Seattle/King County Climate News 8.13.22
Robin Briggs
Mayor Harrell announced that Greg Spotts will be the new head of SDOT. Spotts currently works for the City of Los Angeles where he is the Executive and Chief Sustainability Director at the Los Angeles Bureau of Street Management. He oversaw the spending for $600 million in America Recovery and Reinvestment Plan funds, and has led efforts in Los Angeles to make the streets more pedestrian and bike and transit-friendly. The Transportation Committee will vote on his appointment at their Aug 16 meeting at 9:30 am.
Alex Pedersen is sponsoring a resolution to phase out use of gas powered leaf blowers by the City by 2025, and all use including by residents and businesses by 2027. The City will explore options to support low-income residents and landscaping businesses through this transition to electric equipment, including a possible buyback program or rebates on replacement purchases. This will come before the Sustainability and Renters' Rights Committee, but has not yet been scheduled.
Public Comment on the Comprehensive Plan EIS Scoping is open until Aug. 22. So far, 862 people have participated and there are 501 comments. You can write a new comment, or just browse through other people's comments and either comment on them, or vote them up or down. The plan will have a big impact on Seattle's emissions, either positive or negative.
Report from SDOT on the Seattle Transit Measure, one year after measure was renewed. It will be presented at the Aug 16 meeting of the Transportation and Seattle Public Utilities Committee at 9:30 am.
City Council will be on break from Aug 22 to Sept 6.