tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8310124704019321251.post439253773542195033..comments2024-01-17T09:25:20.535-08:00Comments on Little Hollywood: Part Three: Fast-Tracking a Vision for Downtown Olympia under a Community Renewal Area Plan Janine Gateshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15675857294721458218noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8310124704019321251.post-42813865507052136072014-06-27T11:17:26.304-07:002014-06-27T11:17:26.304-07:00Janine -
I appreciate your in depth reporting on...Janine - <br /><br />I appreciate your in depth reporting on this complex topic. The mayor is courageous in undertaking a project of this magnitude on one of the most contentious sites in a climate of mistrust. Although many may wish for a different process with more clarity and participation, his goal to engage investors in a way that gives them a return on investment and gives the public an area they are proud of and enjoy deserves acknowledgement. <br /><br />Evidently my comments during the meeting were not well communicated and subsequently were not accurately captured by you. I absolutely and unequivocally support investing time, money, and energy in downtown Olympia. This has been my passion for the last seven years, the impetus for the founding of 2020 Vision, and the reason for many hours attending meetings and researching approaches to urban design. My question during the meeting reflected the need I perceive for aligning the Isthmus Plan with a Downtown Master Plan and looking at the investment scenarios as a whole package. This is not the way the mayor has chosen to lead the process and I trust he has his reasons. I had hoped the consultants, just as they were able to determine ROI on the individual properties taxpayers, would have a formula for determining individual taxpayer cost using the different funding tools available through the CRA. I wanted assurance from the consultants that moving ahead with the Isthmus proposals would not preclude investment in downtown. <br /><br />Is there a method available for retraction of your statement? I would not ask for this if your statement was not the total opposite of my position. A clarification will lend credibility to your blog. <br /><br />Rachel NewmannRachel Newmannnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8310124704019321251.post-32663886100879774562014-06-27T10:38:32.182-07:002014-06-27T10:38:32.182-07:00Janine,
Thank you for your story on last night...Janine,<br /><br />Thank you for your story on last night's CERC/CAC meeting. As you reported, I believe that any discussion of the isthmus must include a public option, as initially outlined in the 2009 feasibility study. Some believe that the public/private approach is the most feasible path to getting the area improved and protecting the view corridor. Some contend that the public option is feasible and is likely to yield the quickest results. <br /> <br />These divergent views are both worthy of wider discussion and consideration. This is why the Olympia Capitol Park Foundation has participated in good faith in the work of the CAC. I also believe that the process of involving a cross-section of the community in the visioning effort is well meaning and constructive. Had such a process been in place prior to the 2008 Larida Passage proposal, we might have avoided a good deal of turmoil because the project would most likely not have been offered as an almost fait accompli, developed behind closed doors.<br /> <br />The thought occurs to me that the CAC process could be applied to diferent six block area of downtown that could yield positive results. There a several areas that come to mind, for example, south of 5th to 7th Avenue between Adams and Chestnut. Another example is the former DNR Building near the Farmer's Market and adjacent parcels to the south. <br /><br />Under this approach, the isthmus would be re-developed on a largely public basis, and a small mixed use "new town" would be re-developed with a public/private partnership approach. These areas, as compared to the isthmus, have higher height limits and do not sit astride a major transportation corridor. Most importantly, they do not come with the policy history of the isthmus that has divided the community for at least ten years, with the large majority in support of creating a great civic space in this special place.<br /><br />Jerry ReillyJerry Reillynoreply@blogger.com