The Elevated Transportation Company, the organization set up by voters to create a monorail plan, has run into one of its first major obstacles--the Seattle Center. Things were going smoothly for the ETC; the plan was on budget and on schedule, and many of the neighborhoods, like West Seattle and Queen Anne, were supportive. But the Seattle Center, which boasts the city's existing monorail as one of its most popular landmarks, is ironically the most difficult to please.

It's not that the Seattle Center staff isn't hip to the monorail--they are. They just don't want it on Center property. The Center has a 12-year-old open-space plan, and it's sticking to it. The old Flag Pavilion was torn down, and new projects are being constructed with views in mind. "The public likes space, and we're staying the course," says Center spokesperson Perry Cooper. (Mr. Cooper, keep in mind that Seattle Center is public property, and the public also likes the monorail. They voted for it twice.) Unfortunately, one of the ETC's monorail route options slams right smack through the middle of that plan.

The contentious route, one of many options the ETC is considering, would cross straight through the Center grounds just north of the fountain. Though many might argue that a new monorail line would only add to the Center's appeal, the Center disagrees. "That option is just totally unacceptable to us," says Moore. "We love the monorail, but there are other ways to do this."

Because a nasty political fight could erupt, the ETC will probably throw out the straight-shot Center route (who wants to fight the precious Seattle Center?). "We haven't come to any conclusions yet," says ETC spokesperson Ed Stone, "but we can't please everybody either." The other route options to service the Center, and eventually downtown and West Seattle, will prove equally contentious in the coming months.

pat@thestranger.com