AN ORDINANCE relating to the Alaskan Way Seawall Replacement Project; providing for the submission to the voters of the City, at an election to be held on November 6, 2012, of a proposition authorizing the City to issue general obligation bonds to pay costs related to the design, construction, renovation, improvement and replacement of the Alaskan Way seawall and associated public infrastructure; the principal of and interest on such bonds to be payable from annual property tax levies to be made in excess of regular property tax levies; and ratifying and confirming certain prior acts.
WHEREAS, the existing Alaskan Way seawall is seriously deteriorated due to aging components and materials, the tidal forces of Elliott Bay, and marine borer damage, with approximately 50 percent of the existing wall currently damaged; and
WHEREAS, the Seawall is not designed to withstand earthquakes and there is a one in ten chance in the next ten years of an earthquake that would lead to liquefaction and Seawall failure; and
WHEREAS, failure of the Seawall would severely disrupt public transportation and commerce, and could lead to widespread property damage, injury and loss of life, thus, a replacement Seawall is essential both to public safety and to the local and regional economy; and
WHEREAS, a properly designed and built Seawall is expected to protect the City and its residents and workers for the next 100 years; and
WHEREAS, the engineering and design for the Seawall replacement project (also known as the Elliott Bay Seawall Project) has now advanced to the 35 percent stage where cost estimates and timelines for construction have been reasonably established; and
WHEREAS, Pier 58 is seismically vulnerable and the structural deficiencies of Piers 62/63 have forced the City to significantly limit activities on the piers in order to protect public safety; and
WHEREAS, reconstruction of the pilings and decks of Piers 58 and 62/63 can be efficiently completed while Seawall construction occurs thereby reducing disruption to waterfront businesses and activities; and
WHEREAS, the costs of replacing the Seawall, restoring the Piers and making the other infrastructure repairs that are essential to public safety exceed the funding available from existing City revenue sources; and
WHEREAS, Seattle's central waterfront is a unique asset of our community and replacement of the Seawall will ensure that Alaskan Way can be rebuilt on time as part of the Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Program and that the necessary structural foundation and seismic protection will be in place for the soon-to-be-redeveloped Alaskan Way recreational, cultural, social, and economic improvements; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY OF SEATTLE AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1 . If approved by voters, the City is authorized to issue bonds to fund a portion of the costs related to the design, construction, renovation, improvement and replacement of the Alaskan Way seawall and associated public facilities and infrastructure, including City-owned waterfront piers (collectively, the "Project").
Section 2 . The City shall incur indebtedness and borrow an amount not to exceed $290,000,000 on the credit of the City and issue and sell its general obligation bonds or other evidences of indebtedness, which may include but are not limited to, lease obligations ("Bonds"), in an amount not to exceed that principal amount for strictly municipal capital purpose, other than the replacement of equipment, to provide all or part of the funds for the Project. Costs of environmental, engineering, design, architectural, planning, consulting, project and construction management, construction, inspection, testing, financial, audit, legal and other services lawfully incurred incident to the Project, completion of a feasibility study for the Alaskan Way seawall, repayment with interest of interfund loans for project expenses, costs of issuance (including election costs) and sale of the Bonds, administrative, permit, relocation and mitigation expenses, site and right of way improvement, demolition, road improvement, and other similar activities or purposes, and an apportionment equal to one percent (1%) of estimated construction expenditures on the Project upon public works for art pursuant to Seattle Municipal Code Section 20.32.030, shall be appropriate capital costs to be paid from the proceeds of the Bonds authorized by this ordinance.
The City Council declares that to the extent, if any, the City prior to the date that Bonds or other short-term obligations are issued to finance the Project shall make capital expenditures for the Project from funds that are not (and are not reasonably expected to be) reserved, allocated on a long-term basis or otherwise set aside by the City under its existing and reasonably foreseeable budgetary and financial circumstances to finance the Project, those capital expenditures are intended to be reimbursed out of proceeds of the Bonds or other short-term obligations issued in an amount not to exceed the principal amount authorized by this ordinance.
