CORRECTION: Shoreline receives $2.3 million for road diet on 175th opposed by businesses

CORRECTION: A previous version of this article incorrectly named John Sims as the current owner of Frank Lumber when in fact, Sims sold the business to long-time employees last year. The previous article also claimed Sims has opposed pedestrian safety projects over concerns they will harm Frank Lumber’s business. Sims and the current owners of Frank Lumber dispute this claim and said they support traffic safety measures, and disagree that road diets will make the North City neighborhood safer.

 

By Oliver Moffat 
Shoreline received $2.3 million for a road diet on NE 175th, but the city scrapped a road diet in 2018 after businesses complained

In December, the city of Shoreline received a $2.3 million grant from WSDOT to implement a road diet on NE 175th Street from 5th Ave NE to 15th Ave NE - one of the city’s most dangerous roads. 

A map from the WSDOT website shows the locations of 10 years of fatal and serious injury crashes along NE 175th St 

NE 175th Street, especially at its intersection with 10th Ave NE, has seen a high number of injury collisions involving pedestrians and bicyclists. 

Since the city cancelled a road diet plan in 2018, there have been 32 serious-injury crashes on that segment of road and in 2020, a fatal collision occurred at the intersection at 10th Ave. 

Last year, pedestrian, fatal, and serious injury crashes in Shoreline hit record highs. 

Proposed safety improvements for 175th and 10th the city cancelled in 2018. A fatal collision occurred at the intersection in 2020

In 2018, after injury collisions doubled on NE 175th, Shoreline commissioned a peer-reviewed technical analysis that recommended repainting the stripes from four to two travel lanes with a center turn lane and bike lanes during a routine repaving project. 

Studies have shown safety projects like this (sometimes called road diets or re-channelizations) reduce crashes, save lives and are relatively inexpensive to complete. 

A nearby road diet in 2003 on 15th Ave NE between 150th and 175th resulted in slower speeds, decreased traffic volumes, fewer crashes, and a 30.9% drop in the number of injury collisions. 

But in 2019 the city quietly rolled back the NE 175th Street road diet plan, saying only that a “combination of factors” led to the decision. 

The city’s 2018 technical analysis showed the road diet would make intersections at 8th and 10th safer for pedestrians by improving visibility and reducing the number of lanes pedestrians needed to cross. 

And traffic engineers found that the road diet would make the street safer for drivers, especially while making left turns at 8th and 10th. 

The council has directed city staff to build bike lanes along 175th street since at least 2011, when, after public hearings and review by the planning commission, the council adopted a Transportation Master Plan including a Bicycle System map with bike lanes on 175th. 

The city council and planning commission again directed the city to build bike lanes on 175th in the Transportation Element of the recently adopted Comprehensive Plan.

In 2016, the council passed Shoreline’s Complete Streets ordinance mandating that all road projects include safe and convenient improvements for people walking, biking, and using public transit; under the ordinance, road projects are not supposed to only benefit motorists. 

Adopting the ordinance has allowed the city to receive grants in 2022, 2019, and 2017.

According to the 2018 technical analysis, although the road diet could add travel time for drivers on 175th, those delays would not have exceeded the city’s congestion maximums defined in the 2011 Transportation Master Plan and the 2022 Transportation Element.

When the city council last discussed the NE 175th road diet in 2022, staff said the city met for hours in contentious meetings with business owners concerned about congestion before deciding to cancel the road diet in 2018. 

A city spokesperson said work on the project hasn’t started yet and before spending grant funds, they will conduct a preliminary study to assess traffic delays and congestion impacts and may return the funding and explore other options. 

Will the same “combination of factors” lead the city to return the $2.3 million grant this time?

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No easy solution to Shoreline’s 175th problems

More than fifty activists with Save Shoreline Trees and Tree Action Seattle rallied on 175th against the city’s plan to expand sidewalks and add bike lanes that could remove more than 274 trees
Photo by Oliver Moffat

By Oliver Moffat

175th is a problem with no easy solutions. Traffic jams and crashes are back to pre-pandemic levels and an earthquake could send the road into Ronald Bog. Metro’s new 333 bus is coming soon to the road. The city wants people to walk and bike more but pedestrians (including students) must brave crossing up to seven lanes of traffic. 

Activists want the city to narrow sidewalks to save trees and businesses have fought road diets in the past. Whatever happens, everyone in the region will be impacted for decades to come.

