Nickels Newsletter - June 2005

Dear Friends,

Although it's pretty unusual for a mayor to announce news from another city, great things happened in Chicago!

Back in February, the Kyoto Protocol went into effect in 141 countries -- not including the United States. But we can't wait for national leadership on this issue. That's why, on that same day in February, I invited other mayors to join me in finding solutions to climate disruption by working on the local level.

My goal was to get 141 cities to match Kyoto's 141 countries. We did better. As of June 16,165 cities, representing 35 million Americans, have signed on to the Climate Protection Agreement. We're going to continue to recruit cities and to exchange best practices, so all cities can be doing all they can to reduce climate disruption.

I took that challenge to Chicago and the U.S. Conference of Mayors annual meeting. On June 11, the Energy and the Environment committees passed my "Mayors Climate Protection Agreement" unanimously. On June 13, it was passed, again unanimously, by the general membership. There was not even a floor debate.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors also recognized the Seattle Climate Protection Initiative by giving Seattle its "2005 City Livability Award." The award recognizes mayors for programs that improve the quality of life in their cities, and Seattle won in the category for cities with more than 100,000 residents.

We're going to continue to ensure Seattle is always a livable city. Below, you'll find stories about progress we're making on ending homelessness, on making our streets safer for pedestrians, and how you can give your input in rebuilding State Route 99, the future Alaskan Way Tunnel!

Sincerely,


GREG NICKELS
Mayor of Seattle

Keeping Seattle moving during tunnel construction

Now that we are halfway to funding the Alaskan Way Tunnel, it is time to start thinking about how we can keep Seattle moving during construction. It's a real balancing act, and we need your input. At a series of meetings this week, the public is invited to learn about the construction and traffic options, and talk with state and city transportation officials about what they prefer. Meetings are jointly hosted by Seattle Department of Transportation and Washington State Department of Transportation.

Only two meetings are left -- Wednesday at the National Guard Armory in Interbay and Thursday at West Seattle High School.
Find out more

Making Seattle safe for pedestrians

Every year Seattle wins awards for being a walkable city but we can't rest on our laurels. I want to make sure our residents and visitors can walk around Seattle safely and that means increasing pedestrian and driver awareness. To that end, I launched a 10-point pedestrian safety campaign to increase awareness among both pedestrians and drivers. The campaign highlights my commitment to reduce the approximately 400 pedestrian collisions that happen every year and includes a series of TV and radio Public Service Announcements (PSAs), pedestrian street signs, billboards and a Web site urging people to "Drive Carefully - Think of the Impact You Could Make."
View and listen to the PSAs
Read the news release

Ending homelessness one person at a time

There's a famous Confucian saying, "a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." With a goal of ending homelessness in Seattle in 10 years, we have taken a first step. We awarded $9.3 million in City dollars to create 225 units of homeless and work force housing in four locations -- Third and Blanchard, 415 10th Ave., near Woodland Park, and the Colman School site. This funding represents our first award of Housing Levy dollars and other City resources and will create permanent housing for homeless seniors, the chronically homeless and homeless families.
Read the news release

Compass Center reopens

At the end of May we reopened an expanded Compass Center and took another step toward ending homelessness in Seattle. The Compass Center, located in Pioneer Square, has served Seattle's homeless since 1941. It was seriously damaged in the Nisqually earthquake in 2001 and had to be temporarily closed. This was a terrible loss to the people who relied on it and to the whole community. Thanks to many individuals and organizations joining with the City, we have transformed the center. Today it is open and now has a new hygiene center, post office, commercial kitchen and community dining room.

City pilot offering free wireless Internet access

It was a pleasure to join with community and business leaders in Columbia City to launch a pilot project providing free wireless Internet access in the Columbia City and the University District business districts. That's just the beginning. By the end of June, free Internet access will also be available in four downtown parks: Occidental, Freeway, Westlake and Victor Steinbrueck. Using technology as a tool to help businesses in our communities attract more customers is another way the City is working to strengthen our neighborhoods.
Read the news release

Mayor's Youth Council offers fresh ideas

Last October I appointed 25 high school students from throughout the city to serve on my 2004-05 Youth Council. They recently concluded their service and I appreciate the input they offered me on ways to improve our schools. During their term, they organized community meetings and a town hall to gather input from other young people in our city. We need fresh ideas and perspectives in City government. I appreciate all of the hard work these exemplary young people contributed to our city.

"Pothole Rangers" reducing claims against City

For the third straight year, Seattle's claim and lawsuit settlement costs are down. Claim and lawsuit settlements/judgments in 2004 totaled $4.7 million compared to $5.8 million in 2003 and $9.7 million in 2002. Claim filings, which totaled 1,446 in 2004, are down from the 1,555 filed in 2003 and 1,564 in 2002. Some of these filings were for street defects, such as potholes. We believe the reduction is partly due to our pothole ranger program which repairs potholes within 24 hours after being reported.
Read the news release