Section 3 . The City shall seek supplemental, matching or additional funds from other sources to pay all or part of the cost of the Project or any component thereof. If the Project shall have been completed and Bond proceeds remain unexpended, then those proceeds may be applied to costs of other waterfront improvements or infrastructure construction, repair or replacement, or to the payment of debt service on Bonds, all as determined by ordinance. Should the funds, including the Bond proceeds, available for the Project be insufficient to complete the Project, the City may delay completion of all or any element of the Project until adequate funding is available, or may eliminate any element.
Section 4 . The Bonds shall be issued in one or more series, or as part of a combined issue or issues with other authorized bonds, and shall be issued within ten years of the date of voter approval of the Bonds. The Bonds also may evidence a line or lines of credit. The Bonds shall bear interest (which may be fixed or variable) payable as permitted by law; may mature serially or as term bonds with the longest maturities being within 30 years from their date or within any shorter period fixed by ordinance; and shall be issued and sold in the manner, at the times and in the amounts as shall be determined by or pursuant to ordinance. The exact date, form, terms, options of prior redemption, price, interest rate or rates and maturities of the Bonds and pledges and covenants shall be fixed by or pursuant to ordinance. The Bonds shall be paid by annual property tax levies sufficient in amount to pay both principal and interest when due, which annual property tax levies shall be made in excess of regular property tax levies without limitation as to rate or amount but only in amounts sufficient to pay both principal and interest when due.
Pending issuance of the Bonds and receipt of their proceeds, the City may authorize the issuance of short-term obligations pursuant to chapter 39.50 RCW, and the costs of those short-term obligations shall be included in the cost of the Project for which the Bonds are issued.
Seattle City Council Seattle Mayor Seattle City Attorney
There are no regularly scheduled elections for Seattle City Council, Mayor or City Attorney in 2012. The next regularly scheduled elections for City Council, Mayor and City Attorney are in 2013.
Offices on the 2013 ballot in Seattle (and the incumbent):
- Mayor (McGinn)
- City Attorney (Holmes)
- City Council Position 2 (Conlin)
- City Council Position 4 (Bagshaw)
- City Council Position 6 (Licata)
- City Council Position 8 (O'Brien)
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Seattle is a Charter City with a Mayor-Council form of government. The Mayor is directly elected by the voters and most executive departments report to the Mayor. There are nine City Councilmembers, all of whom are elected at-large. The only other elected position is the City Attorney, who is also elected at-large. The regular term of all offices is four years.
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60% yes vote and a minimum turnout of 79,004 (Washington Constitution, art. VII, sec 2(b))
Proposition No. 1
General Obligation Bonds - $290,000,000
(Alaskan Way Seawall)
The City Council of the City of Seattle, Washington, passed Ordinance No. 123922, concerning funding for the Alaskan Way seawall and associated infrastructure.
This proposition would address public safety risks and seismic hazards by authorizing the City to incur costs related to the design, construction, renovation, improvement and replacement of the Alaskan Way seawall and associated public facilities and infrastructure, including City-owned waterfront piers; issue no more than $290,000,000 of general obligation bonds maturing within 30 years; and levy annual excess property taxes to repay the bonds, all as provided in Ordinance No. 123922.
The City of Seattle owns the Alaskan Way seawall and Piers 58 and 62/63 on the City central waterfront. The City Council passed and the Mayor approved Ordinance 123922 (a copy of which is found elsewhere in this pamphlet). That ordinance includes the following statements about the existing situation of these public improvements:
• “[T]he existing Alaskan Way seawall is seriously deteriorated due to aging components and materials, and tidal forces of Elliott Bay, and marine borer damage, with approximately 50 percent of the existing wall currently damaged.”
• “[T]he seawall is not designed to withstand earthquakes and there is a one in ten chance in the next ten years of an earthquake leading to liquefaction and Seawall failure.”
• “Pier 58 is seismically vulnerable and the structural deficiencies of Piers 62/63 have forced the City to significantly limit activities on the piers in order to protect public safety.”
The Effect of the Measure if Approved –
If approved by the voters, the City proposes to sell no more than $290,000,000 in bonds to pay for the costs related to the design, construction, renovation, improvement, and replacement of the Alaskan Way seawall and associated public facilities and infrastructure, including City-owned waterfront piers (collectively, the “Project”). The principal and interest on the bonds (the debt) would be repaid by increased property taxes in excess of normal property tax limits.
