[nfbwatlk] FW: Attend Budget Hearing & Support Pedestrians!

[Jacob Struiksma]

Dear Friend of Feet First:

Attend an upcoming City of Seattle's Budget Hearing Meetings.

The City of Seattle is gearing up for the public hearing to comment on the
City of Seattle's budget. The City's first Pedestrian Master Plan was
recently approved and we need your voice to implement the $600,000 plan.
Unfortunately, the Mayor's proposed budget does not go far enough to
implement the plan.

Mayor's Proposed Budget:
-Includes a repeal of the Employee Head Tax. Now is not the time to give
away more than $4.5 million in revenue. This amounts to more than $20
million dollars over the next 5 years. The budget short fall this year
exceeds $70 million dollars. Repealing this tax simply adds more to the gap.


-Does not suggest a dedicated fund for implementation of Bike and Pedestrian
plans 

-Keeps pedestrian levels at approximately the same level they were last
year, plus funding for ped-related projects falls short of the $15 million
identified in the pedestrian plan (about $7 million short). 

-Bike and Pedestrian funding (minus major projects and capital improvements)
is at about 6% of the total SDOT budget. The employee head tax (EHT) is one
of the funding sources of the Bridging the Gap project, which is a key
funding source for the improvements contained in the Pedestrian Master Plan.
Bridging the Gap would be significantly impacted by the repeal of the EHT.

We recently learned of a downtown employer with approximately 200 employees;
said employer paid only $2,500 in EHT last year (this is an average of
$12.50 per employee). The EHT only charges employers for employees who
drive. 

Feet First does not support taking away an important mechanism for funding
sustainable transportation. Now is the time to keep funding sources to
implement the Pedestrian Master Plan, thereby reducing climate change,
building healthier communities, and providing safer places for people to
walk. 

Please attend one of the budget meetings and speak out for dedicated funding
to implement the City of Seattle's recently adopted Pedestrian Master Plan: 

Wednesday, October 7th
Whitman Middle School- Auditorium
9201 15th Ave NW
5:00 PM Sign-in
5:30 PM Public Hearing

Wednesday, October 14th
NW African-American Museum
Legacy Gallery
2300 South Massachusetts St.
5:00 PM Sign-in
5:30 PM Public Hearing

Monday, October 26th
City Council Chambers
4:30-5:00 PM Call-In
5:00 PM Sign-In
5:30 PM Public Hearing



Finally, if you are unable to attend the public hearing, we encourage you to
send an email to City of Seattle Councilmembers letting them know you do not
agree with repealing the employee head tax without a replacement funding
mechanism for active transportation. Direct your comments to: 
http://www.cityofseattle.net/council/councilcontact.htm

Should you have questions, feel free to contact us directly by calling
206-652-2310 or by emailing info at feetfirst.info



Sincerely yours,



Lisa Quinn
Feet First 
Executive Director

	

If you no longer wish to receive these emails, please reply to this message
with "Unsubscribe" in the subject line or simply click on the following
link: Unsubscribe
<blocked::http://cts.vresp.com/u?b46007d422/b0f2cbb355/mlpftw> 	
Feet First
314 1st Avenue South
Seattle, Washington 98104
www.feetfirst.info
info at feetfirst.info
206-652-2310 


Read <blocked::http://www.verticalresponse.com/content/pm_policy.html>  the
VerticalResponse marketing policy.

 <blocked::http://www.verticalresponse.com/landing/?mm/b46007d422>
Right-click here to download pictures. To help protect your privacy, Outlook
prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet.
Try Email Marketing with VerticalResponse!	
 Right-click here to download pictures. To help protect your privacy,
Outlook prevented automatic download of this picture from the Internet.
 <blocked::http://cts.vresp.com/o.gif?b46007d422/b0f2cbb355/mlpftw>