Cascadia Report

Solar farms grow in new energy mix

If Cascadia is going to get serious about leading on the global climate crisis, it will need more forms of clean energy, in addition to benefitting from its lucky inheritance of hydropower.

According to my former colleague Hal Bernton, there are 21 proposed projects that would cover 22,000 acres in Eastern Washington with solar panels, a source of clean power and income in an economically challenged area:

“The sun is a crop and I think we need to harvest it too if we are going to move away from fossil fuels … Anyone who thinks that the climate isn’t changing is crazy and we need to do our part,” one landowner said.

This is a potential boon for Cascadia, both as an opportunity to build and expand new industry and to demonstrate how to combat climate change.

The epicenter is Goldendale -- where I've been traveling for 25 years -- and where wind power is a booming industry. There are lots of crosscurrents between new and old residents and businesses. The story doesn't detail the potential electricity generation or grid connections.

Hopefully Klickitat County guides development and lifts its moratorium on new solar farms, rather than letting nimbys prevail. 

Looking for inspiration? Consider this dramatic growth in India. Or Australia and China. Or urban environments that could be partial models for Cascadia.

Compare this to the early days of Cascadia Report less than 15 years ago:

• Wind company proposes first turbines in Yakima
• Push for more renewable energy meets nimby
• Wanted: Someone to make windmills

 

Some of us have a gun problem

After yet another horrific mass shooting in the U.S., many in Cascadia are wondering if something similar could happen here. And how could we possibly let it happen here.

Today 10 people were killed by a gunman with an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle in a grocery store in Boulder, Colo. -- the second mass-shooting in the U.S. this week. President Biden is calling for a ban on assault weapons, while shills for the gun lobby are offering thoughts and prayers for the dead and their survivors. This is on top of more than 600 mass shootings (four or more dead or injured) in the U.S. last year.

This is insane.

A few years ago I was having breakfast with my family at a diner in Goldendale, Wash., at the eastern end of the Columbia Gorge, when a man walked in with a gun hanging from his belt. He didn't appear physically fit or capable of controlling the firearm, which didn't look safely secured. When I pushed back on this power play I learned that Washington is an "open carry" state where it's okay to walk around with a lethal weapon, regardless of the need or the potential harm it could cause. If you're worried about your family's safety, there's nothing you can do about it. So we got up and left.

Judging from Twitter today, I'm not the only one with such a reaction:

 

Carrying a weapon remains totally legal in Washington and Oregon. There are more rules for driving a car than owning a gun. Local authorities aren't even allowed to pass more restrictive laws to protect their residents. In Washington citizens passed an initiative in 2018, I-1639, that requires recording of semiautomatic rifle sales and mandates that the purchaser have some sort of safety training. But even those gentle restrictions are vehemently rejected by law enforcement officials in some parts of the state. 

When it comes to personal safety, B.C. wins. Per the Firearms Act, a license is required. Anything besides an ordinary shotgun or rifle used in hunting must be registered. A gun buyer must take a Canadian Firearms Safety Court and pass a test, buy a five-year license, and wait 28 days while the RCMP conducts background checks. 

It's way past time for commonsense safety measures in the U.S. Trips to the grocery store shouldn't put us at risk of COVID-19, let alone being shot. A generation of kids shouldn't grow up with the trauma of active-shooter drills. We should be free to move around all of Cascadia without fear.

Cutting Amtrak at exactly the wrong time

It looks like the Canadian national bureaucracy is STILL dragging its feet on adding needed rail service between Vancouver and Seattle. Meanwhile in Washington, legislators are planning to cut improvements that would make Amtrak faster and more reliable, while allowing more trains in the future.

Every dollar is important in tough budgetary times like these. So why are improvements to I-5 going ahead -- even without tolling mechanisms to lower the implicit subsidy for roads and private automobiles? We should be adding tolls in areas with "freeway" improvements while investing to make rail travel more competitive.

Instead travel options are limited. Canada wants U.S. taxpayers to cover the cost of a Canadian customs agent, despite the expected financial windfall a second daily train would bring to B.C.  For now it looks like a second train will cross the border each day during the winter Olympics -- but not after.

The best way to get more, faster Web access

Just after paying my $145 monthly telecom bill, I noticed this Wall Street Journal story about how cities nationwide are trying to promote faster broadband Internet service.

The problem is that much of the U.S. is falling behind other industrialized economies in terms of Web access speed and cost, which potentially hinders innovation -- not to mention convenience. How is it that high-speed Internet is just a quarter as costly in Japan and even Canada has faster service?

Washington in particular lags behind. See this post. Tacoma has a municipal network and this year Gov. Gregoire signed a law to begin planning broader system. But those seem like very small steps.

Several U.S. cities are investing in their own networks, against the wishes of telecom firms that nearly have a stranglehold. According to the article, telecoms seem to have two main arguments. The local projects are an unfair competitive threat, they say, and the projects will be more costly than local governments project. (Here's the latest from Qwest.)

Should local governments here be doing more to help?

Which buildings should we save

It's easy to argue that one of Seattle's darkest days was when the Music Hall theater was destroyed downtown to make way for a parking lot.

But it's usually harder to define what buildings deserve protection. There are a few ideas in this article in the Seattle P-I.

One point in the comment thread made sense to me:

Rather our approach to "preservation", why not adopt a simple "ancient light" law. If a window has had sunlight for 50 (let's say) or more years then that sunlight can not be taken away. Period, it works in other cities.

Giving praise where it's due

If you're curious about what kind of development will shape Seattle's future, increasingly the one place to turn for free, timely information is The Stranger's blog.

