FOLLOWUP: Sound Transit Board gives staff go-ahead to pursue first ‘early property acquisitions’ for West Seattle light rail
Only one member of the Sound Transit Board voted “no” this afternoon on the first proposed “early property acquisitions” for the West Seattle light-rail extension – 25 parcels, including three in WS, as previewed here. Board member Bruce Dammeier, the Pierce County Executive, said he was concerned about granting potential condemnation authority for some parcels before the board even took a final vote on the actual routing, which isn’t expected before midsummer. Board chair Dow Constantine, the King County Executive (and a West Seattle resident), said it’s important to work with affected businesses early, and this approval was needed before they could do that. ST staff said the routing vote would likely come long before they completed the process of buying (or, if necessary, condemning) these properties, a process they said usually takes about two years, with initial negotiations lasting at least several months, and if those negotiations don’t succeed, condemnation (taking the property by “eminent domain”) would be “further down the road.” As reported here Tuesday, these are the three West Seattle parcels (the others are mostly in SODO) that were included in today’s vote:
(WSB photo, Delridge/Andover building that’s part of Frye Commerce Center parcel)
-Parcel # 7666704005 at 2414 SW Andover, the Frye Commerce Center (home to multiple businesses, east of Nucor, including Alki Beach Academy, PNTA, Uptown Espresso, Delridge Deli Mart, among others) – 191,113 square feet, currently valued at $17.4 million per King County
-Parcel # 7666703290 at 3800 West Marginal Way SW, the Riverside Mill site, 269,452 square feet, currently valued at $14.5 million per King County
-Parcel # 9358000465 on the northwest corner of 28th/Yancy, described as “vacant” – 10,000 square feet, currently valued at $357,000 per King County
The presentation at the meeting did not elaborate on any specific properties or describe why they are needed (the Frye center, however, has been clearly shown recently as in the footprint for the “preferred alternative” Delridge station). Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell (one of the city’s two reps on the ST Board) asked what happens for businesses once authorization like this is given, saying he’s heard businesses’ concerns. They’ll get immediate notice of eligibility for relocation help, he was told. Then Dammeier voiced his concerns; staff attempted to reassure him that no tenants would be displaced before the “record of decision” (that follows the board’s final routing decision, expected to follow within a month of the Final Environmental Impact Statement release “later this spring”). Some businesses might decide they want to move sooner rather than later, he was told, but none would be forced out any time soon.
The board heard from one nearby business owner during the public-comment period at the start of today’s meeting – Erin Rubin of Mode Music Studios (WSB sponsor), on property not part of today’s vote but adjacent to the Frye parcel. Saying she also was speaking for The Skylark next door, Rubin spoke of displacement concerns and the difficulty of finding a suitable location elsewhere in West Seattle. She pointed to Sound Transit policies that stipulated more consideration for businesses in those situations.
Also speaking during the comment period was Marilyn Kennell, a homeowner in the light-rail line’s potential path between the Delridge and Avalon stations. She asked for a “seat of the table” and further discussion of the impacts of the project, both financial – businesses and job losses – and environmental, citing “needless deforestation and destruction of natural habitat.”
WHAT’S NEXT: For the owners and tenants on the “early acquisition” sites, notification and negotiation. For the project overall, ST continues to proceed toward the aforementioned Final Environmental Impact Statement, which is supposed to include responses to concerns raised after the Draft EIS was released, and a final decision on “the project to be built” will follow. On the current timeline, construction is supposed to start in 2027, and West Seattle service in 2032.
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