My Candidacy for Bellevue City Council

This week marks the one-year anniversary for this blog and my initial foray into elective office in an attempt to use the “Voters’ Pamphlet” to attract attention to it.  On Tuesday I filed for Position No 4 on the Bellevue City Council in a further attempt to warn residents about Sound Transit.  I did so reluctantly because I’m far more competent with a computer keyboard than a speaker’s podium.  Again, it’s not about winning, it's my way to make a difference rather than personal since I live nowhere near the route and rarely drive into Seattle. 

This blog, which started with the initial 5/15/12 post “The Case Against East Link”, an effort to stop East Link, now includes 101 posts detailing how Sound Transit problems go way beyond East Link.  The blog posts explain Sound Transit not only made a monumental blunder with East Link when they neglected to consider bus rapid transit, (BRT) for cross-lake mass transit, their whole Proposition 1 proposal for extending Central Link south towards Federal Way and north towards Lynnwood is fundamentally flawed.

Last year the Voters’ Pamphlet “neglected” to include my blog presumably reducing my audience.  Since the election I’ve attempted to attract attention from those in more responsible positions via emails to Sound Transit Board, King County Council, State Legislative Joint Transportation Committee, Bellevue City Council, Seattle Times and Bellevue Reporter.  My response has been limited to a “out of office” notice from Joni Earl’s office, and “thanks for the information” from a King County Council person and two legislators.   However my weekly audience has grown from a few dozen last year to an average of more than 200 this year with 5000 page views since the election.  It seems likely that many of those I emailed are, or should be aware of my concerns.

My hope had been that 4 years of personal appearances before the BCC and countless emails would convince them to use the permitting process to stop East Link.  Their recent agreement with Sound Transit ended that hope (See 5/11/13 Post).   Numerous other posts; 3/23/13, 3/29/13, 4/15/13, 4/26/13, and 5/01/13 have detailed problems with the entire Prop 1 program.

What Sound Transit officials called Prop 1 approval in 2008, “A gift to our Grandchildren” will turn out to be a massive public debt with ever increasing subsidies to support a fatally flawed light rail system.  My candidacy and this blog is an attempt to make more people aware of that reality.