The bonds must be issued within ten years of the vote and each bond must mature within thirty years of its sale. A portion of the funds raised, equal to 1% of the estimated construction expenditures on the Project, will be spent on public works for art in accordance with Seattle Municipal Code Section 20.32.030.
The funds raised by the bonds would be used for capital costs of the Project. Section 2 of Ordinance No. 123922 details the nature of those costs. The City also shall seek supplemental, matching or additional funds to pay all or part of the cost of the Project. If the Project is completed and there are remaining funds from the sale of the bonds, those funds may be used for other waterfront improvements or infrastructure construction, repair or replacement, or for the payment of debt service on bonds, all as later determined by ordinance. Should there be insufficient funds from the bonds to complete the Project, the City may delay completion of all or any element of the Project until adequate funding is available, or eliminate any part of the Project.
Property taxes will be raised in excess of regular property tax levies, without limitation as to rate, but only in such amounts sufficient to pay the principal and interest (debt service) on the bonds. The annual debt service for all $290 million in bonds approved by this measure is estimated to be $19 million per year over a 30-year period, assuming a 5% interest rate. Once the full $290 million in bonds have been sold, the impact to property owners is projected to be approximately $59 annually for a median-value home worth $360,000.
Save Our Sea Wall: A Critical Public Safety investment
This measure is a critical public safety investment first and foremost. Seattle’s Waterfront Seawall ranges from 75 to almost 100 years old and has deteriorated to the point where it may completely fail in an earthquake or large storm. This could lead to the collapse of the Alaskan Way surface street, waterfront piers and businesses, the ferry terminal and Port of Seattle facilities. Major utilities including power, sewer and storm water, natural gas and telecommunications are also at risk. It is time to make a needed investment for the safety and future of our waterfront.
Generations ago, Seattle residents built the seawall as an investment in public health and safety and to facilitate growth of a new economy and city. A new seawall will not only protect the safety, mobility and economy of our waterfront and downtown, but allow us to realize future economic and civic potential.
This measure also helps to fund critical improvements to publicly owned piers that right now are unsafe and unusable. While replacing the seawall, we can save money and give new life to these important public spaces on our waterfront.
A New Seawall: The Foundation of a Waterfront for All
While this measure is designed to fund the public safety need for a new seawall, the replacement project is the critical first step in a larger vision to revitalize the downtown waterfront. The City Council and Mayor—following significant public input— have approved a framework plan for a new Alaskan Way surface street, new parks, picnic areas, open space and paths for walking, biking and running after the Viaduct is taken down.
The new seawall will be designed to improve and protect salmon habitat and the ecology of Elliott Bay.
Accountable and Affordable
This 30 year measure will cost the average Seattle household less than $59/ year— just under $5 per month. Oversight is provided by the Central Waterfront Committee, a citizens group appointed by the Mayor and City Council, assuring accountability to taxpayers.
Seattle Agrees: Yes on Prop 1
The Seawall replacement bond measure is endorsed by neighborhood, community and public safety leaders across Seattle, The Greater Seattle Chamber and King County Labor Council, Mayor and City Council, Seattle Aquarium Society and Leonard the Goldfish, Aquarium spokesfish; and many, many more.
Statement submitted by:
Charley Royer, former Mayor and co-chair, Central Waterfront Committee
Kenny Stuart, President, Seattle Firefighters Local 27
David Freiboth, Executive Secretary-Treasurer, ML King County Labor Council
www.savetheseattleseawall.com
206-486-4810
Rebuttal to Statement For Proposition 1
The Central Waterfront Committee is cloaking the argument for proceeding with this unnecessary bond measure under the pretext that it is “a critical public safety investment”. While there may be a pressing need to address the condition of the seawall, there has been no showing to suggest it is a need deserving of a 30-year commitment of over a billion dollars by all property owners in Seattle.
Both the WSDOT Ferries Division and the Port of Seattle are able to finance their own seawall improvement with routine maintenance funds.
The alleged “collapse of … waterfront piers and businesses” is fear-mongering claptrap.
