Locus Focus on 10/04/10

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Produced by: 
KBOO
Program:: 
Air date: 
Mon, 10/04/2010 - 10:15am to 11:00am
An update on what's happening with the Sellwood Bridge

WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE SELLWOOD BRIDGE?

It's been nearly two years since a neighborhood-backed plan was approved to rebuild the Sellwood Bridge with only two auto lanes, along with bike and pedestrian paths and street car tracks. But in recent months the final decisions on bridge design and funding have hit stumbling blocks. While the bridge is operated by the County, it connects on the west side with state-owned Highway 43 and on the eastside with city-owned SE Tacoma Street. These different jurisdictions are now caught up in a turf battle, holding the future of the Sellwood Bridge between their horns. On this episode of Locus Focus we talk with Sellwood neighborhood activist Eric Miller about some of the sticking points between the city, county and state, and why the same issues of sustainability and livability that motivated the neighborhood to organize two years are still of major concern.

Eric Miller is a Sellwood resident and a current At-Large SMILE Board member.  A public health physical therapist, Eric is currently a stay-at-home Dad and a community activist.  He co-founded the Sellwood Playgroup Association to bring families with young children together and to build community. Through the Playgroup Association he organized a broad network of neighbors who helped prevent the Sellwood Bridge from being replaced by a huge, four-lane behemoth.

Comments

 It sounds like there are so many priorities mixed together to make the westside interchange enormous, with a gigantic rockcut.   Where are the priorities like aesthetic, social impacts and environmental impacts coming into play -- beyond the lowest common denominator requirements of the EIS?    If these were taken into account, the westside would be smaller, cheaper and less impactful.  I hope folks are fighting for this!
On the political front, I would certainly respect our leaders working together making a BETTER project, versus fighting over scarce funds.  Let's commit the funds that folks promised, and get the project done right!

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