An arial photo shows the 75 foot crosswalk at the intersection of Meridian and 175th where pedestrians must brave five lanes of car traffic in all directions

On Sunday, May 19, 2024 more than fifty activists with Save Shoreline Trees and Tree Action Seattle turned out for a rally on 175th to protest the City's plan to widen 175th between Aurora and I-5 to make room for pedestrians and bicyclists which could cost over $88 million and require chopping down 274 trees.

With traffic jammed (as usual) on 175th street, passing drivers honked enthusiastically, showing their support for the activists’ calls to save trees by narrowing the proposed sidewalks.

Shoreline city council member Keith Scully even stopped by to show his support.

Flyers distributed by Save Shoreline Trees called on the city to reduce sidewalks to 7 feet or less and said 13 foot sidewalks are unnecessary. The group said they don’t want 175th to be “devastated” like 145th where the city removed more than 300 trees to make way for sidewalks and roundabouts to support the light rail station opening later this year.

Trees increase walkability by providing shade and mitigate urban heat islands caused by large expanses of pavement, according Sandy Shettler from Tree Action Seattle. “Walkability includes shade. These are the public’s trees and they should be saved for the good of public health” she said while waving to passing cars.

A map from the Washington State Patrol Collision Analysis Tool shows the locations of ten years of crashes along 175th between Aurora and I-5 

Plagued by traffic jams, N 175th Street between I-5 and Aurora is Shoreline’s busiest city street with more than 20,000 vehicle trips per day. It’s also one of the city’s most dangerous roads. According to data from the Washington State Patrol, collisions on N 175th Street have roared back to pre-pandemic levels: in 2019 there were 77 crashes; in 2023 there were 76.

Starting in 2019, the city collected feedback from over 1,500 residents to list their top priorities for 175th street: pedestrian walkability, solving traffic jams, and improving safety were the top three priorities. 

Although the city didn’t ask specifically about tree preservation, “landscaping character” was rated at the bottom of the wishlist just above bike lanes by Shoreline residents.

To address traffic jams, the city won’t be able to make the road much wider - it’s already a five-lane road and is over 75 feet wide. It narrows to four lanes at Wallingford where it squeezes between rock retaining walls and spreads out to seven lanes at Aurora. Because of the phenomenon known as Induced Demand, adding more lanes probably wouldn’t help.

But traffic jams are just the start of the problems. When the city started designing the project, they discovered an earthquake could cause 175th to “slip and slide” into nearby Ronald Bog and received an $8 million grant from FEMA to rebuild the road.

Flyers distributed by Save Shoreline Tree called 175th “a primary access route to I-5 and a truck route” and said because there was no light rail station, wider sidewalks weren’t necessary. But later this year, Metro’s new route 333 will provide frequent, cross-town bus service along 175th street, increasing pedestrian traffic on the road.

The city’s Transportation Element Bicycle Plan, adopted by the city council in 2022, promises bike lanes on 175th street that would be safe enough for children to ride on.

At the rally, Susanne Tsoming, co-chair of Save Shoreline Trees, when asked about the city’s plan said, “It’s a major arterial and not made for strolling… I think it’s insane to ride a bike on this road with cars.”

Parents and students, who must brave five lanes of car traffic to get to Meridian Park elementary, want the city council to do something about traffic safety on 175th. Between I-5 and Aurora there are only seven crosswalks and the road can be up to 90 feet wide.

The location of trees to be removed to make way for sidewalks and a bike lane near Meridian Park elementary are shown on a map from the arborist report 

The city’s Climate Action Plan says vehicles are the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Shoreline and sets a goal to get more people to ride busses and bikes. Shoreline’s Complete Streets policy requires road projects to be designed for the safe and convenient access of all users including pedestrians, bicyclists and transit users; not just motorists.

On the other side of town, the city’s Transportation Improvement Plan calls for a road diet on the east side of I-5 that (instead of expanding the width of the road) would shrink NE 175th St from four lanes to three while adding bike lanes. 

A table shows the number of car lanes and widths of the seven crosswalks pedestrians must brave while crossing 175th street between Aurora and I-5.

That plan would cost about $2.3 million without removing trees. Although the U.S. Department of Transportation says road diets improve safety and calm traffic, twenty years ago the city council rolled back a plan to put 15th Ave NE in the North City business district on a road diet after push back from businesses.