At a time when metropolitan dailies like The Seattle Times are almost giving up on coverage of neighborhoods, the blog is a huge help to anyone who cares about Cascadia's biggest city but can't be a full-time gadfly.

Here a few random recent posts:

Today's examines plans for major growth along the new light rail line.

Coverage of in-fill in single-family neighborhoods.

A glimpse of an iconic tower that may alter the skyline.

Coverage of the design for one of the city's first "subway" stations.

Dubious plans for Amazon's new headquarters the booming South Lake Union neighborhood.

B.C. may boost exports of trash

Vancouver wants to dramatically boost its Washington-bound exports of one product it has too much of: trash.

And why not? Canadians would pay more to cover the cost of sending trash trains to a landfill on the Washington side of the Columbia River Gorge, helping the economy of rural Klickitat County, according to the Seattle P-I. At the landfill the trash would be turned into sellable energy.

The shipments would begin just ahead of the supposedly eco-friendly Olympics and, predictably, the idea is already riling residents who live along the prospective route of trash trains. Whistler and Seattle already export their trash elsewhere in the region and other reports suggest there may, in fact, be other B.C. alternatives.

But the richest part of the P-I article is the appeal to regional sympathy by one of the proponents:

Marvin Hunt, a councilor in Surrey, B.C., and chairman of the Metro Vancouver Waste Management Committee, said the garbage shipment is just temporary until a new facility is ready in the province.

"This is the Northwest. We feel like this is all family here in Cascadia," Hunt said.

"We have a little problem right now, and when you have a problem, you ask your brothers and sisters to help you out."

It's time to charge for road use

I published an op-ed in the Seattle Times today advocating variable pricing for roads as a method to lessen congestion.

The idea of charging more during crowded times and less when fewer cars are on the road is nothing new to me (see this and this). But it's a big deal that the Municipal League, a venerable nonpartisan good-government group, is now on board. Here's from the piece:

In the past, tolls have been imposed to support construction of major projects. We at the Municipal League of King County support a broader use of tolling to increase traffic flow through congested corridors, while at the same time recovering costs from those using the roads. This is how we price other goods and services when there is limited supply.

As I mention, there are plenty of details to be worked out. The key, as I wrote, is providing alternatives so that additional fees are fair and that everyone benefits. That means adding enough buses, making them faster and more frequent so that transit is a viable alternative.

The key is balancing the market so that transit is a realistic option. Right now we're massively subsidizing travel in single-occupant vehicles. A smart pricing system would make better use of infrastructure and have the positive benefits I mention in the article.

Hooray for the carbon tax

This week British Columbia passed North America's first carbon tax, a big step toward tying sustainability, transportation and market forces. Why can't the rest of Cascadia build on the example?

The tax has been in the works for a while but I missed the passage until I arrived in Vancouver Friday night and noticed it was all over the papers and TV. Looking back, I can't find a single reference in mainstream Seattle-area media.

This policy is huge news because it stands to begin discouraging emissions while making taxation more progressive. Here are some interesting first takes:

-- There are some links to more details and praise for the potential environmental impact here.

-- The business community is glad that there's finally a law, according to yesterday's Globe and Mail.

-- The Tyee looks at whether the tax is fair, here.

-- Progressive Economics points out some flaws yet ends up praising the idea here.

Coming soon: Seattle-Northern B.C. connection

Seattle is about to get its first nonstop flights to northern British Columbia -- another step toward integrating Cascadia.

Alaska Airlines will fly to Prince George, a city 500 miles north of Vancouver at the heart of B.C. timber and mining industry. Unless you like looong drives, the only way to get there now is on the three daily Air Canada flights from YVR.

The convenience almost makes me pine for the days when I was a reporter covering Weyerhaueser and the cross-border timber industry.

More importantly, it suggests that there's demand for this sort of regional travel. The news slipped by while I was dizzy about new nonstops to China, Germany, Mexico and France.

No news south of the Canadian border today

Americans hear almost nothing about politics in Canada. Maybe it's mutual.

I found just one story in B.C. media about today's caucuses in Washington. There's some explanation of the arcane process but little about what the race means for the region:

University of Victoria graduate student Jeremy Wood, wearing a "Canadians For Obama" T-shirt, said "my friends and I came here to see if our support for Obama was based on rock star adulation or if there was something more to it. We arrived at 6:30 in the morning and talked to people lined up. One 17-year-old kid told me he had never been interested in politics until he heard about Obama.

"I've never seen a lineup like this for a political event. It's a social movement. We Canadians had Trudeaumania. But this is something else," said the 36-year-old masters of public administration student.

What Super Tuesday meant for Cascadia

The quasi-national primary on Tuesday puts votes from the Northwest in play far more than anyone expected.

For one thing, the split Clinton/Obama results make Washington's caucuses this Saturday meaningful. The Web is aflutter with news of impending visits and campaign spin.

Here's the most interesting analysis of the longer term picture.

Now there's talk that even Oregon's May primary could make a difference.

What happens to Cascadia when U.S. wanes

I missed President Bush's State of the Union speech tonight because I was reading about how much the world has changed since he took office.

It's worth reading this article from the Sunday New York Times Magazine, which shows how the world is dividing into three superpowers (U.S., China and the E.U.) that will increasingly compete for the growing "second world" countries like India, Turkey, Brazil and Vietnam. There are plenty of statistics and anecdotes showing how this trend accelerated during the past eight years and will continue to do so.

