Corrected: March Update from your District 2 Council Member
City of Tacoma Washington sent this bulletin at 03/24/2023 09:45 AM PDT
Dear District 2 residents,
March has always been one of my favorite months. Besides it being my birthday month, March Madness, the NCAA basketball tournament, takes place this month. I have always loved basketball. Many of you might remember when the Seattle SuperSonics won the 1979 NBA Championship. I was a young girl then, and it has always stayed with me as a momentous occasion. This month, we saw the return of high school basketball championship games to the Tacoma Dome as well. And I am a big Gonzaga Bulldog fan since I attended Gonzaga University for my undergraduate degree. Go Zags!
It has been a busy month, but I want you to know that I continue to be available via email and I always look forward to hearing from you. I also want to remind you that there are a number of ways that you can engage with the City Council besides attending our City Council meetings and connecting with us at community events. You can attend any of our four Council Committee meetings as well. I serve on the Government Performance and Finance Committee and the Community Vitality and Safety Committee. There are opportunities at these Council Committee meetings to learn about and comment on issues we are working to address, ahead of our full City Council meetings. Access information and other details about our meetings are available at cityoftacoma.legistar.com.
Each Council Member also serves on other groups throughout the area. On these groups, we have an opportunity to work with community partners in support of our shared strategic goals. You may run into me at an upcoming meeting, since I serve on the South Sound 911 board on their finance committee and as one of the representatives from Tacoma. I am also a member of the Pierce County Commission Against Domestic Violence, the Crystal Judson Family Justice Center Executive Board, the Zoo Trek Authority, the Cross District Association of Tacoma, and the many business and neighborhood district meetings that take place in District 2. In this newsletter, I wanted to provide answers to a few questions I get every day as your Council Member. Drop me an email and let me know if I’ve answered one of your questions or if there is something else you are looking to learn about.
I was interviewed by Erik Hanberg from Citizen Tacoma as part of their five-part “Better Know a District” series. We check in on downtown, how vital it is to ensure the availability of housing that is affordable for everyone and encourage people to revisit the idea of downtown living as we emerge from the pandemic, and the importance of shopping local. We also have a candid discussion on the complex, overlapping issues around community safety, housing, and homelessness. As part of this discussion, I address the ordinance we passed last year prohibiting camping and the storage of personal belongings in a 10-block radius around temporary shelters in Tacoma as well as Aspen Court (a City-permitted emergency and transitional housing facility) and all public property within 200 feet of Tacoma’s mapped rivers, waterways, creeks, streams, and shorelines. Additionally, I share my personal insights on how therapeutic courts could help connect individuals with substance use disorders and mental health issues with the treatment they need. And, finally, we talk about the conversations we have been having across our community about the area around the Port of Tacoma. We also look more broadly at what I’m tracking in Tacoma this year. Listen to the episode here.
The Tacoma Police Department has launched a new Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) public comment portal. As a CALEA-accredited police department, the Tacoma Police Department's policies, procedures, management, operations, and support services are routinely assessed to ensure the highest standards of contemporary law enforcement are being met. National accreditation from CALEA is a highly prized recognition of law enforcement professional excellence, which only 2 percent of police agencies nationwide possess.
The purpose of this public portal is to gather comments from the community on our police department’s compliance with engagement and service delivery. We hope you will share your comments here to help us become the safest community in Washington state.
I will be hosting this year’s in-person District 2 Town Hall in Northeast Tacoma. We will be meeting on Saturday, May 6, from 10 - 11:30 AM at the Center at Norpoint (4818 Nassau Ave NE, Tacoma). Community members who live, work, or operate a business in District 2 are invited to attend for a conversation about Northeast Tacoma. What can we do, while working with the City and its partners, to elevate Northeast Tacoma and ensure its vibrancy now and for future generations? Special guests from Metro Parks will also be in attendance to highlight current and future parks services.
Refreshments will be served. If you have questions about this event, or need specific accommodations, please contact Lynda Foster at lynda.foster@cityoftacoma.org.
I visited Foss Harbor with Foss Harbor CMO / General Manager Ian Wilkinson to see their progress on the security fencing they are installing, and take a tour of the two pieces of property they lease from the City for parking, the location of the Seascouts building, and the in-progress Melanie Dressel park. I got to see, firsthand, the missing esplanade that will make it more difficult to access the park.
I recently attended an event at Tollefson Plaza downtown to provide community members with an opportunity to express their solidarity and support for transgender kids and their rights, here in Washington state and across our country. At-Large Tacoma Council Member Olgy Diaz joined me and other community leaders.