On May 20, the city council was scheduled to vote on adoption of the Transportation Improvement Plan. And the council was scheduled to discuss a plan to roll out Scooter and Bike Sharing in the city. The Natural Environment and Transportation sections of the Comprehensive Plan were also on the agenda.

UPDATE: At the June 3rd city council meeting, the 175th street project will be back on the agenda for discussion.

A presentation from Save Shoreline Trees is no longer on the agenda. In an email, Kathleen Russell from Save Shoreline Trees said, “Although the City initially approved our application for a presentation, we are not in agreement on the guidelines and we have withdrawn our application.” 

On June 10, the much anticipated (and overdue) Annual Traffic Report will be reviewed by the city council and Traffic Enforcement Cameras will be discussed. The council will vote on whether to add Scooters and Bicycle Sharing to Shoreline’s roads.

On June 24, before the council adjourns for their summer vacation, the Commute Trip Reduction Plan will be reviewed.

5-23-2024 Save Shoreline Trees will not be making a presentation at the June 3rd council meeting.

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175th tests Shoreline’s commitment to bike lanes and tree preservation

By Oliver Moffat

This is the second article of four covering comments from the city council about Shoreline’s proposed Transportation Improvement Plan that was reviewed on April 15.

A map from the WSDOT crash data portal shows ten years
of fatal and serious injury collisions along 175th 

According to data from WSDOT, in the past ten years, there have been eleven serious injury crashes and one fatal crash along 175th street, making it one of Shoreline’s most dangerous roads.

The transportation improvement plan lists two very different projects for 175th street - one on the east side of I-5 and one on the west.

The proposed safety changes on the east side would put 175th between 5th and 15th on a road diet - narrowing the four-lane road to three while adding bike lanes without widening the road (or removing trees). The east side project is unfunded and could cost an estimated $2.3 million.

The west side projects would widen the road to add more capacity for vehicles, mitigate earthquake risks and make room for shared use paths for pedestrians and bicyclists. The west side portion is partially funded, has a projected cost of over $88 million and will require the removal of 274 trees.

A screen shot shows Council member Annette Ademasu saying, “I would like to see options where we can see reduced width sidewalks”

Councilmember Annette Ademasu told city engineers to provide options with narrower sidewalks. “I would like to see options where we can see reduced width sidewalks and have less impervious surfaces and be able to save more trees and go around trees,“ she said.

Ademasu also indicated she prefers continuing to keep 175th bike-free. “I really like how you’re doing the bike corridors on the slower paced roads because that will help with bike safety,” she said.

Bike lanes on 175th have been part of Shoreline’s Bike Plan since at least 2011 and the new Transportation Element of Shoreline’s Comprehensive Plan envisions protected biked lanes that would be safe enough for children to ride on.

A screen shot shows Council member Keith Scully saying, “what compromises can we make in order to save trees? And the test for me is 175th.”

Councilmember Keith Scully told city staff, “so instead of saying: ‘how wide do we need it to move pedestrians most efficiently? How protected does the bike lane need to be for maximum safety?’… Let’s start by saying what sacrifices can we make, what compromises can we make in order to save trees. And the test for me is 175th.“

An aerial view shows the 175th and Meridian intersection, the location of phase-one of the 175th corridor project and the site where a collapse could be caused by an earthquake 

The 175th project will be completed in phases starting with phase one which includes seismic mitigations and improvements to the intersection of 175th and Meridian Ave.

The city says an earthquake could cause portions of 175th street adjacent to Ronald Bog to collapse and has applied for grants to pay for the mitigations.

Scully and Ademasu worked together to bring the 175th street project back for discussion again at the June 3rd city council meeting.

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Correction to previous article

Frank Lumber The Door Store

A previously published article (Shoreline receives $2.3 million for road diet on 175th opposed by businesses) incorrectly named former owner of Frank Lumber and the Door Store John Sims as one of the business owners in opposition to the City's plan for 15th NE.

In fact, Sims has sold his business to long-time employees. 

The previous article also claimed Sims had opposed pedestrian safety projects over concerns they would harm Frank Lumber’s business. Sims and the current owners of Frank Lumber dispute this claim and said they support traffic safety measures, and disagree that road diets will make the North City neighborhood safer.

