August 28, 2001August 2, 2026

Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law, and Order: Port Of Seattle v. RST Enterprises, Inc. and King County

Notes

Court findings of fact and conclusions of law in an eminent domain action brought by the Port of Seattle against RST Enterprises, Inc. and King County regarding approximately 2.44 acres of undeveloped land at 15416 Des Moines Memorial Drive in the City of SeaTac. The property, known as Parcel 92, was taken by the Port for use as a flood plain as part of the Third Runway construction project at Seattle-Tacoma Airport. The court found the property had been zoned Urban Low Density Residential and that a commercial rezone was not reasonably likely in the near future.

Sidebar On/Off

As the source for federal transportation grants, the Puget Sound Regional Council was charged with developing a system to meet the growing need for commercial aviation. When the search for a second airport failed, they authorized the Port of Seattle to build the Third Runway, with a mandate to develop a noise abatement and mitigation program. In their effort to stop the Third Runway, the ACC argued over every detail of the Port's efforts--including property buyouts and sound insulation. The dispute was meant to be settled by a three member Expert Arbitration Panel. This is their final report. It finds 2-1, that the Port's program was insufficient in several respects. Despite that, funding for the Third Runway was approved by the PSRC, and the 'Port Package' program, proceeded largely unchanged. Expert Arbitration Panel's final decision finding that the Port of Seattle had not shown sufficient reduction in real on-the-ground noise impacts to satisfy noise reduction conditions required for approval of a third runway at Sea-Tac International Airport. The majority decision concluded the Port's noise abatement programs were insufficient despite being impressive in scope.

continue...

V V

Notes

Message