November 7, 2002

Green light for the Green Line?

With Seattle's monorail initiative in the lead, organizers may soon begin rolling up their sleeves to get the $1.75 billion first phase going.

The first step would be dissolving the Elevated Transportation Co. and replacing it with a new governing body called the Seattle Popular Monorail Authority.

"The whole agency needs to get going," said Robert Griebenow, senior project manager with Berger/ABAM Engineers, one of the project's consultants. "They have to hire staff and consultants the same way the ETC did. It's not as easy as continuing what has been done. The agency needs to re-create itself again."

Tom Weeks, ETC board chairman, said the Seattle Popular Monorail Authority would go into existence only if the initiative passes. The vote, which had a slim lead yesterday, is expected to be certified later this month after absentee ballots are tabulated.

"There's still many, many votes to be counted," warned Weeks. "We are not assuming anything. We are not claiming victory in this race."

If the monorail is approved, Weeks said the ETC board will become the interim board of the new organization until a permanent board is selected. He said the ratification process for the Seattle Popular Monorail Authority could be done as early as December, or it could take a few months.

"We haven't met as a board yet, it's premature," Weeks said.

A design/build contractor is expected to build the first phase, known as the Green Line. Weeks said engineering, design and permitting would take about two years and construction another two. Construction costs are estimated at $1.29 billion.

"Our primary goal is to have people riding on this system in 2007," he said.

The final environmental impact statement for the programmatic phase was finished in July. Griebenow said development of a construction EIS could get under way as the agency gets on its feet, and could be finished in 2004.

That EIS would likely include more specific locations for the Green Line's 19 stations. Griebenow said input from affected neighborhoods would be used to help determine those locations. Also, alignment profiles would be finalized, such as what part of the streets the track will hang over and how turns will be made.

"We need to look into it in more detail," he said about the schedule.

One of the preferred station locations is Pioneer Square's "sinking ship" garage site at Second Avenue and Yesler Way.

William Justen, managing director of Samis Land Co., said he talked to the ETC about developing housing adjacent to and possibly above the station. Samis owns property on three sides of the sinking ship.

Justen also said he would like to create a visual extension from Occidental Avenue to Second and Yesler by building a pedestrian walkway across the sinking ship site. "Right now the sinking ship is a blockade," he said.

"We think a monorail station and pedestrian connection across the sinking ship site would be very beneficial to Pioneer Square," Justen said.

Another issue that will be looked at is the fate of the 1962 World's Fair monorail that runs from Seattle Center to Westlake. It stands in the way of the new system.

Griebenow said alternatives include building a separate parallel track for the new system, building new beams with three tracks to share with the old system, or getting rid of it altogether.

"The plan is to take it down," Weeks said, adding he doesn't believe it will get the historical designation that some are seeking. "We would commit to the historic route, but not use the existing columns and beams."

The Green Line is part of a larger plan for a 58-mile, five-line citywide monorail system. Tuesday's vote was only for the first phase. No price tag or schedule has been set for the other lines.

The Green Line would run from Ballard to West Seattle through downtown, Seattle Center and past the baseball and football stadiums. Trains would run every 4-6 minutes during rush hour and 8-10 minutes at other times.

A traditional monorail system with rubber tires that straddles a single beam is planned -- similar to Seattle's existing monorail. The system would have one northbound and one southbound track.

Backers estimate 20.4 million passengers a year would use the Green Line by 2020. That's about 69,000 riders each week day.

If the initiative passes, Seattle drivers will be faced with a 1.4 percent annual motor vehicle excise tax. That's about a buck a day for the owner of a $25,000 car.