Here I am doing my first-ever testimony with the Washington State Legislature. I was excited to represent Tacoma at the Senate Ways and Means Committee on the issue of increasing the supply and affordability of condominium units and townhouses as an option for homeownership. Condominiums can be a pathway to build generational wealth in our community. Unfortunately, the current regulatory and legal environment for condominium construction in Washington State is prohibitively costly and legally risky to bring this housing product to market at an affordable price point. Senate Bill 5258 is necessary to address these issues and increase housing options across the state.
Having served on the Associated Ministries Board for six years, it was great meeting with Associated Ministries Executive Director Michael Yoder for a discussion around opportunities that are on the horizon to support our unhoused neighbors.
I recently worked with 350 Tacoma, staff from the City’s Environmental Services team, and Washington Conservation Corps crewmembers to restore the City's 1.5-acre salt marsh property in the Port of Tacoma with native and climate-adapted plants. 350 Tacoma has been the project steward for the last five years.
What is happening with the Tacoma Dome Link Extension?
The Mayor and City Council share the frustrations of our community regarding delays in the Tacoma Dome Link Extension (TDLE). Sound Transit is aware of the needs of our community and we value their partnership and willingness to find solutions together despite known challenges. The project is moving forward, but Sound Transit is making sure to get it right. I signed onto a letter that the City of Tacoma wrote to Sound Transit requesting an increase in other transit options until the TDLE is complete. Sound Transit has provided the funding, however there are staffing limitations and partner agencies do not yet have the operators to get services out on the street.
There are four Tacoma Dome Link Extension stations, S. Federal Way Station, Fife Station, Portland Avenue Station, and the Tacoma Dome Extension. There are issues with the preferred locations with the S. Federal Way Station and the Fife Station. The alignment from South Federal Way to Milton along Pacific Highway/SR 99 with two station options is being considered to avoid known cultural resources along I-5. Looking at the new location means adding additional alternatives into the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). This would be out in 2024, with a final EIS in 2026 with construction starting after that. This means a 2.5-year delay to opening the new light rail line. Additionally, there are two station options for the Fife Station. The preferred station alternative is in a floodplain and to meet federal requirements Sound transit must study a station location outside of the floodplain. Therefore, there are other alternatives Sound Transit will review. This project is in a current draft EIS.
While the TDLE is delayed, there is good news. The Hilltop Link Extension (HTLE) is 98 percent complete! Sound Transit is completing station finishes such as signage, handrails, and side street pavement restoration. Systems integration testing still needs to be completed and testing communications, power, signals, stations, and track are necessary for HTLE to be operational. Sound Transit estimates the Link will open sometime between late July and early September. I look forward to my first ride on the extension.
There is a ton of garbage around Tacoma. What are we doing about this?
The City of Tacoma offers a variety of programs and services to keep our homes, neighborhoods, and environment clean and healthy. This website has a list of resources available to residents that aid in both personal and community-wide waste.
We have our Tidy Up Tacoma Program which focuses on the main arterials around our neighborhood business districts. City crews work to clean up litter/debris, perform graffiti removal, street sweeping, and right-of-way landscaping. We also partner quarterly with the Department of Transportation to clean up I-5 and Hwy 509.
In addition, we have created a fund through a 6 percent excise tax on solid waste that supports litter and debris cleanup in the public right-of-way, trail maintenance, business district litter can program, additional sanitation support, and community outreach and engagement strategies. This will start in April 2023.
We all can play a part in keeping our neighborhoods clean. This Earth Day, Saturday, April 22, from 9 – 11 AM, join Litter Free 253 for their Fourth Annual City-Wide litter pickup event! Learn more here.
How can I help uplift our community?
You can get involved by contacting several of the non-profits in our community and offering to volunteer in support of our unhoused neighbors and others in need.
A Tacoma Dome “Dome of our Own” turns 40 in April 2023 and in celebration, Tacoma Venues & Events invites the community to join us on April 28 and 29, 2023.
Free, Family-Friendly Community Event at the Dome
The 'T-Town: Play, Explore, Learn' City Services Expo is a free, family-friendly community event at the Tacoma Dome. The event is a unique, hands-on experience for the community to engage with City Departments as well as learn about career and trades opportunities.
Activities include:
Touch-A-Truck
Tacoma Dome backstage tours
Live demonstrations
Job opportunities
Special appearance by Tacoma Rainiers mascot Rhubarb the Reindeer
