2008 Endorsements for Ballot Measures

After careful consideration, Friends of Seattle endorses the following ballot measures.

Parks Levy, City Proposition 2
Sound Transit, Regional Proposition 1
Pike Place Market Levy, City Proposition 1

Vote YES on the Parks Levy, Proposition 2

This November, Seattleites will be asked to vote on a new Pro Parks Levy. We wrote an op-ed asking for this measure to be on the ballot, and now we believe it deserves your support. Here's why we're endorsing it:

Parks and green open spaces are a vital part of a sustainable, livable Seattle. The Pro Parks Levy, which expires at the end of this year, brought us neighborhood gems such as Cal Anderson Park, Ballard Commons Park, Greenwood Park, the Central Area's Homer Harris Park, Greenwood Park, and Northgate Park, as well as many other new green spaces and natural area restoration projects - over 40 acres in all. With a rapidly growing city, Seattle needs a fresh round of investments in green infrastructure - parks, sports facilities, walking trails, creek corridors, and natural drainage systems.

Proposition 2 includes $24 million for new parks in our urban villages, and $6 million for purchase of green spaces. It will fund the rehabilitation of 23 playgrounds, 4 new sportsfields, and stream and forest restoration, improve parts of the Burke-Gilman trail, as well as many other major parks projects across the city. The levy also provides for a robust Opportunity Fund which will allow neighborhoods to access money for additional community projects over the course of the levy. With the 2000 Pro-Parks Levy expiring, now is the time to make sure Seattle's parks and green spaces keep pace with the City's continued growth. Green infrastructure isn't a luxury; it's essential to meet our human needs and environmental responsibilities.

Friends of Seattle urges your "YES" vote on the Pro Parks Levy this fall.

More information: Here are the Council's ordinance, resolution, and attachments related to the parks levy. In particular, this PDF has tons of information about the projects and the funding for them.

Want to help? Join the Seattle Parks for All campaign - visit www.seattleparksforall.org. You can donate your time or money (or both,) and join with your neighborhood to help spread the word on the Parks Levy.

Vote YES on Sound Transit, Proposition 1

We finalized our endorsement decision after our informational event on Sept. 9.

We don't have to spend so much time stuck in traffic, breathing polluted air and warming the planet. This fall, vote for Sound Transit, vote for 36 new light-rail miles, 100,000 hours of new bus service every year, a First Hill streetcar, and more Sounder commuter-rail trips. Sail along rail from Northgate to Seattle in 15 minutes, zoom across 520 on bus rapid transit. The time for transit is now.

Every year that we postpone our shared transportation future, we continue the failures of those who came before us. In 1912, Seattle voters rejected a master plan for the city that would have built a 90-mile-long rapid-transit system with 33 subway miles. In 1968 and 1970, King County voters said no to the "Forward Thrust" rapid-transit plan, declining to accept hundreds of millions dollars in federal funding. That's the past.

It's time to turn to the future. For the cost of about 18 gallons of gas---just $69 per person per year---we can build a system with the capacity to carry one million riders per year. These transportation alternatives will help Seattle build more of the walkable, people-first neighborhoods we all want. Sound Transit expansion will help eliminate tons of greenhouse gas emissions, and will give us high-capacity rail infrastructure that makes us less vulnerable to the price of gas.

Sound Transit's Central Link trains will begin running at the end of next year, connecting downtown and South Seattle neighborhoods, all the way to the airport. And we can continue making short-term improvements in our bus system and other transportation infrastructure. But we aspire for more.

Please join us in voting for Proposition 1.

More information: To learn more about the package, visit the Sound Transit 2 website, the write-ups about our Q&A event in September, and the Mass Transit Now campaign site.

Want to help? Join the the Mass Transit Now campaign.

Vote YES on the Pike Place Market Levy, Proposition 1

When you think of what makes Seattle special, no doubt the Pike Place Market comes to mind. This fall, voters are asked to to approve a $73 million Market Levy, and we endorse this ballot measure. Here's why:

The Pike Place Market is the nation's oldest public farmers' market, turning 101 years old in 2008. It provides a public venue for locals and tourists alike, offers a central meeting place along the backbone of the city, and connects farms and craftspeople directly to buyers.

This levy includes largely physical upgrades to the Market: badly needed piping, seismic, and infrastructure improvements, more and better public restrooms, and elevator upgrades and additions. With the last Levy in the 1970's, it's time to make a new investment in a critical piece of Seattle's past and future.

Please vote "YES" on the Market Levy.