Dear neighbors,
Last month, I asked you how you wanted to live and work, and many of you answered a four-question survey to share your thoughts and dreams.
This week, I’d like to share some of those responses.
Your morning commute
First: here’s the chart on how long people are commuting each morning.
And here is a chart on to how people said they’d change their commute, if they could.
Those are interesting numbers. As a lawmaker serving on the Transportation Committee, I know that for decades, Washington state spent the majority of our transportation dollars on highways.
Yet highways aren’t how people are actually commuting every morning–and driving was low on the list of how people WANT to get around.
While we need to maintain our highways and do whatever is possible to cut down on traffic gridlock, we also need to update our thinking and policies for all the people working from home and those who want to walk, bike, or take the train.
And if taking the bus isn’t appealing, let’s figure out how to improve that option, because it is a cheap and efficient way to move people–and a lot of seniors, disabled, and veterans rely on special needs transportation, often run by the same agency as bus service.
Your ideal neighborhood
The last question on the survey was, “What would your ideal neighborhood or community look like, if you could do anything and make it happen?”
Clear themes emerged in your responses.
Safety
- No opioids and drug-related crime. no tent and RV cities… feel safe to visit adjacent communities.
- Safe streets with no homeless camps, a larger police force that is permitted to enforce the laws as written, beautiful parks that will not be occupied by drug dealers, street people, and all their garbage.
- Rail closer to us. Less vandalism. We never used to have this in our neighborhood, now we are afraid to park cars outside or put up outdoor decorations.
- Affordable to buy a house and safe
- It would look like a forest. Small cottage homes surrounding vertical homes interspersed with many walking and biking trails and trees with services interspersed throughout. No homelessness permitted anywhere but designated spots throughout the city. No tolerance for drug use.
- Shops and entertainment within 1/2 mile. Easy access to transit hub with single-seat ride to Seattle downtown and South Lake Union. Protected bike lanes that don’t have cars whizzing past my elbow and drivers opening doors in my lane. Room on my property for a small horse barn and a large garden, with access to rideable trails. Excellent schools within 2 miles. Racial diversity and diverse, affordable housing for all levels of income. Attractive and safe places for children and teens to hang out. Many small parks and one big park with miles of trails.
- Safe, no crime, quiet, friendly neighbors, no plane traffic overhead
Friendly for walkers, bikers, and local business
- It would be more walkable and bikeable, and there should be more interesting places to go locally than grocery stores and gas stations. Trains or similar to connect the “city” towns of the metropolitan area. Use eminent domain to address transport problems
caused by lack of urban planning. Use zoning changes to foster local mixed-use areas within the residential desert. - Local small businesses to keep wealth in the community. Mixed zoning with high density to make walking a viable way to reach restaurants and services.
- Compact, walkable, dense downtown with abundant housing of all sizes, shapes, and prices, with services, schools, work, and daily needs all within a 15-minute walk or safe bike ride. Abundant options to get around without a car.
- Walkable, with lots of local businesses instead of a few corporate big box stores only accessible in a car. I’d like to have a community that is resilient against climate change and is willing to take measures to adapt to hot summers and extreme events that don’t leave some neighbors behind.
- Shops and restaurants within walking distance; bike routes that are safe from traffic (not just painted lanes). Soundwalls around highways to buffer neighborhoods from relentless traffic noise.
- Have regular bus service to nearby shopping/professional areas within 5 miles, sidewalks, affordable housing for aging in place, and more street lights for better night time illumination.
- Have coffee shops, delis and restaurants within walking distance. Also be close to transportation.
- It would be a place that I wouldn’t have to leave in order to have my needs met. I could safely walk and/or bike to grocery stores and other shops, restaurants, and parks. There would be a farmers market, outdoor community spaces and well-attended community events.
- Prioritize moving people and goods optimally with the lowest carbon footprint and safely, e.g., walking, biking, transit, plus EVs for fleets; change land use/zoning to allow for more dense housing and mixed commercial; separated/protected bike facilities, including through intersections; no more using bike lanes as buffers between moving cars and parked cars; target increase use of walking/biking/transit by 50% (reduction of car trips by 50%) or more by 2035 with interim milestones and course corrections to make sure we achieve the goal
The great outdoors and other comments
- Community areas for dogs and horses, play and exercise options.
- Less dense. Fewer apartments and fewer million-plus dollar townhouses. Stop the rampant overdevelopment.
- Quiet – less air traffic and vehicle traffic noise; Convenient – businesses within walking distance or max 3 mile driving distance; Lots of green space with trails for feet; neighborhoods designed for more than cars, such as paths connecting between cul-de-sacs.
- Better transit options (vans or dial-a-ride, not buses), more neighborhood businesses, clustered housing, more greenspace
- Would love to have a little park or grassy area where people could gather more.
Listening to each other
We all have different experiences, situations, and preferences. It’s interesting to see what kind of neighborhood people dream to have.
When people go on vacation, where do they visit? Safe, walkable cities with interesting and unique attractions. Nobody flies halfway across the country, or the world, to visit strip malls with the same chain stores they can find at home.
I think a lot of people want to walk to the grocery store and local restaurants, know their neighbors, and have their kids ride their bikes to school without worrying about crime or traffic.
And some people have a different dream of living in the countryside with more peace and quiet.
As we work and vote on legislation related to these issues, I’ll keep you updated.
And I want to keep hearing from you. Please contact my office with your thoughts, comments, and ideas for making this a better place to live and raise a family!
