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City of Seattle
Gregory J. Nickels, Mayor
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NEWS ADVISORY
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| SUBJECT: Seattle seeks feedback on possible municipal jail sites; Four dates set for public forums
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
6/4/2008 10:00:00 AM |
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Katherine Schubert-Knapp (206) 684-0909
Kathy Sugiyama (206) 684-0909
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Seattle seeks feedback on possible municipal jail sites
Four dates set for public forums
SEATTLE - The city of Seattle announced today it will hold public forums around the city to provide information and hear feedback about possible sites for a new Seattle Municipal Jail. While residents are welcome to attend any of the forums, each will focus primarily on a specific potential jail site, as outlined below. The forum dates and locations are:
- Thursday, June 26, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Aerospace Machinists Union Hall A, located at 9125 15th Place S. – focus: West Marginal Way and Myers Way sites;
- Saturday, July 12, from 9 a.m. to noon, in the Wellness Center at North Seattle Community College, located at 9600 College Way N. – focus: Aurora site;
- Saturday, July 26, from 9 a.m. to noon, in the Brockey Conference Center at South Seattle Community College, located at 6000 16th Ave. S.W. – focus: West Marginal Way and Myers Way sites;
- Wednesday, July 30, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Seattle Center Exhibition Hall, located at 225 Mercer Street – focus: Interbay site.
Each forum will have materials available in multiple languages and interpreter services will be available upon request. Those requiring special accommodations or interpretation services should contact The Keller Group at (425) 788-8990 five working days prior to the forum they plan to attend.
To find public transportation to any of the forums, please visit the Metro King County Web site at http://www.kingcounty.gov/ and click on Trip Planner.
In addition to the public forums, the city will conduct two meetings in August focused specifically on potential environmental impacts. Those meetings will be part of the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Environmental Impact Statement process. The city will announce the dates and locations for the SEPA forums once they have been scheduled.
The forums are part of a public outreach program to identify questions and concerns regarding a new municipal jail. The city has interviewed a diverse cross-section of 50 neighborhood and community leaders about issues surrounding the siting of a jail and it manages a Web site (http://seattle.gov/municipaljail/), where Seattle residents can ask questions or send in comments. City representatives also have made less formal presentations to community and neighborhood groups who have asked for information.
Seattle is considering building a municipal jail because it will lose all of its misdemeanor jail beds when its nonrenewable contract with King County ends in four-and-a-half years. Because of space constraints in existing County facilities in downtown Seattle and Kent, King County is requiring that Seattle and the other cities end their use of the County jail for city misdemeanants by Dec. 31, 2012. The city has identified four sites that might house a low-rise jail:
- 11762 Aurora Avenue. N.
- 1600 W. Armory Way
- Highland Park Way Southwest and West Marginal Way, and
- 9501 Myers Way S.
For more information, visit the city’s municipal jail Web site:
http://www.seattle.gov/municipaljail/
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