That last one's a stickler at City Hall, too.
When Horn played down the notion that single beams were a cost-saving move, instead insisting that the change was made as much for its "urban design impact," Steinbrueck, an architect, piped up. "It's an oxymoron," he said. The single beam "seems to create its own urban design impact." Horn allowed that yes, the single beams will require the use of more visually polluting switches—some as long as 180 feet—straddling intersections. But on the upside, fewer visually polluting support columns would be required for a one-rail guideway. The public hasn't actually seen a depiction of the overhead switch "lids," Horn added. "We explained what they looked like."
Seattle Monorail Project
Along Second Avenue downtown at Madison Street.
Details
PROPERTY ACQUISITIONS
These are some of the business properties the Seattle Popular Monorail Authority might fully or partially acquire for construction, right of way, and station sites, according to SMP records:
CROWN HILL/BALLARD
Thai Siam Restaurant, Crown Hill Stamp & Coin, Excel Plaza, Walt's Radiator, Philly's Sub, Denny's, Walgreens, Lake Union Boat Repair, Lyle Branch Flower Co.
INTERBAY/LOWER QUEEN ANNE
Northwest Center for the developmentally disabled, portion of Fishermen's Terminal, Chen's Village, Blackstock Lumber, Interbay Animal Clinic, Shanty Café.
SEATTLE CENTER AREA
Delmasse Apartments, Center meeting rooms, areas outside KeyArena and the Art Pavilion, Inge Corp., Tex's Tavern, McDonald's, Fat City auto repair, Faulkenbury & Wright dry cleaners.
DOWNTOWN
Centennial Building, Annex Theater/Avco Financial, Superior Reprographics, Forest Hotel, Eitel Building, Liberty Loans, Federal Reserve Bank, "sinking ship" parking garage.
SODO
Land beside Seahawks Stadium and Safeco Field, Filson's, Gans Ink, Wells Fargo bank, Sherman Supply, 1st Deli, Home Depot, All Metals, St. Vincent de Paul mattress factory.
DELRIDGE/WEST SEATTLE
Golf course clubhouse, fire station, Nucor Steel, West Seattle Herald, Skipper's Fish & Chips, Chan Medical Dental, KFC, Thriftway, Jefferson Square, Firestone, U.S. Bank.
MORE ON THE WEB
Related Content
More About
So, Conlin asked again, it wasn't a budget decision?
"It came out of an urban design issue," Horn repeated. And it's "a double positive," because with more switches, other trains can more easily move around or reverse direction from a stranded train, he said. (Vancouver's SkyTrain stalls on average almost once a week.) Stranded passengers would have no chance to be moved to another train if the monorail stalls on a single beam, since there'd be no second guideway for a side-by-side rescue. But Horn says a stalled train could be pushed to the next station by another train.
CRUNCH TIME
Horn and other monorail officials are striving to display, as the monorail promised voters, "transparency and accountability," revealing the good with the bad—as opposed to the SMP's predecessor, the Elevated Transportation Company, which kept its memos secret under a phony attorney-client privilege and tried even to keep monorail cost figures from being listed in the ballot title. They regularly release documents and details to the public and media and provide updated info and include links to critical newspaper articles on their Web site. Horn's an energizing manager and enthusiastic leader who is almost spiritual about this "grand tale," as he calls it, the erection of a transit skyway through a city that's long desired to have one.
But it's crunch time, and the incoming fire is increasing. There's a sense that, at some point soon, someone will crack—start throwing things across the office and shout, "Where were all these assholes when we were drawing this up!" Or, judging by the wincing exchanged by monorail officials listening to recent City Council questions, maybe it's already happened. The SMP says it has taken innumerable surveys, hosted open houses, heard from thousands of citizens, and held a legion of community meetings and public hearings, in addition to hundreds of get-togethers with local, state, and federal officials. It has been working elbow to elbow with city departments. "We have so much pressure from this community to keep this [project] moving along," says monorail board member Paul Toliver.
OK, but around City Hall, advises a council staffer, "the thinking is speed kills."
randerson@seattleweekly.com
