TagSEPA(71)

Amendment to a consultant contract between the City of Des Moines and Primacy Strategy Group/ABCx2 extending the term to December 2023, revising compensation to $275,000, and suspending services until SAMP SEPA/NEPA Environmental Review documents are released for public review. The work relates to the Sustainable Airport Master Plan environmental review process.

The Port of Seattle filed an environmental checklist in May 2021 for a project to widen Arrivals Drive at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) from two lanes to four lanes, aiming to reduce congestion and improve safety for passengers and ground transportation vehicles. Construction was planned to begin in mid-2023 and last approximately 18 months, involving road realignments, updated stormwater drainage, new LED lighting, and utility relocations. The project was designed as a standalone improvement but coordinated with broader airport master plan efforts to accommodate potential future infrastructure expansions at SEA.

The Port of Seattle requested $3.4 million in additional funding to complete environmental review studies required under federal (NEPA) and state (SEPA) law for planned near-term expansion projects at Sea-Tac Airport. The cost increase was driven by a two-year planning delay, expanded public engagement in multiple languages, additional technical analyses including aircraft noise, air quality, and environmental justice studies, and a decision to produce two separate review documents instead of one combined report. The contract with aviation environmental consulting firm Landrum & Brown brings the total project cost to $6.4 million.

In September 2019, the City of Des Moines responded to a Port of Seattle apology letter regarding the allocation of $10 million for Sustainable Airport Master Plan (SAMP) design work without prior environmental review or stakeholder notice, which had prompted Des Moines and other nearby cities to temporarily suspend participation in the Sea-Tac Stakeholder Advisory Round Table (StART). The City challenged the Port's claims of meaningful progress on noise reduction measures, requesting specific data on the Late Night Noise Limitation program, changes to nighttime flight schedules, and the status of runway glide slope adjustments. The exchange highlights ongoing tensions between Sea-Tac Airport and surrounding communities over transparency, environmental compliance, and the effectiveness of collaborative noise mitigation efforts.

The Port of Seattle and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) conducted a public scoping process in 2018 to gather input on the environmental impacts of near-term construction projects planned at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac) as part of the Sustainable Airport Master Plan (SAMP). The 60-day scoping period, which ran from July 30 to September 28, 2018, invited comments from the public and agencies through meetings, mailings, and an online open house advertised in five languages. This report summarizes the scoping process, public feedback received, and outlines next steps for the full environmental review under both federal (NEPA) and state (SEPA) environmental policy laws.

This February 2019 Scoping Report documents the public and agency input process for the environmental review of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport's near-term construction projects, planned for completion by 2027 under the Sustainable Airport Master Plan (SAMP). The Port of Seattle and the FAA conducted a 60-day public scoping period from July 30 to September 28, 2018, gathering community concerns about potential environmental impacts through meetings, mailings, and online outreach in five languages. The report compiles scoping comments, meeting materials, and agency responses to inform the forthcoming environmental review under both federal (NEPA) and state (SEPA) law.