The Washington Policy Center (WPC) is one of the most outspoken
institutional opponents of Proposition 1, the mass-transit expansion
measure.
The WPC calls itself “an independent, nonpartisan, research and
education organization” that “improves lives of Washington citizens
by providing accurate, high-quality research.” At a recent meeting of
the Bellevue Downtown Association, WPC analyst Michael Ennis called the
WPC a “research group” that does not advocate for or against specific
ballot measures.
If Ennis wants to say the WPC is nonpartisan, that’s fine with me.
I’m nonpartisan too! I mean, I’ve never taken money from or
given to a political party.
But ask me who I’m voting for, and you’ll find I’m as Democratic as
they come.
The same goes for the WPC: They may call themselves “nonpartisan,”
but they vote with the antitransit party—that would be the
Republicans—100 percent of the time. Given that their board is
made up of guys whose Republican pedigree rivals the Bushes’, that
isn’t surprising.
On the list: A former Republican state senator (Emilio Cantu); a
demolition-company president and heavy Republican donor (John
Hennessy); a developer and board member of the right-wing Evergreen
Freedom Foundation who gave $10,000 to John McCain (William
Conner); two Reichert and McCain supporters who cohosted a recent
McCain fundraiser in Bellevue (John and Kathy Connors); and a wealthy
Republican who’s given to Phyllis Schlafly’s Eagle Forum and the
National Right to Life Committee (Richard Alvord).
Nonpartisan? A meeting of The Stranger‘s editorial board is
less partisan.
A similar pattern emerges when you look at the
anti–Proposition 1 campaign’s donor base. Of the $152,000 raised
by NotoProp1
.org, the vast majority came from people and groups
known for giving to Republican causes: Kemper Freeman, the Bellevue
land magnate ($100,000); Fremont landowner Suzie Burke ($1,000);
Belltown zillionaire Mark Baerwaldt ($18,000); cell-phone magnate Bruce
McCaw ($10,000); and Rossi supporters H. Chaffey Investments and Oak
Harbor Freight Lines ($500 and $5,000, respectively).
Those six “nonpartisan” donors are joined by longtime
anti–light rail zealots John Niles and Donald Padelford,
developer Matt Griffin, and the Washington Asphalt Pavement
Association—bringing the total number of donors to the
anti–light rail crusade to 10. So not only is
Sound Transit’s opposition hardly “nonpartisan”—it isn’t
“grassroots,” either. In contrast, the Mass Transit Now campaign has
more than 200 donors.
And remember: The Stranger Election Control Board—hey, we’re
an independent, nonpartisan research and education organization
too!—says vote Yes on Proposition 1. 
The Asphalt Paving Association opposes transit?? Finally, true colors come shining through.
All those guys have spent the whole year lathering about how pro-transit they… just not THIS transit, you know, the kind that runs on rails and actually works.
But the curtain is drawn back. It’s all about a money grab — more more road-paving and the sprawl that follows it.
Vote YES for Mass Transit and teach these guys somehting once and for all.
Posted in Crosscut:
OK, but in Seattle, Sound Transit’s vendors and employees have opened their wallets a bit to get Prop 1 passed. You may recognize some Sound Transit contractors on the top end of the contributor list for Prop 1 YES, those donations $300 and above as of the time of this posting, with all 259 contribution reaching just north of $800,000.
The No-to-Prop-1 contributions are at $153,000.
