Right now, Harbor Avenue SW is a street without a stop sign or stoplight, from its south end at the bridge, all the way until its end where the street becomes Alki SW (which continues stop-less until 63rd).
The Alki Community Council wonders if a three-way stop might enhance safety at the intersection with California Way. That was one topic at the ACC’s November meeting.
The proposal is from ACC president Tony Fragada, for the next Neighborhood Street Fund cycle (with ideas due by tomorrow, November 19th). He pointed out that pedestrian traffic there is on the rise as well as vehicle traffic. The ACC supported the idea. Fragada also suggested that a year-long traffic study of Alki could be helpful, to generate data on peaks and valleys of the road usage.
Also discussed at Thursday night’s meeting, two ongoing citywide issues regarding housing and development.
One was the pending Hearing Examiner ruling – expected before month’s end – on the citywide coalition appeal of the Environmental Impact Statement for HALA Mandatory Housing Affordability. ACC is one of five West Seattle neighborhood groups on record as supporting the appeal. They agreed to contribute another $100 to the coalition’s legal expenses.
An even-more-extensive discussion ensued regarding the Queen Anne Community Council‘s appeal of another Final Environmental Impact Statement, the one for a proposal to loosen the rules regarding Accessory Dwelling Units – the official name for residential units added to single-family houses, such as “mother-in-law apartments” and ‘backyard cottages.” The city summarizes the changes as follows:
Allowing two ADUs on one lot
Removing the off-street parking requirement
Removing the owner-occupancy requirement and requiring one year of ownership when creating a second ADU
Modifying development standards that regulate the size, height, and location of DADUs
Increasing the household size limit for a lot with two ADUs
Establishing a new limit on the maximum size of single-family dwellings
Members wondered who would be living in the thousands of units the rule changes could enable, if the reports of an apartment glut in the city are real, and whether the ADUs would be big enough for families to inhabit. They ultimately voted to contribute $250 to support the Queen Anne group’s appeal. You can read about the appeal here; you can find the FEIS here. As with HALA MHA, the ADU proposal requires City Council approval, but the appeal has to be heard first. The hearing is set for March, according to the Hearing Examiner’s online calendar.
The Alki Community Council meets third Thursdays most months, 7 pm at Alki UCC (6115 SW Hinds)
| 26 COMMENTS