Written by Liberty High Graduate Tim Lincecum just won the most coveted pitching award in Baseball. Congratulations to Tim and his family!
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Renton must insist on our fair share of transit dollars; service must improve
Sound Transit Phase 2 won by a wide margin on Tuesday night, showing once-again our region’s commitment to environmental responsibility and world-class transportation infrastructure. The new light rail will undoubtedly be a valuable system when it is complete.
Now, the pressure will be on to make sure Renton does not get left out in the cold by the new system improvements.
Most Renton residents do not realize that prior to last Tuesday’s vote, City of Renton residents were paying a combined total of 30 MILLION DOLLARS PER YEAR for transit service to our city. This money was being collected as sales tax and property tax, to be used for Metro and Sound Transit service. With 85 thousand residents in about 30,000 households, this equates to roughly ONE-THOUSAND DOLLARS PER HOUSEHOLD PER YEAR for transit service to Renton. I don’t know about you, but I question whether we have been getting an appropriate level of service back for these dollars.
Specifically, I think of the downtown transit center. To Metro’s credit, they did find three million dollars to build this center, and the city was grateful for that. But note that the three million was about 10 % of our ANNUAL payment for transit.
And since the construction of the transit center, Metro has done very little to help us keep it feeling safe and convenient for our residents. For example, Renton taxpayers ended up paying for a parking garage for which we lease stalls to King County Metro when it was apparent that parking was going to be a problem. In addition, we paid for a new police substation to be installed near the transit center, to discourage loitering and mischief, again at an additional cost to Renton taxpayers. And most expensively, we now pay for extra police patrols, and some private security, to improve the conditions at the transit center. Considering we send Metro 20 million dollars a year, and Sound Transit 10 million dollars a year, you would hope that these agencies could pay for some Metro Police to help us with some of this work.
Sound Transit has let us down in another key area. While they committed in Phase 1 to put in two new HOV direct access freeway access point, to help buses swiftly get on and off I-405 near the center of town, they were unable to deliver on either of these. The 100 Million dollars (of Renton taxpayer’s money) which was budgeted for this has not been spent to help our local transit system. The only consolation we have since received is that Sound Transit is, to their credit, helping us with $19 million for improvements to the Rainier Avenue corridor to give buses and HOV lane. This is good, and I support it, but it is still only 19 cents on the dollar of what we were promised in Phase 1.
NOW WITH PHASE TWO TAXES, Renton households will be paying another $69 per year, and some people say several times that depending on inflation modeling assumptions, ridership, cost overruns, or other factors.
I WANT YOU TO KNOW that I remain a huge fan of transit. I have been to many cities in the US, Asia and Europe that have extraordinary transit systems that do the lion’s share of moving people around within the urban areas. And these systems are fun and convenient to ride.
But we need to make sure our 85,000 Renton residents are not left out in the rain while everyone else manages to hop a ride. This means we need to remind Sound Transit of their promises on new express bus service, make sure Metro is using large enough coaches on their Renton routes, and make sure that they keep their transit center clean and safe. We also need to ask Sound Transit to make promised capital improvement investments in our city. With 85,000 residents, Renton is twice the size of Redmond, four times larger than Mercer Island, and as big as Federal Way…all cities that have been assured good access to the new light rail extensions. While we will not have good rail access, we need to be included in bus system improvements, and see good return for our existing thousand-dollars per year, plus our new half-cent on the dollar in Sales Tax for Sound Transit Phase 2.
Click here for the Seattle Times story on Sound Transit Phase Two.
Passing of Sue Carlson; early visionary for The Landing, kicked off “Ahead of the Curve” campaign
We got this very sad news today:
_________________________________________
Dear Friends,
It saddens me to have to tell you that Sue Carlson passed away this morning
following a valiant battle against cancer. She died peacefully with her family
by her side at 5:30 this morning.
We all know the significant role Sue played in shaping how Renton has become in
this region. She was also a very good friend to many of us who have had the
opportunity to know her all these years.
A special celebration will be planned in a couple weeks, and we will be sure to
let you know the details.
Thanks.
