For the first time since Sound Transit dropped the potential Pigeon Point tunnel from consideration, ST had reps at the Pigeon Point Neighborhood Council meeting on Monday night.

As with every appearance, they recapped how the project got to this particular point – that’s part of the slide deck above (also here in PDF). Many questions followed.

Asked for more specfics on the potential Pigeon Point routing, ST’s Jason Hampton said things won’t get to that level until the draft Environmental Impact Statement is out early next year. What height will the Delridge station be at? What about the guideway after it crosses the Duwamish River? Few answers yet, ST reiterated. South of Andover/north of Genesee is the “preferred” of the 3 Delridge station options, but two more are being studied, including one north of Andover, toward the east end of Nucor.

What will be taken into account in determining the “preferred alternative”? they were asked. The draft EIS will cover a variety of things, as shown in that section of the slide deck.

One attendee pointed out that the nearest store for Pigeon Pointers is Delridge Deli Mart (Delridge/Andover) “and if that’s gone for five years, it’s going to be really hard.” ST’s Leda Chahim said they heard a lot at the semi-recent neighborhood forums about places that are really important to the neighborhood. (Here’s our coverage of the forums in Delridge and in The Junction.)

Overall, the presentation mostly recapped generalities, though attendees were clearly hungry for specifics. Community workshops about station development are planned this summer. And around fall, ST says it will start reaching out to property owners who will potentially be affected – those whose properties might be targets for acquisition. They won’t know for sure what the route will require until 2023-2024, Chahim said, but this year they’ll at least have some idea of who MIGHT be affected, so they’ll start those conversations.

ST handed off to a city rep who’s part of the city effort to ensure there’s enough communication going on. She had no specifics either. But more questions ensued: Will the stations lead to denser development? Yes, that’s part of the plan. Does the city always own the land under the guideways? They’ve heard a lot of interest in better integrating stations into the neighborhoods, so they’re working on that. Focus your planning on nearby residents as well as future station users, they were urged. “Think outside the box of the station,” one attendee exhorted. Avoid “dead space,” said another. Yet another warned against underdevelopment, mentioning taking light rail from the airport, and finding the SODO station “creepy.” The MLK corridor is developing now – but light rail’s been open for years. The ST team said processes have been changed, learning from past mistakes.

POLICE UPDATES: Southwest Precinct operations commander Lt. Steve Strand recapped what’s been said at recent meetings – local crime was down 5 percent overall last year, auto theft spiked early this year, He mentioned the buy-back sting on which we reported earlier (though not our newest updates, that the suspect has been charged and is out). Community Police Team officers are watching an encampment off West Marginal Way. Vacant homes were discussed; one attendee said the infamous “red house” at the north edge of Delridge seems to have squatters again. Lt. Strand said city codes have gotten tougher, so leet them know if a house needs to be monitored. Be sure to report crime, Lt. Strand reiterated, so police know – don’t just post it on social media. “Any specific tips on avoiding package theft?” he was asked. “Don’t have them delivered to your house!” was suggestion #1 – use a locker, have it delivered to your workplace, etc. “And put your empty boxes back on the porch so they steal those!”

SEATTLE SPORTS COMPLEX FOUNDATION: Lisa Corbin, who previously worked on an indoor-tennis proposal, said planning for a possible sports complex continues, (We first wrote about it in October 2018.) She recapped the history a bit, noting that Seattle Public Schools had quashed the idea of building an indoor-tennis center on the court site west of Southwest Pool. So they started looking for a new site and came up with port-owned land south of Jack Block Park. Their plan would include 12 indoor tennis courts and four indoor basketball courts, with interest shown by the Seattle Storm (as a potential practice facility). The idea remains in the early stages but Corbin and others have been making the rounds rustling up support.:

CITY MONEY FOR PROJECTS: Osbaldo Hernandez Sahagun of the Department of Neighborhoods gave the toplines on these programs:

–Your Voice, Your Choice
–Neighborhood Matching Funds

There’s always room for more submissions, Hernandez Sahagun noted, encouraging people to apply. Meeting leader Pete Spalding noted that a previous iteration of YVYC had resulted in some local projects including speed bumps and a stretch of sidewalk.