The article has been updated. Our apologies to Mr. Sims

--Editor Diane Hettrick

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Community provides feedback on Bike Plan Implementation Project

On October 18, the City held an open house for the Bike Plan Implementation project. Approximately 35 people, ranging from high school students to seniors, attended, providing feedback on the project proposals. The primary feedback was:

• Concern about parking removal associated with the proposed bike lanes on 25th Ave NE in front of Kellogg Middle School, and Shorecrest High School
• Wanting bike facilities/ a road diet on Richmond Beach Road west of 8th Ave NW 
• Wanting better separation for bicyclist along the major east-west routes (185th, 155th, 175th, 145th)

As a result of the feedback and further analysis, bike lanes for 25th Ave NE will not be implemented as part of the current Bike Plan Implementation Project.

Instead, the City will implement bike facilities on 5th Ave NE from NE 155th St to NE 175th and on 8th Ave from NW 195th St to NW 205th St as outlined in the City of Shoreline’s 2011 Transportation Master Plan and the 2014 Bike Master plan.

The decision to remove the planned bike lanes on 25th Ave NE from the current project does not mean 25th Ave NE will not receive bike lanes in the future.

According to Public Works staff, "We have heard the public’s concerns and we will take more time to analyze 25th Ave NE to determine if there is a solution that would adequately address the public’s concerns as we work together to build out Shoreline’s Transportation Master Plan.

Learn more about the Bike Plan Implementation Project here or contact Capital Projects Manager John Ricardi at jricardi@shorelinewa.gov or 206-801-2420.

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Shoreline council micromanages 175th pedestrian project

A sign warns pedestrians to stay off 175th street. photo by Oliver Moffat

By Oliver Moffat

On Monday, June 3, council members Keith Scully and Annette Ademasu called the city’s traffic engineers back to the council chambers to listen to input from residents concerned about trees that will be removed to make way for sidewalks and bike lanes along the 175th corridor.

“I think a check-in at this point when it’s not too late to make some changes seemed to make a lot of sense,” said council member Keith Scully about why he called for the study session while also acknowledging, “this is more council micromanagement then I usually support.”

The Shoreline city council has approved the 175th corridor project seven times since 2018; not to mention the times when the council reviewed the plan in the Transportation Improvement Plan and the Capital Improvement Plan. 

The city reviewed input from over 1,500 residents and incorporated the council-approved Climate Action Plan, Transportation Master Plan, Transportation Element, Complete Streets Ordinance, ADA Transition Plan, and the Sidewalk Prioritization Plan.

Although the project is complicated, there was little debate about the intersection of 175th and Meridian.

In 2003, a city risk assessment, warned it was built on pilings driven into soil that “has the potential for liquefaction” - now (twenty years later) an earthquake could still send the road “slipping and sliding” into nearby Ronald Bog along with sewage from neighborhood residents.

“While we can’t replace a mature tree, we can’t replace a life. And the safety aspects have been enumerated several times by people in the audience,” said Deputy Mayor Laura Mork. “I think it’s imperative we get phase one done to be safe as soon as possible,” she said about the Meridian intersection.

A screen shot from the city staff report shows the 51 foot bottleneck from Densmore to Wallingford where 175th squeezes four traffic lanes through rock retaining walls topped by mature conifer trees.

There was less unanimity about subsequent phases of the project - especially the 51 foot bottleneck from Densmore to Wallingford where 175th squeezes four traffic lanes through rock retaining walls topped by mature conifer trees.

Council member Annette Ademasu asked city staff to consider a proposal from Save Shoreline Trees that would shrink the sidewalks to five feet and detour bike lanes up 178th street. “That would be just a couple minutes out of the way,” she said about the 178th street bike route.

In written comments, city staff said, “eliminating bike facilities from any portion of the 175th Corridor Project is not in alignment with the City’s Complete Streets ordinance, Bike Plan (TE), and would make the pursuit of future construction funding difficult.“ 

Grant applications for bike lanes and sidewalks that meet route directness and level of traffic stress standards are more competitive.

Although Representative Pramila Jayapal recently announced she requested $3 million for 175th, the city doesn’t have the estimated $88 million needed for the project.

“What I’m concerned about is the cost,” said Council member Eben Pobee. “I don’t entirely agree with redesigning everything. That would not be a good decision financially,” he said. But he said he supported incorporating additional discreet modifications to save more trees.