Denis
______________________________________________________________________
Here is an update of a journal entry I wrote regarding Sue about a year ago:
Year 2000 Public Employee of the year Sue Carlson advises (then councilman) Denis Law
I had the honor of serving as City Council President the year that our amazing Economic Development/Long Term Planning Administrator, Sue Carlson, won the title of Outstanding Public Employee from the King County Municipal League for her contributions in turning Renton’s economic fortunes around. That year we got the veterans park and the Henry Moses Aquatic Center started with year-end fund balance windfalls. These revenue windfalls came from new sales tax collections from new retail businesses Sue had recruited. That same year also began the advanced planning for the Landing, as you can see in the Municipal League write-up (linked below).
Sue Carlson had a strong passion for the Renton Community, and remained active in city events right up to the end of her life. I last spoke with her a couple months ago at the Bench Dedication for Jess Tanner in front of city hall.
Back in 1993, Sue helped encourage Denis Law to start the Renton Reporter, as a means to give our city an identity, a sense of community, a way to market itself to outside businesses, and a way for Renton businesses to advertise.
This was around the same time that she was working hard to market our city to the Spirt of Washington Diner Train and IKEA, both businesses which enhanced our community.
Sue Carlson was widely known as one of the greatest Economic Development experts in our state, and we finally lost her only because her private sector value was so high that our city could only pay her about a fraction of her market value. Her last few years with our city were very charitable on her part, given the outside job-offers she was passing on. She was always a great believer in Renton.
Her love of our City was so strong that I once found her teary-eyed after seeing a particularly brutal “Almost Live” parody about our city. I attempted to comfort her, reminding her that it was comedy, and I did not think it would really hurt our image that much. But to Sue, it was as if her own child had been teased on TV. We were that important to her.
Muni News
VOLUME 90, ISSUE 5 – MAY Special Edition 2000
Municipal League Announces 2000 Civic Award Winners
The Municipal League of King County will honor several citizens and organizations that have made outstanding contributions to our community at the League’s Annual Civic Awards luncheon on Friday, June 2, 2000, from noon to 1:30 p.m. at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center. All community members are encouraged to join the Municipal League in this celebration of civic excellence.
Since 1960, the Municipal League has recognized citizens, government leaders and organizations that work hard to improve the quality of life in the Puget Sound region. The 2000 Civic Award winners truly represent what the Municipal League of King County is all about: fostering open, efficient and accountable government. Each of these award winners made significant contributions to our community over the past year and the Municipal League is pleased to recognize them at the Civic Awards luncheon.
CIVIC AWARD HONOREES FOR YEAR 2000
Public Employee of the Year: Sue Carlson, Director of Economic Development and Strategic Planning, City of Renton
In her position with the City of Renton, Sue Carlson is responsible for planning, organizing, directing and evaluating all economic development activities for the city. Since joining the City of Renton in 1993, she has persuaded numerous major businesses to move to the city, including IKEA, HomeBase, and City University. She also played a key role in the development of a $400 million, 60-acre business campus that will ultimately provide jobs for 10,000 people.
Learn more by reading this blog entry from a former direct report to Sue.
Sue looks on as we dedicate a bench and plaque to former mayor Jesse Tanner two months ago (September 8, 2008). Pretty, kind, and cheerful, even in her final months battling cancer.
Issaquah Press: “Unincorparated Area Councils,” including the East Renton area, meet with the County
The Issaquah Press ran this story about the Unincorporated Area Councils, including the 4-Creeks Council between Renton and issaquah. As expected, county budget cuts are high on everyone’s worry list right now. In the city we are a bit more insulated in some areas (local services), but the county budget still affects many regional services we depend on.
Happy All Saints day Renton!
A great performance by two American stars; Jazz great Louis Armstrong and singer/actor (and first Seattle Mariners owner) Danny Kaye.
Fall colors
The maples which tower over my home looked almost on fire when I arrived home today. The colors are so beautiful right now.
Budget discussions are going well; expected to be complete by November 17
In spite of the rough economy, our Renton City Budget discussions are going very well. The Mayor and city staff did an excellent job on the draft budget, and our work has been focussed and productive.
Citizens can weigh-in at public hearings on November 10 and 17, or by sending us an email (or even by commenting to me here on my blog). The budget document is online HERE.
We expect to be able to finalize the 2009 budget on November 17, almost a month ahead of the schedule we followed in other years. This will give staff a little more time to put it into motion, and give us a little more breathing room during the holiday season.