I find myself thinking immediately about what this means for Cascadia. If the bellicose behavior of the U.S. over the last several years hurt America's stature, and if Canada is so small as to be irrelevant globally, what about our region? Apparently there's more trade in the Japan-India-Australia triangle than across the Pacific and more Chinese study in Europe than the U.S. Does it mean no more booming ports in Seattle and Vancouver; fewer Chinese professionals who fondly recall living in the Northwest during school?

The article offers a series of ideas for the next couple of presidents. But this region needs leaders who appreciate the examples of other countries and our peer metro areas around the world. It needs vigorous diplomacy on a regional level. And it needs more-sustainable development here to insulate us from potential global shocks through more efficient transportation, better use of resources and improvement of the cultural draws that make this part of the world a desirable place to live.

I'll try to work this out some here in the coming months. What ideas am I missing?

Making room for people and vineyards

Planners in the Portland area are divvying up land for long-term agricultural use and for development. The idea is to get beyond arguments over the region's growth management boundaries.

Farmers and developers -- often at odds on land-use issues -- say the change could provide long-term stability by preserving large blocks of the best farmland while making it clear where cities will grow.

"Once Metro adopts urban reserves -- boom -- we know where growth is going to occur," said Jim Johnson, land use and water planning coordinator for the state Agriculture Department.

Gee, why don't we trying something similar here? Instead the top story in today's Seattle Times is about a sweetheart development deal in rural King County. It seems like forcing development -- without local buy-in or a way to pay for infrastructure -- is bound to backfire.

We have money -- but no good way to send it

Sending money between the U.S. and Canada ranks with border delays and underdeveloped transportation infrastructure as obstacles facing regionally minded Cascadia citizens.

Recently I tried to pay a bill in Canada by sending C$113 from Seattle to Victoria. Apparently I ran afoul of post-9/11 inconvenience, anti-money-laundering worries and maybe even technology. I can accept some confusion, but there's got to be a better way.

When I went to a Washington Mutual branch asking for a money order, payable in Canadian funds, the teller looked at me like I was crazy. Bank of America said they could order a money order in about a week. Western Union was willing to help me for a hefty fee, but only if I wired the cash to an individual, who then would have to pick up the cash at another Western Union outlet.

Desperately seeking a good money changer, I called the Canadian consulate in Seattle. The single main phone number leads to choices in the automated system that all lead to a dead ends. After nearly three minutes of messages in English and French, I picked tourism. Then the message said there is no longer a tourism office and suggested calling immigration. The immigration line said they no longer take telephone inquiries.

My solution was to find a friend who happens to have an account in a Canadian bank -- a move he took post-9/11 in order to handle details related to his Whistler rental. He says his bank puts a 45-business-day hold on USD checks (even if he writes it to himself) so he's resigned to simply planning way ahead. It's nearly enough to keep us on our respective sides of the border.

Rail deal a big step toward mobility

The Seattle area took a big step toward better mobility with a deal to put a railroad line through the Eastside under public ownership.

The old freight line is the only unused corridor straight through the booming suburbs, so preventing it from being sold in pieces was step one. Now there needs to be a plan to add transit and a trail, in conjunction with tolling on the existing roads.

Most important, the region needs to encourage future demand for transportation to grow around this corridor. Transit shouldn't simply serve the density that exists now. After all, today's Eastside grew up around structures that were planned in the 1950s.

Don't think the rail route would work as transportation? A project in Bellevue was announced just this week that would locate thousands of residents and workers within walking distance. In Renton the route could be connected to the Sounder trains, light rail and density near Southcenter. In the north, the corridor serves Woodinville and Snohomish -- booming areas where focusing development around transit infrastructure makes more sense than massive new roads.

Consider this report about one way transit could be added sooner rather than later.

Doing right thing for the waterfront (finally)

Politicians and media appear to be coming around (finally) to the idea that Seattle's waterfront viaduct shouldn't be replaced with another freeway.

Cascadia Report made the case last winter for a combination of transit and comprehensive street improvements to replace the earthquake-damaged eyesore. Gov. Gregoire and Mayor Nickels were among those who poo-pooed the idea by insisting that any replacement had to accommodate the same number of vehicles as the current viaduct.

Now, Gregoire has changed her mind. Several agencies have pledged to work together for a comprehensive fix. Today even the Seattle Times editorial board -- a mostly suburban group that generally supports roads over transit -- came out in favor of transit + road fixes.

It's about time. Now let's get to work on a long-term fix that values the waterfront heart of the region's biggest metro area.

Critics of tall Seattle buildings have it backward

Critics of plans for taller buildings in Seattle's South Lake Union area have it exactly backward.

If anything, the city should encourage more building in the area, creating demand for transit rather than encouraging sprawl. Instead critics want to soak the developer to pay more into a fund to create "affordable" housing.

Now, zoning in the area requires special permission to build even 12 stories. Why not require that buildings be at least that tall? Set design review standards, sure. But let's build the workplaces for thousands of employees and new residents.

What's wrong with a supposedly sweetheart deal between developers and the mayor, as long as the city gains? Among the benefits: More housing supply in the city should lower overall prices and make transportation options feasible.

Of course the city should negotiate to get the best terms in this area, but better those rules be streamlined and transparent to encourage more, better building instead of hinder it. Unfortunately the potential benefits are totally lost in today's story and the reader comments.

Missing the Olympics 'bounty'

It's refreshing to see a story in the Seattle Times today about how Washington risks losing out on the economic benefits of the 2010 Olympics.

Cascadia Report has mentioned this issue many times, including here and here (and don't forget the Olympics category here).