Citing data from the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, council member John Ramsdell said, “the most important thing we have to do is reduce the amount of CO2 and greenhouse gasses we are emitting and that is going to be the most effective way we can save our planet. And so when I look at this report, the 175th street project, the way it is currently designed, does just that.“

“I didn’t hear one person here say we needed four lanes between Meridian and Midvale,” said Mayor Chris Roberts. “I looked and saw we have traffic volumes of about 21,000 vehicles per day in this segment… if we were to get to one lane in each direction, not only would we have reduced traffic speeds, we would make it easier for pedestrians to cross two lanes of traffic instead of four lanes of traffic west of Meridian Park elementary. We might be able to get protected bike lanes, sidewalks and buffers in the existing right of way,” he said.

An architectural rendering from the city shows the what 175th might look like with bike lanes and sidewalks

If the city meets its Climate Action Plan goal to reduce per capita driving 50% by 2050, 175th would be a good candidate for a road diet, according to the Federal Highway Administration.

The conversation about 175th is not over. “I know we are going to have a discussion coming up about speed zone cameras and red light cameras. With most of that focused on this intersection. Most of that focused on this segment,” said Roberts.

At the June 10 meeting, the city council will discuss Traffic Cameras after reviewing the annual Traffic Report and  residents are encouraged to attend and make public comments.

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Notes from Shoreline City Council meeting Oct 15

Shoreline City Hall
Photo by Mike Remarcke

Shoreline City Council Meeting 10/15/2018 

By Pam Cross

Presentation of City Manager Debbie Tarry

• Hamlin Halloween Haunt Friday 10/19 6-8:30 family friendly event 
• Sound Transit Community Meeting on 145th Corridor on 10/17 two meetings 1 and 6pm .An opportunity to provide input for parking, sidewalks and lane configuration. 
• 185th Project Corridor Walking or Bike Tours 10/21 RSVP required 
• Planning commission will meet 10/18 in Council Chamber regarding potential expansion of the Deep Green Incentive Program. Public comment is welcome. 

Council Reports:

• Councilman Roberts. From last week’s PIC meeting (Public Issues Committee) draft legislative agenda has been shared with the Councilmembers for comments. King County has released its draft plan for their Affordable Housing Action Plan. While it is essentially a good plan there are some areas that may be of concern. 
• Mayor Hall reported that the S/P Bond Rating meeting went well. Also the State Auditor gave Shoreline a completely clean audit with no findings or management issues. 

Public Comments:

• Action Item 8a (Ordinance 844) is before Council for the first time tonight so there is an opportunity for the public to speak after the Staff report as well as at this time. 
• Action Item 8b (Ordinance 838) is what a “quasi-judicial” action which means there was a public hearing before the Hearing Examiner which creates the record for Council’s decision. The Council cannot accept public comments at this time. 

There were no public comments on any issue.

Approval of Agenda:

Councilman Scully proposed adding an Action Item 8c to discuss adding Shoreline to the amicus brief prepared by the city of Olympia regarding the legality of a city income tax. After discussion the Motion failed 3 to 4 due to lack of time.The Mayor noted that the Association of Washington Cities has signed onto it so it will be moving forward.

The two Study items were switched in sequence without objection. With that the Agenda was approved. The Consent Calendar was also adopted.

Action Items:

8a Adopting Ordinance No. 844 – Authorizing the Acquisition of Real Property for the Purpose of Provision of Sewer Service Utility and Uses Related Thereto by Negotiated Voluntary Purchase, Under Threat of Condemnation, or by Condemnation

The City Attorney, Ms. King, gave the Staff presentation.

Ordinance 844 authorizes Staff to move ahead for acquisition of property already conveyed to the City. The City has authority to operate a sewer system (RCW 35.67 and 35.92) and to assume a Special Purpose District (RCW 35.13A.030). The City has been in the process of assuming Ronald Sewer District. The property under discussion contains a lift station (pump station) and related facilities that serve about 48 Shoreline houses. The City’s retention of the property is necessary for the current and future protection and continued operations of the sewer system. Staff recommends adoption with one amendment to clarify all of the parcels by including the list of parcels. The amendment is necessary because there were subsequent boundary consolidations and the City wants to be clear what parcels are required.

Rule of Procedure 3.5 (requiring three readings) was waived by a vote of Council due to the urgency to adopt this ordinance tonight.

