Harborview Council Approves $2.3 Billion Transit Bond After Marathon Session

HARBORVIEW — After nearly eleven hours of public comment and debate, the Harborview City Council voted 6–3 early Wednesday to place a $2.3 billion transit bond on the November ballot, setting up what observers expect to be the most expensive local ballot campaign in the city's history.

The measure, known formally as Proposition H, would fund a 14-mile light-rail extension connecting the Eastgate district to the downtown waterfront, purchase 240 zero-emission buses, and rebuild the aging Cedar Street viaduct, which engineers rated "structurally deficient" in a 2023 inspection.

"This is the single largest investment in mobility our city has ever contemplated," said Council President Maria Okafor, who championed the measure. "We can pay now, or we can pay far more later — congestion already costs Harborview families an estimated $1,900 per household every year."

Opposition centered on the bond's property-tax impact. The city's independent budget office estimates the measure would add $186 per year to the tax bill of a median-priced home, a figure opponents called "regressive and punishing." Councilmember Dale Rutherford, who voted no, warned that construction costs were "spiraling beyond anything the proponents are willing to admit" and pointed to the Westside streetcar project, which finished 31 months late and 47% over budget.

Transit advocates packed the chamber wearing green scarves, and a coalition of twelve neighborhood associations submitted a petition with 18,400 signatures supporting the measure. Business groups were split: the Downtown Alliance endorsed the bond, while the Regional Chamber of Commerce declined to take a position, citing "unresolved questions about cost controls."

If approved by voters, construction on the light-rail extension would begin in the spring of 2027, with the first trains running by 2033. The bus purchases would begin immediately, replacing roughly a third of the current diesel fleet within four years.

Polling released last week by the Harborview Institute showed the measure with 54% support among likely voters, just above the simple majority it needs to pass — but pollsters cautioned that support for tax measures typically erodes as election day approaches.

The council also voted unanimously to create a nine-member citizen oversight committee with subpoena power to audit bond expenditures, a concession designed to win over skeptical voters after the Westside streetcar overruns.