There are a few problems with the story:

-- Border hassles are a big factor. But what about the falling value of the U.S. dollar?

Both sides are noticing a drop in travel. From January to April of this year, same-day visitors from the U.S. to B.C. dropped by almost 13 percent, Periwal said.

Travel to B.C. is a lot less interesting to Americans when their money buys 20 percent less than it did just months ago. On Sunday night, it took 10-15 minutes to cross the border southbound while northbound waits were over an hour. It was the reverse on Friday evening, at the end of a day of post-Thanksgiving sales.

-- Canada isn't necessarily more feel-good about the border:

G. Kathleen Hill, deputy consul general at the U.S. Consulate in Vancouver, pointed to a fundamental difference between border priorities: While the U.S. priority is security, Canadians value the free flow of goods and people, she said.

Try telling that to each driver with Canadian plates entering B.C. ahead of me on Friday. They had to open each car door so the border agent could search their vehicle. (Of course, U.S. agents are no strangers to over-the-top screening.)

-- Roads aren't the only solution:

Driving is unlikely to get dramatically more pleasant, especially when you factor in worsening congestion along I-5 and throughout Vancouver. That makes boosting train service an obvious opportunity to boost mobility. Amtrak currently offers a single train and four buses each day between Seattle and Vancouver. Why isn't B.C. funding improvements north of the border to accommodate more trains?

Cascadia as global outsourcing way station

The Tyee has an interesting article questioning the benefits for the Vancouver area of a new software research center in Richmond, B.C. There are some smart comments too.

To me, this seems like a trend B.C. should support. Obviously the U.S. and Canada are very different labor markets, especially for skilled technology workers with Asian passports. Even if the new research center doesn't mean more Canadian hires, every Asian worker will make B.C. more fertile for technology and, over time, pay off by making it a more dynamic business environment.

Urban planning overlooked in Seattle

The booming Seattle area is struggling to define itself. That's why it's curious that urban design seems overlooked in the latest regional awards by the American Institute of Architects.

For last Monday's ceremony there were nearly 200 entries for designs, from residential to industrial. But in the category of urban planning: nothing, not a single one for built or unbuilt work. (There was also nothing for historical preservation.)

Here's how our tipster put it:

In a city that's bursting at the seams, with the number of public projects that have been proposed, shot down, restarted, re-voted on -- how is there nothing in the urban design category? Scary.

Surely the numbers partly reflect who's commissioning the projects. That makes rewarding quality design even more important.

From one dark place to another -- nonstop

A day after the onslaught of standard time, it's hard to imagine anyone wanting to fly nonstop to Germany. But thanks to Lufthansa at least Seattleites (and anyone doing international business) will have the option.

The Sea-Tac-to-Franfurt nonstop announced today is the latest increase in air service since the Port of Seattle lowered its fees to attract more routes. That's the right sort of subsidy -- a targeted incentive that mulitplies the economic benefit. Recent new flights include to Mexico City and Paris.

There were rumors that Sea-Tac was courting a nonstop to Munich (Vancouver and Portland already have Frankfurt flights -- Portland, thanks to a package of tourism incentives). Lest anyone misconstrue the addition, note that Lufthansa also announced a host of new flights from Canada today.

When the flights begin in March, Seattle may enjoy the best connections to Europe it's ever had. (True, Aeroflot ended its nonstop to Moscow. But Sea-Tac will have daily scheduled service to five business centers: London, Paris, Frankfurt, Amsterdam and Copenhagen.)

B.C. plan could actually cut gas emissions

Seattle announced Monday that it managed to cut emissions of greenhouse gases over the last 15 years. Too bad emissions from cars are bound to continue rising.

Meanwhile in British Columbia there's serious talk of a policy that could really make a difference: a carbon tax. The proposal would shift taxes to give incentives for lower emissions. It seems a lot more effective than just encouraging everyone to ride bicycles.

Washington and the Seattle area need to think along the same lines. This report includes a chart of Seattle's pollution sources and how hard it will be to make more progress. Next steps should be replacing the viaduct with transit and better streets and then nudging the region toward a more sustainable transportation network.

Why I'm voting for Transit and Roads

The tax package to fund transit and roads in the greater Seattle area, known as Prop. 1, is a compromise: there are details for everyone to hate. I may be holding my nose, but I'm voting yes.

Consider what the measure does: it raises $10.8 billion to add light rail, HOV lanes, streetcars, park-and-rides and other transit infrastructure. It also generates $7 billion to fix some road choke points and complete several missing links in the region's network, for example connecting 509 and 167 to I-5. It's far from the sole solution, but it's a start.

For more info, take a look at this map.

What would be better? Funding much more transit, completing the projects much faster and explicitly including congestion pricing in the financing mix. In fact, the most persuasive argument against the measure is that any investment in roads lessens incentives for transit and worsens global warming.

But politics is reality. There's a huge backlog of infrastructure projects in the region and chipping away at it takes regional buy-in -- a process that in this case took five years. The dense areas of the region can't afford to pay for all the transit this area needs (remember the monorail?). To build support, there needs to be something for people who help pay but wouldn't directly benefit. Even with this package, congestion will still create a growing incentive to use transit; as alternatives start becoming available policies can be shifted to encourage even more use.

Assuming the measure passes, the next step should be reorganizing the governments that oversee the region's transportation to execute more efficiently. There will still be chances during the planning process to modifiy specific projects. These are all big challenges, not deal breakers.

Writing that captures the city

There's a nice elegy in the Seattle P-I today marking the 25th anniversary of the death of the poet Richard Hugo.

