TagPort Of Seattle(2604)

A March 1979 letter from Deputy Ombudsman Rella E. Foley to Messrs. Stockdale and Sutter details the financial hardship of a Mr. Fest, whose annual income of approximately $6,000 makes it impossible for him to afford sewer connection payments. Foley recommends that the DesMoines Sewer District allow Mr. Fest a temporary sewer connection while the Port of Seattle moves quickly to acquire his property, noting that delays forcing him to pursue a short plat subdivision would ultimately cost taxpayers more. The letter was copied to legal counsel for both the DesMoines Sewer District and the Port of Seattle.

This March 1979 newsletter from the Westside Hilltop Area Survival Committee (WHSC) updates Hilltop Community residents on two key hearings: one opposing the Port of Seattle's proposed corporate aviation facility north of South 176th Street, and another challenging a requested rezone of 30 acres of westside greenbelt land near Sea-Tac Airport. The committee reaffirms its position that no airport development should proceed without proper community safeguards, and addresses rumors about residents' legal liability for the committee's activities. The newsletter also notes that the State Legislature approved legislation allowing the Port of Seattle to extend the airport impact zone to include the Hilltop area.

In March 1979, the Citizens Advisory Committee recommended that the Port pay an additional $3,760 to Marian Berdan (Parcel Z-296) in connection with the acquisition of her property near Sea-Tac Airport. The committee determined that the Port had caused a 20-month delay in settling the sale, and that a fair 1977 value of $39,500, adjusted upward by 25% to account for that delay, yielded a total property value of $51,250 — exceeding the $47,500 already paid. The remaining items in the appellant's proposal were dismissed as relying on extraordinary interpretations of federal, state, and FAA regulations.

Washington State House Bill 1191, introduced in 1979, amends laws governing port district commissioners in the state, covering how candidates file for office and how commissioner positions are numbered and assigned. The bill updates rules for port districts in Class AA counties, including provisions for expanding commissions from three to five members, with some commissioners elected by district and others chosen at large. While this bill governs port district governance structure, it does not directly address airport noise policy.

House Bill 1191, introduced in Washington State's 46th Legislature in 1979, proposed changes to how Port of Seattle commissioners are elected. The bill would put before voters a measure to elect three port commissioners from geographic commissioner districts and two additional commissioners chosen at large from the port district as a whole. It also established that in class AA counties with nine councilmanic districts, like Seattle, there would be three port commissioner districts each containing three councilmanic districts.

This 1979 environmental assessment from King County's Department of Planning & Community Development evaluates the Port of Seattle's application to rezone approximately five acres near Sea-Tac Airport to allow Boeing to build a corporate headquarters facility, including offices, parking, and a heliport. The proposed Phase I development would include a two-story building with roughly 95,000 square feet of office space and parking for 235 cars, with approximately 200 employees on site. The document also outlines the county's land use history and ordinances governing development on the west side of Sea-Tac Airport, emphasizing protections for adjacent residential neighborhoods.

A January 1979 legislative memorandum from research analyst Jay Holman to Washington state representatives proposes amendments to port district governance laws, including allowing voters to split port districts into separate functional entities and modify how port commissioners are elected. A follow-up note from January 31, 1979 refines the proposal, suggesting that five port commissioners be retained but that three be elected from newly formed sub-districts and two chosen at-large, with changes to take effect at the November 1979 general election.

In this January 25, 1979 letter, Washington State Representative John Jovanovich (31st District) writes to Ms. Jean Pihlman explaining that the Sea-Tac Comprehensive Plan (STCP), adopted by the Port of Seattle and King County, primarily addresses the airport and its noise-impacted areas. He urges that citizen representatives on the Policy Advisory Committee — the body responsible for monitoring the plan — should come directly from the noise-impacted communities, so that their needs are properly understood by decision-makers.