Council discussion included the parcels will be priced at market value which may be more or less than the $10,000 previously paid. All six parcels may not be applicable, depending on the location of the easement. We want to make sure acquiring the easement for the pump station includes the easements required to pump in/out. Other entities may have other rights to these properties but we are only interested in protecting our easements and we need to act now to protect our easement rights. It is hoped we can work this out without condemnation procedures, perhaps by voluntary granting of easements.

The motion passed unanimously.

8b Adopting Ordinance No. 838 – Rezone at 14507 and 14511 Stone Avenue North

Miranda Redinger, Shoreline Senior Planner, presented the Staff report.

Briefly, the applicant requests rezone from R48 (residential) to MB (commercial mixed business). There is no planned development in the proposal. The project meets the decision criteria in the Comprehensive Plan. The Hearing Examiner recommends approval of the rezone and Staff recommends adoption of ordinance 838.

At this point the Mayor reminds of Councilmembers of the importance of reporting ex parte communications.

Council comments included concern that the lack of proposed development plans could result in increased rents depending on the nature of future development. While most neighbors responded favorably to the rezone, there is no indication that current tenants were queried. However since this proposal meets the necessary criteria, it was adopted by a vote of 6-1 move to adopt. Councilmember Salomon voted against.

Study Items: 

9a Update on Sound Transit ST3 145th / SR523

Natasha Walters, Shoreline Transportation Services Manager
Paul Cornish, BRT Program Director
Kathy Leotta, ST Project Manager for the 145th/SR 523 BRT Project

There was a lengthy, detailed presentation and discussion of everything from outreach efforts to the necessity of getting this project done correctly and on budget. Topics included impacts on property and traffic, non-motorized access to ST stations, pedestrian sidewalks and crossings, queue jumps for transit to improve speed and reliability, private vehicle usage, interagency requirements, and cost and schedule.

Now that consultants are onboard this project is moving very quickly along the entire corridor. They are currently working on community and stakeholder engagement.

The original Representative Project is now being refined. Key considerations include transit speed and reliability, impacts on property and traffic and trying to mitigate those impacts, non motorized access to the stations, coordination with local plans, WSDOT and transit, and cost and schedule. Shoreline and Seattle expressed a desire for transit priority improvements on NE 145th (bus-only lanes, queue jumps), pedestrian crossings and good access to BRT stations by all users.

Refinement 1. Repurpose current lanes. Can we use existing lanes space to reduce property purchases? Queue jumps require widening roadway in those areas. WSDOT requires consideration of roundabouts at every intersection. They will analyze and present to WSDOT, however queue jumps through roundabouts will not work. 

Refinement 2. more sidewalks and shorter queue jumps.

A third option is Intersection Refinement that adds left turn lanes from NE 145th to SR 522. This could be included in options 1 or 2.

The next steps are further refinements and outreach, continued interagency meetings, and city meetings.

Council discussion summarized:

145th has been a challenge for a long time. Public officials from Lake Forest Park, Kenmore and Bothell seem to be more concerned about this section of the project than their own sections because if 145th doesn’t work, the whole project won’t work.

This is a very high volume traffic road. Volume is currently higher than when road diet and rechannelization effects stop working. We can’t have people stuck in traffic, sitting in a bus for 10-20 minutes to go the last mile and a half to the station, so buses need to be the priority. We may need full BAT lanes the entire corridor because eliminating a lane or just putting in queue jumps is not going to work. On the other hand, people will still be in cars. Some won’t want to drive to a place to catch a bus to get to light rail to take them to work, and some will find it’s more convenient and takes less time to drive. We don’t want short term fixes to get transit moving and then have to go back and completely redo sections of it to accommodate different lane configurations.

One project assumes an additional lane, the other would be taking a lane away. Making a designated bus lane will be a challenge. We need assurance that the ST plans are provided to City Staff so they will have time to consider how this is going to affect our community before ST finalizes the plan.

In ST3 the project everyone agreed to was to add a lane for increased capacity for buses, yet we are talking about taking away a general purpose lane. 145th is SR 523. It is a major regional connector, not a local street. The whole corridor is one state highway to another state highway to a freeway. This is a gap the State needs to address. it is really important to look at it as a system.