The author of "The Real West Marginal Way" captured the city in a way that may not be possible now that the area is more grown up. That makes his contribution more worth remembering than ever.

One place that builds on his example is the Hugo House literary center (where I serve on the board). From the P-I piece:

Most of all, Hugo, our hometown poet, tells us that writing matters: "It's a way of saying you and the world have a chance." In these past 25 years, multitudes of writers working in all sorts of genres have gathered in Seattle. We're now not only a bookish city, we're a city where the raw ore of language is formed into literature. All along the ridges and valleys, writers are working away, word by word, creating the drafts that we'll see later caught between the smooth, glimmering covers of books. It's the kind of industry that would have impressed Richard Hugo.

Making a city for residents, not tourists

I just noticed this article in Vancouver magazine, pointing out the need to make the city serve its residents rather than just tourists, planners and the people who create "most-livable city" lists.

The writer finds fault with Vancouver's regional government system (exactly what Seattle lacks):

One of the biggest obstacles is political: planners are king here because our politicians allow them to be. Our at-large municipal system—unlike the ward system, with defined constituencies, which you find in most major cities—gives a free pass to city councillors. We select our council from a list of 100-plus candidates every three years, and they thank us by answering to “the city at large”—not to the widower in Strathcona trying to save the local seniors’ centre from destruction, not to the South Main sculptor trying to find a spot for his public art, not to the young couple in Yaletown trying to get a playground built near their condo. Such quotidian concerns become the domain of bureaucrats and enforcers, while politicians turn their attention to the “big picture” stuff like EcoDensity, Civil City and the Olympics.

By contrast, the Seattle area has the worst of both worlds. The Seattle city council is elected city wide (so they're not accountable to neighborhoods) yet there's no effective regional government.

Cost of driving makes ferry feasible

A boat owner wants to start ferrying commuters between Seattle and Gig Harbor for $800 a month.

The reason the idea isn't totally laughable is that new tolls, increasing road congestion and higher gas prices are beginning to reflect the actual cost of driving:

Dividing $800 by 20 workdays a month comes out to $40 a day. He said with the price of gas, the tolls on the Tacoma Narrows Bridge and parking in downtown Seattle, the ferry wouldn't be much more expensive than driving — and a lot less stressful.

A transit system that makes a profit

The Seattle area needs a variety of measures to fix its transportation woes (light rail, buses, streetcars, etc). Never mind that many people are waiting for a perfect, inexpensive, painless solution.

Instead, consider what works in Amsterdam:

Within the center of Amsterdam, trams are the kings of the roads; there are very few bus lines that travel strictly within the center, and parking is a hassle, discouraging driving. Taking the tram is easy because of the multitude of lines, speed, comfort, frequency, and affordable price.

Providing a practical alternative to driving alone (and lessening the incentives for driving) has led to increasing ridership, fewer accidents and -- get this -- a transit system that's even profitable. Of course, they had to start somewhere.

Ending homeless in Vancouver, Seattle

Seattle doesn't have anything like the Downtown Eastside, Vancouver's slum of addicts and homeless. But judging from the line outside a shelter on Belltown's 3rd Avenue Sunday, there's a serious poverty problem.

So what to do about it?

We could lament the disconnect between the poor on the streets and the rich inhabitants of new condo towers.

Prefer solutions? The Tyee ran a list of five ideas suggested recently in British Columbia. The ideas in the comment string seemed more promising (Evo Morales aside).

Consider instead King County's plan, which recognizes that money is only part of the solution and chances of upending modern capitalism are slim.

Loonie = greenback: Who wins and loses

Longing for the happy days of bargain meals, rooms and ski slopes in British Columbia? Get over it.

Today the U.S. and Canadian dollars reached parity for the first time since 1976. The greenback has slid more than 60 percent against the loonie in the last five years and there's every reason to think the trend will continue.

It's already clear that the situation is tricky for anyone who is easily confused by U.S. and Canadian coins. I remember using Queen Elizabeth quarters and bills at Safeway in south Seattle as late as the early '80s. Those days may be back.

So who wins? Businesses in the U.S. that cater to Canadian customers. With their increased buying power, more Canadians will be traveling around Cascadia. The Victoria Clipper says traffic from Canada is up 25 percent this year. Things are surely looking up for discount shops and Costco stores just south of the U.S. border.

Potential losers come to mind more easily:

-- Anyone in Canada who depends on U.S. tourists. On Wednesday organizers of the 2010 Olympics unpersuasively insisted they won't be hurt because they've hedged their budget against currency changes. Too bad U.S. tourists haven't.

-- Anyone who depends on sales of Canadian lumber -- a huge slice of the B.C. economy, in other words. The current slump in demand from U.S. housing combined with the strong loonie will do what years of softwood tariffs couldn't: protect uncompetitive U.S. lumber producers.

The decisions that made a great city

Vancouver, often named one of the world's most livable cities, didn't get that way by accident. It took a series of not-so-obvious decisions.

A former British Columbia premier and a longtime urban planner just released a book describing their list of nine key turning points. Apparently their point is that currently planned transportation and development projects in Vancouver now threaten to undo many of those successes.

There's little in the book about Vancouver's "irritating and potentially dangerous sense of self-satisfaction," according to The Tyee. But the list is still fascinating:

-- Creation of a regional planning board after a 1948 flood forced officials to prepare for potential disasters.

-- The battle in the 1960s against plans to tear down urban neighborhoods and build in-city freeways.

-- Creation in the 1970s of an a regional reserve of agricultural land.

-- Regional planning based on neighborhood "livability" starting in the 1970s.

