Washblog

"Working on the stadium issue is like weeding dandelions. Sometimes, it seems there are more and bigger dandelions no matter what you do. There is no rational explanation. They just appear.

State Senator Margarita Prentice has proposed, for Renton or Bellevue, at a cost of $300 million or so to taxpayers, a new $500 million arena for the Sonics. This despite the legislature having turned down the Sonics request, two years in a row, for $200 million. Despite Seattle voters giving 75% approval to I-91. Despite statewide polls showing 80% opposition to any subsidy. Does Senator Prentice think they were turned away, then, just so we could give them even more tax subsidies, now?"

And the Sonics aren't the only game in town (you may interpret that any way you like) and it was this next subject of the email that had/has me scratching my head.

"Likewise, on Tuesday, February 20, 6:00pm, the House Finance Committee is holding a hearing on NASCAR's bid for $145 million for a speedway on Hood Canal in Kitsap County. This proposal is an environmental disaster, and with respect to tax subsidies, it makes Clayton Bennett and the Sonics look, well, reasonable. For $145 million, the facility will be used for two--that's right, two--races per year. You'd think Washington State government had extra cash to throw around. Talk about dandelions. We thought we had stopped NASCAR at Kitsap County government, but Rep. Geoff Simpson and Rep. Hans Dunshee have engineered an end-around local control with HB 2062.(One of the ironies is that HB 2062 is touted as a jobs bill--but it exempts construction from having to pay prevailing wages.)"

Hello? Excuse me. Did you say Hans Dunshee; Democrat from the 44th LD and Environmentalist Extraordinaire? Surely this must be a bad interpretation of a loosely related bill. .........

Unfortunately not. HB 2062 - An Act relating to the creation of a public speedway authority.

And it seems Rep. Dunshee is not alone amongst the "last folks I would expect to find co-sponsoring a bill like this." The list of Snohomish County legislators signing on to HB 2062 reads like a who's who of Snohomish County's Progressive royalty - Dunshee, Maralyn Chase (32nd LD), Brian Sullivan (21st LD), John McCoy and Mike Sells (both from the 38th LD). What makes this group an especially implausible cast of characters in the "NASCAR in Kitsap County" drama is the recent flop that was "NASCAR in Snohomish County." Many will recall that NASCAR was turned away from Snohomish County in 2004 "officially" because the return on investment, in the words of County Executive Aaron Reardon, "...didn't pencil out." Although a great many more will recall the strong show of opposition from citizens and area legislators alike who were opposed to the projected environmental and traffic concerns as well as the notion of spending public monies for private ventures.

In an article in The Seattle Times by Ralph Thomas, it's as if only the venue has changed while the script remained untouched.

"Supporters of a proposed NASCAR racetrack near Bremerton told lawmakers on Tuesday the 83,500-seat speedway would create thousands of jobs and -- unlike other professional sports stadiums -- wouldn't cost taxpayers a dime in the long run.
But opponents painted the proposal as an "obscene piece of pork-filled corporate welfare" that would sully the local environment and create massive traffic problems.
Lt. Gov. Brad Owen called the proposal the best economic-development opportunity he has seen during his 30 years in state politics. But state Treasurer Mike Murphy spoke against it, saying state-funded debt should never be used to pay for private projects.
While Bremerton's mayor called the speedway a "great fit" for his city, other local officials from Kitsap County bashed the proposal." However this sentence in the Times piece really raised some questions: "Still, not a single legislator representing the Kitsap Peninsula has come out in favor of the proposal." It is hard to imagine Hans, Maralyn, Brian, John, or Mike standing still if a group of legislators from outside of Snohomish County decided to impose something like this in their backyard.

I have requested comments from each of the Snohomish County legislators I have mentioned here. Thus far only Mike Sells has offered a reply. (In fairness, I only contacted them last night via email and they may not have had the opportunity to read that yet.) I offer some of what he has to say here and will post his entire message as a separate comment.

"...The track is paid for by the money it generates. It is not like you could spend the money elsewhere, because it doesn't exist if nothing is built. I believe the trade-off in construction jobs in the short term and the revenue from a limited number of large races are worth it.
   I have never been opposed to siting a track in a properly zoned area. If we begin to oppose that kind of thing, it just builds support for pushing out growth management boundaries by mobilizing those large numbers of people frustrated already by the lack of being able to develop in areas that fall outside urban growth boundaries. In other words, if you can't build it in areas designated for such activity, then you can bet that anger over development rights will just spill over elsewhere, and gain a larger and larger following."

After sending me his comments, Mike followed up with the following addendum which more accurately reflects his support for the bill as more in line with support for the creation of the enabling mechanism and not so much for a "Bremerton Raceway"

"I would add to my comments to you last night on NASCAR that one of the problems I have with the ISC Great Western Kitsap site is the pushing on urban growth boundaries through a Bremerton annexation. I believe that is why they ought to seek other sites, and not get wedded to that one. Some have even suggested areas in Eastern Washington., or a desire of Lewis County to be a host."

I look forward to hearing from the other legislators and I will be quick to post any of their comments here.

Peace,
Chad (The Left) Shue