Seattle Sun Newspaper - Vol. 7, Issue 6, June 2003

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Seattle neighborhoods unite!

Coalition questions City's pledges to neighborhoods

By JAMES BUSH

Has the City kept the promises made during the neighborhood planning process?

That's what a group of Seattle neighborhood activists are determined to find out. Spurred by Mayor Greg Nickels' economic development proposals in areas including Northgate and the University District, the first Neighborhood Summit will assemble Saturday, May 31 at 10 a.m. at the South Lake Union Armory, 860 Terry Ave. N.

Phinney Ridge activist Irene Wall says the summit concept "has morphed into something that's much more productive, not just an executive bashing session."

However, there's no question that the process started with some executive bashing.

On May 1, a group of neighborhood leaders held a press conference to accuse the mayor of ignoring the results of neighborhood plans in assembling proposals to eliminate extra planning requirements for Northgate Mall, to remove a limit on the amount of office space the University of Washington can lease, and to target South Lake Union for transportation and infrastructure investments not even hinted at in its neighborhood plan.

Over the roar of construction equipment at a nearby building site, University District activist Matthew Fox accused Nickels of cutting deals behind closed doors. "He's essentially left all these neighborhoods behind," Fox said of the mayor.

The Nickels Administration responds that tough economic times call for bold economic development initiatives. At Northgate, mall owners Simon Property Group simply haven't been able to develop under the rules imposed by the early 1990s neighborhood-based planning process, says Deputy Mayor Tim Ceis. "I think we have given [the City Council] a very precise and clear package of changes that are necessary."

In the U-District, Ceis adds, the lease lid has simply outgrown its usefulness. The University of Washington needs the flexibility to lease space for research programs and local building owners could use more business. "The university is not a developer they're a consumer," says Ceis. "They're an important part of the economy."

Some area developers argue that the city is merely taking the necessary steps to get the development ball rolling. "We would be reluctant to pursue further development opportunities [at Northgate] without major commercial development taking place and without major residential development taking place," says Douglas Howe of Touchstone Corp., developers of the Northgate North shopping complex. "Unfortunately, at Northgate, all developers are waiting for the right signals."

Meanwhile, activists argue, Nickels is giving neighborhood groups all the wrong signals. Neighborhood planning was billed as an opportunity for residents, businesses, and property owners to shape the growth expected in their communities. Many Seattleites gave up countless evenings attending meetings and studying planning proposals. The resulting neighborhood plans were individually approved by the City Council.

But some former neighborhood planning stalwarts say they've already seen City officials start to brush aside neighborhood plan provisions when conflicts arise with current policy initiatives. Wall says there has simply been very little scrutiny to ensure that plans are indeed guiding neighborhood growth. "The plans have been in the box now for several years and there really isn't a good way of keeping track of whether they're being implemented or not," she notes.

The City Neighborhood Council (CNC), which Wall chairs, recently took the rare step of writing Mayor Nickels to question his administration's unwillingness to review the performance of neighborhood planning in areas where growth doesn't seem to be meeting the city's goals. The CNC, a 15-year-old advisory body set up to counsel the city on matters of planning and budgeting, includes one elected representative from each district council (which are, in turn, comprised of representatives appointed by each of the City's community organizations).

City Council member Nick Licata, who has joined colleagues Richard Conlin and Peter Steinbrueck to call for closer review of whether plans are panning out, says he thinks the goal is to work with the mayor, not fight him. He quotes former Mayor Norm Rice, who says that "compromise is the road to success."

Wall says the key to the summit is to figure out a way to gauge the successes and failures of the various neighborhood plans, while refocusing the City on its past promises to involve residents in decisions about capital investment, job targets, and growth. The City spent millions of dollars and benefited from thousands of volunteer hours during the neighborhood planning process, she says. "So why not preserve that investment rather than just let it dwindle away?"