Layoffs have hit the Seattle Monorail Project, with more cuts reportedly around the corner. The cuts, eight in all, fell most heavily on the SMP's public-outreach division, which was reduced from 19 positions to 13. "It's still a good-sized department, given the size of the entire agency," says public-outreach director Diane Giese. Before the cuts, the agency had 83 employees. Giese says some of the outreach department's duties may move over to the monorail contracting team, which is still negotiating its contract with the agency.

Given that monorail supporters just beat back an effort to "recall" the monorail thanks largely to the SMP's track record of strong public-outreach, the agency could be underestimating the importance of building strong ties to the communities it serves. Sound Transit spokesman Geoff Patrick said his agency found that its public-outreach needs actually increased during construction, prompting the agency to add two outreach positions.

Monorail board member Cindi Laws says there was an outcry among monorail supporters for the SMP to spend less on public outreach after the board approves the monorail bid later this year. "There's been a lot of noise about the amount of staff we had" working on public outreach, Laws says. "We didn't want to become a bloated institution."

SMP spokeswoman Natasha Jones says the agency plans to cut a handful of positions outside public outreach, reducing the agency to "around 75" employees. ETC plans, however, call for an agency staff of about 60, and cuts that would reduce the agency to around that size are rumored to be in the works.

barnett@thestranger.com