand, closing their eyes and wishing that this city can continue to function when it wrecks half its north-south highway capacity are so disconnected from reality it's hard to know where to begin.
On this planet, the “surface option” is a plan made by idiots for a dystopia that nobody would want to suffer through.
But please keep pushing this issue, please, McGridlock. You're going to lose in the most lopsided Seattle mayoral election in decades. I'm looking forward to watching that.
Oh, come on, Elaine. You are terribly interested in what anyone has to say about working with Mallahan, yet dismiss Kate when she has a wealth of imformation, not just opinions, about working with McGinn.
I have not worked with him, though I might have, if he showed up to any of the meetings that he was committed to that I attended.
I have heard from several others who report being shut down when trying to discuss current issues with him, as a mayoral candidate, when they are not in agreement with McGinn on the issue.
My take? He looks like he is waiting to grow into Nickels' suit.
Thank you, katemartin, I truly appreciate that you're willing to voice your opinion.
Neighborhoods can still be walkable with a tunnel…..in fact, the waterfront would be exceedingly walkable with a tunnel. How many crosswalk/stoplights are we promised? It seems the tunnel approaches meeting the needs of commerce as well as livability. It is less than perfect but the alternatives are far worse!
Personally, I prefer the viaduct. I just used it last night at 5:10 to get to Georgetown. People need another way to get south without using I-5 or going through downtown. McGinn is crazy.
What's so outrageous about that? It's how I get to the airport.
What is it about Seattlites that expect public transportation to be some magic carpet that will always pick you up and drop you off with no effort on their parts? Transfers are a part of public transport. Accept it. What's the rush anyway? Walk a few blocks. Sit back. Read. Arrive stress free.
Relax and read! Have a conversation with your travel partners. You can't seriously be saying that every minute of every day of yours is chalked up to “productivity”.