-- Remaking of the False Creek area after Expo 86.

-- A series of laws in the 1980s and 1990s mandating regional planning.

-- Creation of a regional transportation agency.

-- Shifting power and responsibilities to local government, away from the province.

Some of the elements of regional planning were also implemented in Portland. Seattle's list is much shorter, including regional water service decades ago, the package of 1960s reforms that created bus-transit system and cleaned up sewage, and the beginnings of regional transit in the 1990s.

Across Cascadia, the combining regional planning for infrastructure and local buy-in for neighborhood decisions still seems the best bet for coordinating new growth. It's worth considering this list of mistakes the book's authors came up with when asked by the Vancouver Sun:

1. Lack of authority in the regional government to enforce development near transit.

2. Slum clearance in the 1950s and 1960s.

3. Keeping the rural grid pattern south of the Fraser River, which makes density and transit difficult.

4. Allowing business-park sprawl.

5. Allowing the proliferation of underground malls that robbed streets of pedestrians.

6. Getting rid of the region's interurban rail and streetcars, which destroyed a comprehensive transit system and promoted more car use. The last interurban stopped in 1958.

7. Not containing the sprawl into farmland sooner.

8. Failing to consider sooner whether the region needed a vast rail system.

How to fix Seattle Center (and help Bumbershoot)

Pumping some new life into the Bumbershoot festival should be incentive for fixing the outmoded Seattle Center, the main park in the middle of the city.

Yes, some of this year's shows were great. On Saturday I loved The Gourds at Mural Amphitheater ("Starbucks Stage") and The Moth at Bagley Wright Theater. But The Shins' show suffered from awful sound in Memorial Stadium -- not to mention a lack of drinking water and super-strict airport-style crowd control.

At risk of sounding like a geezer, I have to say it used to be better. For $5 you could spend the day chancing across new music and art, plus maybe catch a great headliner. I'll always remember hearing Miles Davis at the old Opera House in 1987.

This year the walk-up tickets were $35, which kept the crowds in check. While fighting the economics of the music business is probably a lost cause, we can rejuvenate the place by remodeling the Seattle Center. (There's a simple summary of the options on this story.)

What can be done? Replace Memorial Stadium with a real amphitheater, replace the Fun Forest with usable green space, retool Key Arena and modernize the Center House. But don't stop there. Let's make the place accessible by running the new streetcar from South Lake Union past the Seattle Center to the existing line on the waterfront.

Extra open space, some better facilities and more efficient access would go a long way toward restoring the Seattle Center and Bumbershoot. That might even make them better than ever.

Another "most livable" ranking

Vancouver residents might be frustrated with traffic and high rent but don't tell The Economist, which just named the city as the most livable in the world.

Such an accolade for Vancouver isn't really news. But it's curious because it's based on a weighted index of 40 factors such as congestion, crime and cultural assets. Reportedly Melbourne fell to No. 2 because of congestion. The top U.S. cities were Cleveland and Pittsburgh.

Who wants to ride these old trains

Never mind the snazzy drawings of Acela trains below -- service in Cascadia is getting a temporary setback while Amtrak deals with equipment problems.

On Saturday I was driving north on a (very congested) I-5 near Nisqually when one of the Cascades trains passed overhead. But instead of the modern Talgo trains that make traveling between Vancouver and Eugene so comfortable, it was a train of three old Amtrak cars.

The Talgo cars are out of service until December, reportedly because of cracks in their suspension. Using old equipment is better than having an accident. But it means less capacity and it certainly makes the trip less pleasant, with the elimination of the business-class car option.

Following the region's skyscraper growth

It's old news that Portland's skyline is growing. Here's a cool tool to see it.

Obviously Cascadia's cities aren't alone. Here's a look at how some of it may be funnelled in downtown Seattle. And in Vancouver.

Airline snafus boost support for rail

The combination of airline delays and Amtrak's increasing ridership is generating goodwill that could lead to more support for passenger rail, according to a report in today's Wall Street Journal.

Over the last 10 months, ridership on Amtrak's fast Acela trains in the Washington-Boston corridor is up 20% -- "enough new passengers to fill 2,000 Boeing 757 jets." Ridership in the Chicago-St. Louis corridor is up 53% in the 10 months through July, the paper said. It could've mentioned recent gains in Cascadia too.

Hopefully this trend eases some opposition to investing in rail. Then we could talk about breaking up the Amtrak monopoly and introducing more market forces aimed at improving passenger rail rather than dismantling it.

The article suggests some encouraging signs:

"You have to begin to put the infrastructure in place to put in high-speed trains," says Gordon Bethune, who retired in 2004 as chief executive of Continental Airlines Inc. "It should be a national priority. If the French can do it, why can't we?"

Another airline-industry legend Robert Crandall, former CEO of American Airlines parent AMR Corp., says improvements to Amtrak's network in the Northeast are one of the best ways to reduce aviation gridlock.

In Cascadia, it's going to be a long process -- even in Washington, which has funded some rail improvements. Among other things, we need more support from the B.C. government to speed the Seattle-Vancouver corridor.

Learning from another West Coast downtown

I just got around to reading this Steve Lopez column about the booming development in downtown Los Angeles. There's plenty we could borrow, like pocket parks and integrating transit.

We're all for letting market forces drive development, but we could use some vision for coordinating projects in our own cities.

The case against biofuel as energy solution

I saw a biodiesel VW on the road today and the green part of me said I should get one of my own to help cut oil consumption. The rest of me says truly cutting pollution and energy use is a lot more complicated.