The City of Seattle owns the south side of 145th. They need to do more than acknowledge property acquisition but “prefer not to go that way”. We cannot pretend there is no property impact. Property acquisition has to be on the table in order to provide wider lanes, wider sidewalks, more lanes, and turn lanes. The Council recognizes that it wasn’t fun to have to send this message to Shoreline residents but you can’t pretend it won’t happen.

We need to be conscious of the interests of the property owners, but we also need to maintain a vision of how to move thousands of people through this corridor for years to come. How do we get it right?

Is there a level of service (LOS) goal? No. All parties involved have their own LOS depending on the objective. It’s not going to be a straightforward choice of which LOS, but developing one that considers all concerns.

Shoreline has been looking at this project for a very long time. Now we are talking about more tradeoffs and less budget. Current traffic backs up at the left turn lights. Left turn lanes will help that for now. But the projections may be excluding what we don’t even know about how traffic volume will increase. We shouldn’t start making too many concessions yet.

When looking at all these designs, how will ST decide what’s good enough?

ST acknowledges they won’t be able to solve all the problems on 145th. They will consider travel times and traffic impacts such as access to the corridor, while staying supportive of property owners. The budget will mean trade-offs. ST wants to get the transit through and the traffic is up to WADOT and the cities.
=================================

9b Presentation of the Proposed 2019-2020 Biennial Budget and the 2019-2024 Capital Improvement Plan

Debbie Tarry, City Manager
Sara Lane, Administrative Services Director
Rick Kirkwood, Budget Supervisor

From the Staff Report:

“The City Manager is required to submit the 2019-2020 Proposed Biennial Budget to the City Council no later than November 1, 2018. Tonight’s presentation will introduce the 2019-2020 Proposed Biennial Budget document to the City Council, provide policy background concerning its development, highlight key budget issues, highlight the proposed 2019-2020 work plan, and propose a budget review process and schedule. Although we work with a two year budget in order to keep financial sustainability, they are taking a 10 year view.”

The Staff Report includes 8 pages of graphs and charts outlining the budget. This is far too detailed for a summary here. A copy of the Staff Report is available on the City of Shoreline website.

Council comments included questioning the difference in FTE (Full Time Employee) in various cities. Shoreline has added city landscaping employees this year increasing FTE, as well as adding a “half person” here and another there. Other cities are probably contracting out many of their operations (landscaping, city attorney services, permitting etc.) resulting in fewer FTE. The expense is there, just in a different part of the budget.

The schedule for the Budget and CIP Review follows.

• September 17, 2018: Presentation of Preliminary View of the 2019-2020 Biennium Budget and the 2019-2024 CIP (done) 
• October 15, 2018: Presentation of Proposed Budget and CIP (done)
• October 22, 2018: Discussing department budgets 
• October 29, 2018: Discussing department budgets and the CIP
• November 5, 2018:
• Public hearing and discussing the Proposed Budget and CIP
• Discussing final 2018 Budget Amendment
• Public hearing and discussing the 2019-2020 property tax and revenue sources
• November 19, 2018:
• Public hearing and discussing the Proposed Budget and CIP
• Adopting the 2019-2020 Property Tax Levy,
• Adopting the 2019-2020 Biennium Budget and the 2019-2024 CIP 

The Meeting was adjourned at 8:53pm to be followed by an Executive Session.

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Meridian Park parents want traffic safety on 175th; “Every child should be able to walk and bike to school without fear”

Meridian Park students and parents cross 175th street
Photo by Mike Remarcke

By Oliver Moffat

On school days, Everton Drakes walks with his daughters to Meridian Park elementary - his older daughter rides a scooter while his little one rides along in a push car.

The ride to school requires crossing both Meridian Ave and 175th street, an intersection littered with car crash debris and plagued by traffic jams and speeders.

Drakes and a cohort of parents from the Meridian Park PTSA want the city to pay more attention to safety near Shoreline schools and are trying to build support for automated traffic enforcement cameras near the school.

“Every child should be able to walk and bike to school without fear of the intersection near their school. These are children. It’s not fair to them,” said Drakes.

A screenshot from photoenforced.com shows the location of traffic cameras
in cities neighboring Shoreline

While neighboring cities including Lynnwood, Lake Forest Park, and Seattle have long embraced the use of traffic cameras, the Shoreline city council has opposed their adoption.

Recent changes to state law expanded where cities can deploy cameras and allows city employees to review tickets where previously a police officers needed to review each ticket.