Importantly, the June 1, 2010 study for the city, Feasibility Analysis of Special Benefits, shows downtown waterfront property owners gaining up to $1.95 billion in “Special Benefits”.
Logically, a Local Improvement District (LID) should finance this project so those who benefit pay its cost.
Statement submitted by:
Christopher V. Brown, P.E. Committee Chairman
Ed Plute
E-mail Address: cvbrown.pe@gmail.com
The Seattle Seawall Bond Measure – An Unfair Property Tax Burden
In the history of Seattle, never have so many properties been taxed so much for the benefit of so few.
As proposed, the Elliott Bay Seawall would be rebuilt with proceeds from a $290-million bond issue levied against all Seattle property owners. Over its 30-year life, this gift to a few downtown property owners, taking interest into account, could well exceed one billion dollars.
Seattle has almost 85 miles of waterfront property of which only 1.5 percent is bounded by the subject seawall. The majority of waterfront commercial and residential property owners are responsible for maintaining their own bulkheads and shore lands without any public subsidy. Many of these privately built and maintained bulkheads also hold back high-volume, principal arterial streets such as Rainier Avenue S. and Westlake Avenue. Accordingly, why should the private business owners along these 1.32 miles of Elliott Bay waterfront property benefit from a public subsidy?
Basically, the downtown and Elliott Bay property owners want all Seattle taxpayers to pay for their waterfront improvements. This is not only unfair but more troubling is that it raises serious equal protection arguments.
The Seattle Central Business District is the most highly valued real estate in the entire State of Washington. Why should the city’s outlying residences and businesses be taxed for a seawall improvement that would give them zero benefits?
With the private landowners of so many highly valued properties poised to gain substantial benefits from the seawall project, it is clear that the fairest, most equitable and least onerous project financing should come from a Local Improvement District (LID). LIDs have been used for these exact kinds of property improvements since 1917. An LID ensures that those who receive the benefits pay for the benefits.
Please join those who are rejecting this unfair, unjust and excessive bond measure.
Statement submitted by:
Christopher V. Brown, P.E. Committee Chairman
Ed Plute
E-mail Address: cvbrown.pe@gmail.com
Rebuttal to Statement Against Proposition 1
When a road or bridge needs replacement, all of us share the costs of critical infrastructure replacement. Similarly, the seawall is a critical public safety priority all of us share.
Seattle’s deteriorating seawall threatens public safety regardless of where you live or work. Further decay will impact safety and mobility on our downtown streets, jeopardize citywide utilities that light and heat our homes and offices, and undermine important components of our regional economy.
Seawall replacement is a needed investment to protect safety and restore publicly-owned structures. Furthermore, waterfront improvements are NOT part of this bond measure. When those amenities are constructed, it will indeed be with creation of a Local Improvement District. Opponents are misleading: downtown property owners who benefit from potential future investments WILL pay their fair share. This measure ONLY concerns the seawall and related safety projects.
Please vote yes on Proposition 1.
Statement submitted by:
Charley Royer, former Mayor and co-chair, Central Waterfront Committee
Kenny Stuart, President, Seattle Firefighters Local 27
David Freiboth, Executive Secretary-Treasurer, ML King County Labor Council
www.savetheseattleseawall.com
206-486-4810
AN ORDINANCE relating to the Alaskan Way Seawall Replacement Project; providing for the submission to the voters of the City, at an election to be held on November 6, 2012, of a proposition authorizing the City to issue general obligation bonds to pay costs related to the design, construction, renovation, improvement and replacement of the Alaskan Way seawall and associated public infrastructure; the principal of and interest on such bonds to be payable from annual property tax levies to be made in excess of regular property tax levies; and ratifying and confirming certain prior acts.
