Council agrees to $927 million for tunnel

The Seattle City Council agreed today to move forward with the Alaskan Way Viaduct deep bored tunnel and Seawall Replacement. In a unanimous vote, they agreed to a Memorandum of Agreement with the Washington Department of Transportation. According to the press release, “The agreement authorized today outlines the city and state’s funding and construction responsibilities and outlines Seattle’s $927 million obligation to the project set for completion in 2018.” The Council is expected to act next year on proposed funding options, which could include “an increase in the Commercial Parking tax and a new Transportation Benefit District to collect vehicle license fees.”