The law requires cities complete an equity analysis to prove traffic cameras will not disproportionately target historically over-policed neighborhoods.

To discourage cities from using traffic cameras as a long term source of revenue, after three years, the city has to share revenue with the state.

The city is actively working on improvements to the 175th street starting with the intersection of 175th and Meridian Ave.

The city wants to widen 175th on the west side of I-5 to make room for pedestrians and bicyclists which could cost over $88 million and require chopping down 274 trees.

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, a road diet on the east side of I-5 would shrink 175th from four lanes to three while adding bike lanes and could cost an estimated $2.3 million (without removing trees).

The city council will discuss the 175th street project again at the June 3rd city council meeting.

The city council will discuss traffic enforcement cameras at the June 10th meeting.

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North Seattle resident deals with kidney disease with persistence and optimism

Julia Sterkovsky at home in the garden

By Steve Winter and Cynthia Flash

Julia Sterkovsky has spent 25 years advocating for equity and fairness for people in Seattle and King County through the Seattle Human Services Coalition. It’s a challenging job that has kept her deeply engaged in local communities. 

All the while, the North Seattle resident also had to deal with kidney disease. 

Although she received a donor kidney in 2001, it has since decreased function and she now also has to do dialysis treatments to clean the waste and water from her blood because her kidneys can no longer fully perform that function.

In her job, Sterkovsky champions fundamental causes of bringing resources and support to undeserved communities, including early childhood education, youth development, food, shelter, and housing, community healthcare, services for seniors, advocacy, as well as domestic violence and sexual assault response and prevention. 

Although kidney disease adds more pressure to life, she said, “the choice of how to deal with it is yours. If you want to live, these are your choices.”

March is National Kidney Month, a time to focus on kidney disease and its causes. Sterkovsky hopes that her story helps educate others that they have options for living well with kidney disease, which affects one in 10 American adults. 

Risks include diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, smoking, and family history of kidney disease. Those who are African American, Asian American or Native American, people who are overweight, and those over age 60 are at higher risk for developing kidney disease.

Sterkovsky is one of small percentage of people with kidney disease who can’t point to a specific cause for her disease. However, her mother had nearly the same experience at the same early age, so an unknown genetic cause is the obvious suspect. Her mother received dialysis treatments at home in Ohio in the 1970s.

Brian and Julia Sterkovsky

While some dialysis patients receive treatments in a clinic, Sterkovsky has chosen to do peritoneal dialysis, which can be done at home or work– usually with the help of a partner. 

Sterkovsky is lucky to have her husband Brian to help with the logistics of her care.

Sterkovsky learned how to give herself dialysis treatments at Northwest Kidney Centers, a nonprofit dialysis provider that serves 2,000 patients a year in 19 dialysis centers and eight hospitals in the Puget Sound region, including the Lake City clinic in Lake Forest Park. 

She said the ins-and-outs of learning how to give herself dialysis treatments reminded her of learning to drive. 

She recalled “being in driver’s education class with all sorts of new information being thrown at you, and then actually driving with so many things to track on the road and on the dashboard. And then a week later it seems like you can remember to do all of those things pretty easily. It becomes second nature.”

Sterkovsky is ready to receive another transplanted kidney. She has been on the waitlist for more than four years; she waited two years the first time in 2001. The average wait time for a kidney transplant is three to five years.

True to form, she is persistent and optimistic. 

In fact, Sterkovsky has thought of a way to address the long wait periods for donor organs. Her idea could be accomplished with a simple change on driver’s license applications. The change would require people to opt out of being an organ donor rather than having to opt in. 

While families would still retain the final say regarding organ donations, this fundamental change could profoundly impact the large number of people waiting for donated kidneys as well as those in need of other organs. More than 90% of people waiting for organ transplants are waiting for kidneys.

Whether one is a patient, a donor, or neither, everyone can take steps to improve their kidney health. Tips include:

• Following prescribed treatments to control diabetes and/or high blood pressure.
• Eating a kidney-friendly diet (low or no salt). Look here for a kidney-friendly diet and recipes or attend an Eating Well, Living Well class to learn how to eat a kidney-healthy diet. See classes at https://www.nwkidney.org/living-with-kidney-disease/classes/.
• Staying active through exercise that is enjoyable.
• Avoiding overuse of over-the-counter pain medicines or prescription medicines.

Learn more about kidney disease at NWkidney.org

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