Prop 1 Vote Yes contributions (aka Mass Transit Now) from the Washington Public Disclosure Commission web site (http://www.pdc.wa.gov/QuerySystem/advancedS/default.aspx) :
AECOM TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION $40,000
CH2M HILL INC. $40,000
PB AMERICAS INC. $40,000
LTK ENGINEERING SERVICES $30,000
ACEC WASHINGTON $25,000
DAVID EVANS & ASSOCIATES INC. $25,000
HDR ENGINEERING INC. $25,000
MASTER BUILDERS ASSOC. $25,000
INCA ENGINEERS INC. $20,000
IUOE LOCAL 302 $20,000
PARAMETRIX INC. $20,000
AMALGAMATED TRANSIT UNION $15,000
HNTB CORPORATION $15,000
JACOBS ASSOCIATES $15,000
SABEY CORPORATION $15,000
ACEC WASHINGTON $10,000
AMALG TRANSIT UNION LCL.587 $10,000
BNSF RAILWAY COMPANY $10,000
HATCH MOTT MACDONALD $10,000
IRON WORKERS DIST. COUNC PAC. NW $10,000
JACOBS ENGINEERING INC. $10,000
K & L GATES CONTINUING PAC $10,000
KBA INC. $10,000
KLEINFELDER WEST INC. $10,000
KPFF CONSULTING ENGINEERS $10,000
MICROSOFT CORPORATION $10,000
MIDMOUNTAIN CONTRACTORS INC. $10,000
MOWAT CONSTRUCTION COMPANY $10,000
NORTHGATE SO. COMMONS LLC $10,000
PCL CONSTRUCTION SERVICES INC. $10,000
SEATTLE MARINERS $10,000
THE BOEING COMPANY $10,000
WELLS FARGO BANK $10,000
WRIGHT RUNSTAD ASSOCIATES LP $10,000
WRIGHT RUNSTAD ASSOCIATES LP $6,000
CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL $5,000
ENVIROISSUES $5,000
IBI GROUP $5,000
K&L; GATES CONTINUING PAC $5,000
LANE POWELL PC $5,000
MCBEE STRATEGIC CONSULTING $5,000
PB AMERICAS INC. $5,000
PERTEET INC. $5,000
PUGET SOUND ENERGY $5,000
SHANNON & WILSON INC. $5,000
SUDEV LLC $5,000
SUSTAINABLE URBAN DEV #1 LLC $5,000
TEAMSTERS LOCAL 174 $5,000
TOUCHSTONE CORPORATION $5,000
UNITED ASSN PLB&PIPE; FTG IND #32 $5,000
VULCAN INC. $5,000
WA CONSERVATION VOTERS ACTN FUND $5,000
WA MUTUAL BANK $5,000
WA ST BLDG & CONST TRADES COUNC $5,000
WALKER DOUGLAS $5,000 SELF CONSULTANT
WASTE MANAGEMENT $5,000
HAINLINE JERRY $4,750 HAINLINE & ASSOC. PRESIDENT
HASTINGS CHERRY $3,200 NONE RETIRED
HASTINGS GREGORY $3,200 GH HASTINGS ASSOC. INVESTMENTS
LANDAU ASSOCIATES INC. $3,000
LMN ARCHITECTS $3,000
FOSTER PEPPER PLLC $2,500
FOSTER PEPPER PLLC $2,500
KOTKINS JR. HENRY L. $2,500 SKYWAY LUGGAGE CO. CHAIRMAN
PORT BLAKELY TREE FARMS LP $2,500
SHEET METAL WORKERS LOCAL 66 PAC $2,500
TRANSPORTATION CHOICES COALITION $2,500
CH2M HILL INC. $2,000
GRIFFIN HILL & ASSOCIATES LLC $2,000
HERRERA ENVIRO CONSULTANTS INC. $2,000
HEWITT $2,000
IFPTE LOCAL 17 $2,000
OTAK INC. $2,000
ROSEWATER ENGINEERING INC. $2,000
THE BLUME COMPANY $2,000
W.P. COBURN INC. $2,000
BACKER THOMAS $1,000 SELF LAWYER
COCKER FENNESSY INC. $1,000
EARL JOAN M. $1,000 SOUND TRANSIT CEO
FEHR & PEERS $1,000
FENPRO LP $1,000
GEOENGINEERS INC. $1,000
GOGERTY STARK MARIOTT INC. $1,000
GOVERN AGNES $1,000 SOUND TRANSIT MANAGEMENT
JEWELL SALLY $1,000 REI RETAIL
MARK JONATHAN $1,000 SELF SOFTWARE DEVELOPER
NAIOP WA STATE CHAPTER $1,000
RAINIER PLAZA LLC $1,000
SELIG MARTIN $1,000 SELF DEVELOPER
THOMPSON PHILIP $1,000 PERKINS COIE ATTORNEY
WASHINGTON GROUP INTERNAT INC. $1,000
PORTER & ASSOCIATES INC. $550
BARBIERI MARK $500 WASHINGTON HOLDINGS REAL ESTATE
BOSS DONALD $500 KINKISHARYO INT’L MANAGER
CIVILTECH ENGINEERING $500
DAVIS AUBREY $500 GACO WESTERN CHAIRMAN
ILGENFRITZ ERIC $500 SOUND TRANSIT EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
MAIN RONALD $500 SELF LOBBYIST
MARTIN FLYNN PUBLIC AFFAIRS INC $500
MCCUMBER MARY $500 NONE RETIRED
MINKOFF MARTIN $500 EAGLE HARBOR GROUP CONSULTANT
SHELDEN MATTHEW $500 SOUND TRANSIT TRANSIT PLANNER
SHER RON $500 METROVATION PRESIDENT
WALKER MARCIA $500 SOUND TRANSIT ADMIN.
WILLIAMS JAMES F. $500 PERKINS-COIE ATTORNEY
FAZEL AHMAD A. $400 SOUND TRANSIT ENGINEER
PATRICK GEOFFREY $400 SOUND TRANSIT COMMUNICATIONS
BROOKE BRIAN $300 SOUND TRANSIT MANAGER
MCCARTAN BRIAN $300 SOUND TRANSIT FINANCE
ME (POOR) $5