WHEREAS, the existing Alaskan Way seawall is seriously deteriorated due to aging components and materials, the tidal forces of Elliott Bay, and marine borer damage, with approximately 50 percent of the existing wall currently damaged; and
WHEREAS, the Seawall is not designed to withstand earthquakes and there is a one in ten chance in the next ten years of an earthquake that would lead to liquefaction and Seawall failure; and
WHEREAS, failure of the Seawall would severely disrupt public transportation and commerce, and could lead to widespread property damage, injury and loss of life, thus, a replacement Seawall is essential both to public safety and to the local and regional economy; and
WHEREAS, a properly designed and built Seawall is expected to protect the City and its residents and workers for the next 100 years; and
WHEREAS, the engineering and design for the Seawall replacement project (also known as the Elliott Bay Seawall Project) has now advanced to the 35 percent stage where cost estimates and timelines for construction have been reasonably established; and
WHEREAS, Pier 58 is seismically vulnerable and the structural deficiencies of Piers 62/63 have forced the City to significantly limit activities on the piers in order to protect public safety; and
WHEREAS, reconstruction of the pilings and decks of Piers 58 and 62/63 can be efficiently completed while Seawall construction occurs thereby reducing disruption to waterfront businesses and activities; and
WHEREAS, the costs of replacing the Seawall, restoring the Piers and making the other infrastructure repairs that are essential to public safety exceed the funding available from existing City revenue sources; and
WHEREAS, Seattle's central waterfront is a unique asset of our community and replacement of the Seawall will ensure that Alaskan Way can be rebuilt on time as part of the Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Program and that the necessary structural foundation and seismic protection will be in place for the soon-to-be-redeveloped Alaskan Way recreational, cultural, social, and economic improvements; NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY OF SEATTLE AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1 . If approved by voters, the City is authorized to issue bonds to fund a portion of the costs related to the design, construction, renovation, improvement and replacement of the Alaskan Way seawall and associated public facilities and infrastructure, including City-owned waterfront piers (collectively, the "Project").
Section 2 . The City shall incur indebtedness and borrow an amount not to exceed $290,000,000 on the credit of the City and issue and sell its general obligation bonds or other evidences of indebtedness, which may include but are not limited to, lease obligations ("Bonds"), in an amount not to exceed that principal amount for strictly municipal capital purpose, other than the replacement of equipment, to provide all or part of the funds for the Project. Costs of environmental, engineering, design, architectural, planning, consulting, project and construction management, construction, inspection, testing, financial, audit, legal and other services lawfully incurred incident to the Project, completion of a feasibility study for the Alaskan Way seawall, repayment with interest of interfund loans for project expenses, costs of issuance (including election costs) and sale of the Bonds, administrative, permit, relocation and mitigation expenses, site and right of way improvement, demolition, road improvement, and other similar activities or purposes, and an apportionment equal to one percent (1%) of estimated construction expenditures on the Project upon public works for art pursuant to Seattle Municipal Code Section 20.32.030, shall be appropriate capital costs to be paid from the proceeds of the Bonds authorized by this ordinance.
The City Council declares that to the extent, if any, the City prior to the date that Bonds or other short-term obligations are issued to finance the Project shall make capital expenditures for the Project from funds that are not (and are not reasonably expected to be) reserved, allocated on a long-term basis or otherwise set aside by the City under its existing and reasonably foreseeable budgetary and financial circumstances to finance the Project, those capital expenditures are intended to be reimbursed out of proceeds of the Bonds or other short-term obligations issued in an amount not to exceed the principal amount authorized by this ordinance.
Section 3 . The City shall seek supplemental, matching or additional funds from other sources to pay all or part of the cost of the Project or any component thereof. If the Project shall have been completed and Bond proceeds remain unexpended, then those proceeds may be applied to costs of other waterfront improvements or infrastructure construction, repair or replacement, or to the payment of debt service on Bonds, all as determined by ordinance. Should the funds, including the Bond proceeds, available for the Project be insufficient to complete the Project, the City may delay completion of all or any element of the Project until adequate funding is available, or may eliminate any element.
Section 4 . The Bonds shall be issued in one or more series, or as part of a combined issue or issues with other authorized bonds, and shall be issued within ten years of the date of voter approval of the Bonds. The Bonds also may evidence a line or lines of credit. The Bonds shall bear interest (which may be fixed or variable) payable as permitted by law; may mature serially or as term bonds with the longest maturities being within 30 years from their date or within any shorter period fixed by ordinance; and shall be issued and sold in the manner, at the times and in the amounts as shall be determined by or pursuant to ordinance. The exact date, form, terms, options of prior redemption, price, interest rate or rates and maturities of the Bonds and pledges and covenants shall be fixed by or pursuant to ordinance. The Bonds shall be paid by annual property tax levies sufficient in amount to pay both principal and interest when due, which annual property tax levies shall be made in excess of regular property tax levies without limitation as to rate or amount but only in amounts sufficient to pay both principal and interest when due.