Shannon Harvey, Prinicpal of Renton’s Cascade Elementary, wins a coveted national award
Congratulations to Ms. Hudson! Her performance at Cascade Elementary has been amazing.
Mayor Law briefly left our budget retreat today to represent us all at the award presentation. The council was very excited to hear the details when he rejoined us.
Here is the story in the Associated Press:
Last updated October 29, 2008 10:19 a.m. PT
Renton elementary principal wins national award
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
RENTON, Wash. — The principal of Cascade Elementary School in Renton is the Washington winner of a prestigious national award that comes with a $25,000 prize.
When state schools chief Terry Bergeson visited Shannon Harvey’s school on Wednesday morning, the principal thought Bergeson was giving the school a new state award. News that she won the Milken Educator Award came as a surprise.
Bergeson spoke of Harvey’s vision: her ability to keep the school running smoothly day-to-day while also achieving long-term goals. Under her leadership, Cascade has gone from 48 percent of students passing the reading test of the Washington Assessment of Student Learning to 81 percent passing the test.
Harvey has been principal at Cascade since 2004.
Council will work on the budget all day on Wednesday
Denis Law delivered his first budget proposal to us last night. He did an excellent job on the presentation, and my first impression is that the budget does a good job of achieving essential levels of service in a very difficult financial year. Denis proposed a number of position freezes, in which we leave openings vacant, but has formulated a budget which appears to require no layoffs. He also has not tapped the rainy day fund; although he does take appropriate advantage of multi-year funding streams, such as equipment rental funds, to ensure the city continues to operate smoothly.
Tomorrow I am taking the day off from Boeing to spend eight hours going through the budget details with the rest of my council colleagues. We will surely have questions for the mayor, and his department heads, as we make Denis’s budget into a council budget.
I’m sure the end product will not be vastly different from what was proposed; we have been working different aspects of the proposal over the last few months, and Denis and his team have outstanding management skills and a good understanding of council priorities.
I was impressed to hear the list of things we have accomplished in 2008, even with the souring economy.
Here is Denis’s complete budget message along with highlights of his proposed budget. The total spending under this plan would be 2% higher than the 2008 budget.
Ken Usui, a friend and colleague from Boeing, leaves us too soon
Ken signed the FAA submittal paperwork for all the airplane deliveries out of Renton for about ten years during the 1990’s. He was a great guy, and a nice friend. He died while dancing on October 18. I’m going to miss him.
King 5 News: Renton Man Dies in Heroic Act
A Renton man helping save victims in a Califonia car accident was killed by another driver. Read the story here
Accused sign thief identified…
Chares have been filed against Randall Goulet in the case of the yard sign thefts. Here are more details in the Renton Reporter.
Pictures from the Regal theater opening at the Landing
The Regal Cinema at the Landing opened last week. It’s a beautiful place, with super-comfortable seats and ample free-parking in the adjacent new garage. Those of us living in Renton Highlands finally have a theater close by.
Here are a few shots from the opening event.
Sheriff Sue Rahr says public safety is in peril; meeting in Skyway tonight
Sheriff Sue Rahr has been sounding the alarm that proposed King County budget cuts are putting public safety “in peril”. City council received a notice, sent to a wide range of city officials, on this topic last week.
Tonight, she is hosting a meeting in Skyway to discuss what these proposed cuts could mean to the Sheriff’s office, and to citizens who rely on King County for local police protection (unincorporated areas). This is one of four “town-meeting” style forums she is planning on this topic.
The politics are interesting, since Sheriff is an elected position– just like King County Council and King County Executive. Hence, Sheriff Rahr is on solid ground making a pitch to constituents that she needs more money or else they will see a cut in services. How this will play to the King County Council budget writers remains to be seen.
Renton City Council and Mayor Law continue to make local public safety our highest priority, and we do not anticipate any police policy shifts or noticeable service shifts as a result of the current economic downturn. Bad guys in Renton won’t be getting any slack. But the county police issues can still affect us when we travel/work/shop/etc in unincorporated areas.
Tonight’s meeting details are as follows:
October 22nd
7:00 – 8:30 pm
Skyway United
Methodist Church
11800 Renton Ave S
Seattle, WA 98178
Here is a King 5 Story with more information about the proposed cuts
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