Biofuel production -- such as the new plant in Hoquiam -- surely makes sense as part of an array of energy alternatives. But it seems we're likely to accomplish more by guiding more efficient consumer behavior through incentives.

Consider this editorial in today's L.A. Times laying out the case against ethanol, a corn-based biofuel that's winning attention from politicians of all stripes ahead of the caucuses in Iowa. The article points out the environmental costs and makes a convincing case for fuel economy standards instead.

Meanwhile an Oregon State University study found that the cost of biofuels, including tax subsidies, is many times more than alternatives such as increased fuel efficiency.

Don't forget to vote

Tuesday is the primary election in Washington. Since I've been asked, here's how I voted.

For Seattle-area races, take a look at the Municipal League's ratings. I considered the League ratings (I participated in the final ratings), media reports and my own views:

Seattle City Council -- I'm looking for new ideas and signs that a candidate can actually build consensus and take action. Challenger Joe Szwaja in Position 1 and Venus Velazquez for the open seat in Position 3 seem most promising.

Port of Seattle -- The Port needs more stringent oversight, which led me to pick Gael Tarleton (who has a financial-management background) for Position 2 over incumbent Bob Edwards. In Position 5, incumbent Alec Fisken has been a tenacious agitator for transparency so deserves another term.

King County Prop. 1 and Prop. 2 -- I'm a huge fan of parks and zoos, which would benefit from these property tax measures. But I don't support the mechanism behind them. Parks and zoos aren't the lowest priority of county residents so shouldn't be the also-ran issues that the government puts on the ballot almost as afterthought. I don't want to be asked about funding every government priority -- we elect representatives to weigh priorities and to make the case for more overall funding if that's required. These levies continue a bad habit.

They hate us for our brie, coffee and wine

The rift between the two sides of the Cascade mountains is well known. Now there's a new bone of contention: food.

Apparently the "100-mile diet" is catching on in Seattle, where some people aim to cut pollution by sourcing their food locally instead of shipping it from far away.

An editorial in the Tri-City Herald pokes fun at the whole idea. It misses the point, of course. But it's still better than the infamous 2000 vote by the Seattle city council in favor of removing the Snake River dams. No wonder it's so hard to build consensus for development and infrastructure in the state.

Why everybody's building transit

As big votes on whether to fund more transit in the Seattle area loom this fall, consider this: It seems everybody else is doing it.

Planners in San Francisco want to give people alternatives to driving, including more train, ferry and bus service. Even Vancouver, Wash., may add streetcars. Tacoma already said it's looking at a citywide streetcar system.

This kind of improvements should be made in tandem with gradually adding tolls on existing roads to encourage more efficient behavior. As long as there are alternatives, tolls won't penalize people with less income. Gradually changing behavior is part of the solution to gridlock.

The San Francisco Chronicle quotes the head of that area's transit planning agency this way: "There's no one silver bullet in dealing with congestion."

The best news in years: Feds to fund tolls

Seattle just got its best transportation-related news in years. Now state policy makers must act.

Seattle beat more than 20 metro areas competing for a federal grant to fund innovative solutions to traffic gridlock. Being named one of the five recipients means money to start tolling on 520, new buses, improvements to park and rides and better ferry service on Puget Sound.

The grant requires King County to have tolling on 520 in place by 2009 or it will lose almost all of the $139 million. Of course tolls should be phased in immediately in order to gradually build the incentive for lifestyle changes required to keep the region moving. (And don't forget providing alternatives.)

Though officials reportedly welcomed the news, the state legislature still has to approve the concept of tolling on 520. But instead of explaining what's at stake, today's Seattle Times oddly emphasizes the "irritated motorists" who won't want to pay to cross the bridge and even quotes a critic of congestion pricing. Another quote says the federal grant means this fall's ballot measures to fund transit and road improvements shouldn't pass.

The fact is that people will adjust, as we saw just this week on I-5. The region needs major transportation investments and starting tolling asap is a key step to making them wisely.

What to do about the Sonics

It's a shame that the Sonics appear destined to leave Seattle after their stadium lease expires. So what to do?

Considering the benefit of having pro sports (like great theater, music, restaurants, etc.), it makes sense for some public investment in a stadium. But any deal should be off if the owners are happy to leave this prosperous area for a smaller market.

Instead, this column suggests we treat them with Uptight Seattle politeness:

You know what I'm talking about. We've got to fight back with our strength. Let's give these oily Okies a three-year blast of the Seattle Freeze.

For you fans, that means: Be polite but aloof. If invited to a Sonics game, say you were thinking of going hiking. Don't really go hiking. Don't go to the game either. Be maddeningly noncommittal.

For civic leaders, if you run into an Oklahoma oilman, smile without showing any teeth. Say "let's get together sometime." Don't return calls.

If they make demands, appoint a blue-ribbon commission. If they get impatient, talk earnestly about the process. Use the terms "inclusivity" and "community stakeholders."

Road closes and life goes on

For months, Seattle-area residents have been warned that the partial closure of northbound I-5 leading to downtown would result in an apocalyptic traffic jam stretching all the way to Tacoma. Instead commuters taught the region a lesson.

What happened? As the P-I put it, "looks like a little planning goes a long way." People adjusted by finding alternate routes, taking transit or working remotely. Traffic sailed by on the two open lanes of I-5, buses and the Sounder trains (including an extra run added for the 19-day closure) were at full capacity. Apparently alternate roads were busy but far from gridlocked.