Pending issuance of the Bonds and receipt of their proceeds, the City may authorize the issuance of short-term obligations pursuant to chapter 39.50 RCW, and the costs of those short-term obligations shall be included in the cost of the Project for which the Bonds are issued.
Section 5 . City Audit Participation. Within sixty (60) days after the end of each Fiscal Year, the City Auditor shall arrange for an audit to examine whether the public revenues, grants, fees, bond proceeds and City funds received during the preceding Fiscal Year were used for the purposes described in Section 1 of this act. City departments shall make available all information reasonably necessary for the City Auditor to perform such audits. The City Auditor shall deliver to the Director of SDOT and the Chair of the City Council's Budget Committee an original, signed copy of each such annual audit by the earlier of (a) thirty (30) days after the completion of such audit or (b) 180 days after the end of the Fiscal Year covered by such audit.
Section 6. The City Council requests that the Director of Records and Elections of King County, Washington, as ex officio Superior of Elections, conduct a special election in the City in conjunction with the special election to be held on November 6, 2012, for the purpose of submitting to the qualified electors of the City for their approval the question of whether or not the City shall be authorized to borrow money in an amount not to exceed $290,000,000, issue its general obligation bonds or other evidences of indebtedness in that principal amount only for capital purposes other than replacement of equipment, and levy the excess taxes necessary to pay and retire the Bonds as herein set forth.
Section 7. The City Council directs that the City Clerk file this ordinance with the Director of Elections of King County, Washington, as ex officio supervisor of elections, requesting that the Director of Elections call and conduct a special election in the City to be held on November 6, 2012, for the purpose of submitting to the qualified electors of the City the proposition set forth in this ordinance. The City Clerk is directed to certify to the King County Director of Elections the ballot title approved by the City Attorney in accordance with his responsibilities under RCW 29A.26.071. The following ballot title is submitted to the City attorney for his consideration:
PROPOSITION _____
GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS - $290,000,000
(ALASKAN WAY SEAWALL )
The City Council of the City of Seattle, Washington, passed Ordinance _____, concerning funding the Alaskan Way seawall replacement and associated waterfront infrastructure.
This proposition would address public safety risks and seismic hazards by authorizing the City to incur costs related to the design, construction, renovation, improvement and replacement of the Alaskan Way seawall and associated public facilities and infrastructure, including City-owned waterfront piers; issue no more than $290,000,000 of general obligation bonds maturing within 30 years; and levy annual excess property taxes to repay the bonds, all as provided in Ordinance _______.
Should this proposition be:
Approved ?
Rejected ?
Section 8 . The Mayor and the Director of Finance of the City and each of the other appropriate officers of the City are each authorized and directed to do everything as in their judgment may be necessary, appropriate or desirable in order to carry out the terms and provisions of, and complete the transactions contemplated by, this ordinance.
Section 9 . The provisions of this ordinance are declared to be separate and severable. If a court of competent jurisdiction, all appeals having been exhausted or all appeal periods having run, finds any provision of this ordinance to be invalid or unenforceable as to any person or circumstance, such offending provision shall, if feasible, be deemed to be modified to be within the limits of enforceability or validity. However, if the offending provision cannot be so modified, it shall be null and void with respect to the particular person or circumstance, and all other provisions of this ordinance in all other respects, and the offending provision with respect to all other persons and all other circumstances, shall remain valid and enforceable.
Section 10 . Any action taken consistent with the authority of this ordinance, after its passage but prior to the effective date, is ratified, approved and confirmed.
Section 11 . This ordinance shall take effect and be in force immediately upon its approval by the Mayor or, if not approved and returned by the Mayor within ten days after presentation, then on the 11th day after its presentation to the Mayor or, if vetoed by the Mayor, then immediately upon its passage over his veto.
