Bickering
State House Speaker Frank Chopp (D-43) is trying to dilute the power of longtime Appropriations Committee chair, Rep. Helen Sommers (D-36). The two have sparred over transportation issues in the past, and there's probably still some bad blood between the two Democrats over Chopp's indifference when Sommers faced an intraparty challenge from progressive candidate Alice Woldt, a friend of Chopp's, in 2004.
As Dem working groups continued to meet and organize this week in the run-up to January, when they will have a commanding 62—36 advantage in the House, Chopp pushed the idea of creating three Appropriations subcommittees that will make recommendations on business before Sommers's committee. Sommers told me she's okay with one of the committees (an education subcommittee) because that's a sprawling issue. However, Chopp also wants to create a general government subcommittee and a human services subcommittee, which observers say would diminish Sommers's legendary hold on state spending.
The new subcommittees would also put Chopp—who's in a position to orchestrate the appointments—in control of more goodies, thus putting more members in his debt. JOSH FEIT
Biking
As the city's Bicycle Master Plan approaches completion, a leaked copy of the near-final first draft, provided to The Stranger, shows that planners are working up an ambitious proposal to more than double the city's network of bike trails, from the current 69 miles to about 162 miles over the next five years.
The draft plan, which will be unveiled at two upcoming public meetings, outlines exactly where all the new bike lanes and mixed-use trails should go, suggests that certain streets become "bicycle boulevards," and even recommends building a separate bridge for cyclists next to the treacherous Ballard Bridge.
The improvements will be funded, in large part, by Proposition 1, which was just passed by Seattle voters. The $365 million levy includes about $70 million for non-car-centered improvements.
However, that $70 million is unlikely to cover all of the proposals in the bicycle master plan. The pie-in-the-sky bicycle bridge, for example, would require other funding sources and wouldn't be finished for 20 years
Among the improvements: The controversial and long-overdue "missing link" in the Burke-Gilman Trail in Ballard, opposed by industrial businesses in the area. Not on the list: Any bike-lane improvements for Rainier Avenue South or nearby roads—including Martin Luther King Jr. Way South, where light rail is under construction. The draft shows Rainier marked with a black dotted line, for "improvement needed, but unknown." Many, many maps and details are available here.
The public hearings will be held on December 5 at 6:30 p.m. at the Odd Fellows Lodge (1706 NW Market St) in Ballard, and December 7 at 6:30 p.m. at the Rainier Community Center (4600 38th Ave S) in Columbia City. ELI SANDERS
Building
The two cart-based businesses in the parking lot at Mercer Street and Broadway on Capitol Hill have received a slight reprieve from the agents of gentrification doom. Diamond Parking, which leases the corner lot, sent 15-day eviction notices to Jump! Gourmet Espresso and Boma Cho's T-shirt shop at the end of October. To the rescue came the Capitol Hill Times, which ran a cover story on the evictions November 15. Days after publication, a higher-up from Diamond called the two businesses and offered to extend their stay until the end of the year. The store owners suspect the lot will be used as a staging area for the Brix Condominiums set to rise on the other side of Mercer. Both business owners say they would like to relocate, but can probably only afford space in Ballard, Fremont, or the University District. Boma Cho, who came from Cameroon to study at Gonzaga University in 1980, peddles used hoodies and track jackets printed with images of lions, Bob Marley, and Che Guevara from a portable wooden shack. ANGELA VALDEZ