The clear takeaway is that people are more flexible than they think. In this case, there is a strong incentive (not wasting hours in traffic) to find alternatives. It's exactly what would happen if the viaduct freeway were replaced with a combination of better transit and a more efficient network of surface streets. It's exactly what would happen if there were tolls based on the amount of congestion on the roads. As long as there are effective alternatives (like far more transit, better carpool lanes) people will take them.

Questions about port rivalry

News that one of Seattle's oldest port customers is moving to Tacoma brought a variety of reactions. And unanswered questions.

The Port of Seattle seemed alarmed, saying Tacoma's wooing of NYK Line put the relationship between the ports at risk. Today Bill Virgin notes that, if they can't cooperate, maybe Tacoma should take over Seattle's port.

A few remaining questions:

-- If NYK Line (or another company) wants to operate its own piers, why does Seattle keep its arrangement with operator SSA?

-- What does the deal cost Tacoma? Reportedly the project is $300 million, which may include building costs for any port tenant. What will the NYK arrangement cost taxpayers?

-- What's the competitive advantage of Tacoma (or Seattle) versus other ports along the West Coast? Seattle has been losing business and Tacoma's recent gain is Seattle's futher loss. Both will have to answer that question to beat regional rivals.

I'd like to see the region's mainstream media tackle those questions next.

Tacoma's parking plans lead region

Tacoma may set an example for other Cascadia cities with a comprehensive parking plan that includes provisions for more transit and bicycle facilities.

Best of all is talk of combining market forces and public investment to make the city work better. Here's how the city manager put it:

When it comes to parking, “nobody wants to become Seattle,” Anderson said. “Portland is the one that’s held up as pretty good, but we’d like to be better than Portland.”

Among the recommendations:

-- Make the city’s parking system self-supporting with revenue from pay stations and garages. Use cost to regulate demand and setting parking prices at a level that maintains a 15 percent vacancy rate. (Brilliant! Why not do it with meters around the clock?)

-- Build a citywide streetcar system that connects downtown with other neighborhoods.

-- Build a citywide system for bikes and pedestrians using trails and street rights-of-way.

Running a global business from Cascadia

Getty Images is moving some of its headquarters functions from Seattle to New York City, reportedly because it's easier to do some international business there.

It begs the question: Is operating a global business from the Northwest a hardship? Nintendo plans to move. Six years ago, the departure of Boeing's headquarters was blamed partly on the difficulty of doing business from Seattle.

Yes, global firms like Microsoft, Weyerhaueuser, Starbucks and Paccar somehow muddle through. But maybe there's a wake-up call for the region in the latest moves.

Even Idaho may move on transit

Even the governor of Idaho is identifying steps that can be taken now to improve traffic congestion.

The Idaho Statesman reports that the anti-tax Republican plans to boost the number of employees who telecommute and to do more to eliminate daily trips. Unfortunately there's little talk of changing the car-dependent layout of towns that inevitably brings congestion.

In addition to managing demand for roads, it seems clear that infrastructure is needed to move more people. Luckily the community is on board with the idea of improving Boise's transit system, at least according to this report.

Meanwhile, back in Seattle, there's a new ad campaign seeking to convince voters that doing nothing is a better strategy. Let's hope the region doesn't miss its latest opportunity.

Seattle-area candidate ratings released

There are several mild surprises in the Municipal League's ratings of candidates for 26 races in the Seattle area.

The annual nonpartisan ratings, released Tuesday, are based on four criteria: Knowledge, Involvement, Effectiveness and Character. They assess each candidate's potential to be effective in office and ability to serve the community. They don't consider political affiliations or stands on particular issues.

I'm a trustee of the League so I'll just pass on the news, including a few upsets:

-- At the Port of Seattle, challengers Jack Block Jr. and Gael Tarleton got Outstanding ratings while incumbent Bob Edwards was rated Good. Commissioner Alec Fisken got an Outstanding while challenger William Bryant got a Very Good.

-- For Seattle City Council position 1, incumbent Jean Godden got a Good, the same as challenger Joe Swaja. For position 7, challenger Tim Burgess got an Outstanding while incumbent David Della got a Very Good.

The rest of the results and complete definitions of the ratings are posted here.

This year's ratings are the result of the work of more than 60 citizens who studied the public record, reviewed candidate questionnaires, checked references and conducted live interviews with the candidates. (As a League trustee, I was one of the people who reviewed the ratings.)

Solving Seattle's housing crunch

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels wants to give more tax breaks to developers to encourage them to build moderately priced housing. But there are better ways to make housing affordable.

The mayor's plan would expand tax breaks for developers who build homes for people who earn middle-income wages. That's a well-intentioned step to meet a legitimate need.

Instead the city would be better off encouraging significantly larger buildings, especially along transit corridors. Why not allow 25-story condos in places where there's good infrastructure and they don't overwhelm neighbors? How about along I-5 near the UW, on major corners of Capitol Hill and next to the light rail station in the Rainier Valley? On this issue, even Federal Way is ahead of Seattle.

Other critical steps are improving in-city transit to serve those buildings and then making neighbohoods more walkable. Expand the streetcar and bus system (and replace the Viaduct with busways) so people can more easily survive without a car. If a middle-class family of four could survive with one car or no car, suddenly Seattle would be a lot more affordable.

It won't be easy to build support for these changes, even though more housing supply would lower prices for middle-income and poorer residents. The city would need to guarantee good design, which hasn't been the case with cookie-cutter townhomes overtaking some neighborhoods.

What's clear is that cutting property taxes starves the city of resources to provide services like parks, police and transit. Even so it's far from clear that extra tax credits would be enough to lure more development.