Bellevue Seeks Public Comment on East Link Agreement -- and How to Pay for It

Dozens of people turned out for an open house at City Hall Tuesday on options for the proposed Sound Transit light rail line that will connect the line from Interstate 90 to downtown Bellevue.

Most written comments were directed at how Sound Transit could lessen the traffic, noise and visual impact to neighborhoods closest to the proposed line along Bellevue Way and 112th Street. However, still up in the air is how the city will come up with $160 million of the $276 million (in 2007 dollars) cost of a transit tunnel through downtown --  .

The transit agency in July approved a light rail line that included a downtown Bellevue tunnel that would add $276 million to the $2.5 billion cost of the East Link project, which connects Seattle with the Eastside through Mercer Island, Bellevue and Redmond.

, with the condition that the city cover $160 million of the tunnel cost with through tax breaks, property acquisition, cash and other actions.

, and Bellevue city officials plan to include how the transit agency will minimize the impacts to the Surrey Downs, Enatai and other neighborhoods that fall along the above-ground path of the East Link line.

The deadline to get an agreement to Sound Transit is Oct. 25, which city officials say could be a tall order with a little over a month to go.

Bellevue Mayor Don Davidson hopes that both agencies recognize the magnitude and permanent effect on Bellevue of the decisions to be made in the agreement and give the negotiations the proper time to sort them out.

"Let's look at the decisions we have to make," he said.

City manager Steve Sarkozy said that the negotiating teams on both sides are making an effort to hit the deadline, despite the monetary issues and the neighborhood issues.

City officials also are interviewing residents in the affected neighborhoods individually to seek out concerns.

The East Link line that Sound Transit adopted to connect Interstate 90 with downtown Bellevue was not the one supported by most Bellevue council members. Four out of seven of the council members supported a line that followed a BNSF railroad line that roughly follows Interstate 405.

Davidson, who was among the council majority in opposition to Sound Transit's chosen route, said that now his focus is to ensure that Bellevue officials can identify and negotiate for the options on the line of most benefit to the neighborhoods.

The open house "is mainly to see if we're on track," Davidson said.

Councilwoman Claudia Balducci, who was in the council minority in the support of Sound Transit's choice of route, said that city officials want to know what priorities the neighbors have as they negotiate the agreement and plan for the route.

"These options have trade-offs," she said, explaining that an option that lessens a traffic impact, such as a raised track, could have an increased visual impact to homes. "We want to know which ones are important to them."

However, many of the issues raised Tuesday have been the same ones that residents have debated over when Sound Transit was determining which route it would pick.

"We've been working on these issues for six years," Davidson said. "And we'll probably hear a lot of the same thing."

The relatively new issues include how the city will cover its $160 million portion of the tunnel cost.

City officials say they have identified how to cover about $100 million of the tunnel construction cost with actions that would not cost the city much money, or would provide additional benefits to the city -- including providing easements, giving sales tax credits and acquiring a Metro site that could have additional benefits to parks and city right of way.

However, the city has yet to identify how to cover the remaining $60 million -- including the cost of a carpool lane on Bellevue Way, grant funding and expedited permit process, among other options.

Options for covering the $160 million cost include reorganizing city construction and land acquisition projects, raising taxes or borrowing money by issuing bonds, according to city officials.

East Link will run from Seattle, through Bellevue, to the Overlake area of Redmond. Construction is forecast to begin by 2015 and service is expected to start by 2023.

A public hearing will be held during the council’s regular meeting that begins at 8 p.m. Monday, Sept. 26, in the council chambers of City Hall.

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