1
00:00:01,24 --> 00:00:05,56
Good afternoon everybody I am Peter I got
chief executive officer of Sound Transit

2
00:00:05,57 --> 00:00:10,57
and I want to welcome you to operations
and maintenance facility we are here to

3
00:00:11,55 --> 00:00:12,31
celebrate

4
00:00:12,35 --> 00:00:19,01
a momentous victory and first and
foremost I want to introduce the chair

5
00:00:19,02 --> 00:00:23,03
of the Sound Transit board and our King
County executive who brought us to this

6
00:00:23,04 --> 00:00:24,46
place Constantine.

7
00:00:32,33 --> 00:00:39,05
Well thank you Peter and thank you all
for joining us here today on Tuesday

8
00:00:39,64 --> 00:00:46,31
some choices were made. Some of us some
of them we disagreed with some of them

9
00:00:46,47 --> 00:00:53,35
we agreed with and one very good choice
we are here to celebrate today we

10
00:00:53,36 --> 00:00:59,90
decided that our future in our
region belongs to fast efficient

11
00:01:00,47 --> 00:01:05,43
transit with this measure we said yes to

12
00:01:05,44 --> 00:01:11,22
a light rail network that will bring
communities closer together West Seattle and

13
00:01:11,23 --> 00:01:17,69
Redmond Everett and Ballard Tacoma
in Issaquah wherever people live

14
00:01:18,03 --> 00:01:24,51
wherever people work across our region they
will have access to jobs and education

15
00:01:24,79 --> 00:01:27,70
and Recreation this is

16
00:01:27,71 --> 00:01:33,82
a milestone moment in our history
you know sometimes every once in

17
00:01:33,83 --> 00:01:40,50
a while this region summons its courage and
does something really transformational

18
00:01:42,15 --> 00:01:46,95
It was one hundred fifty five years
ago when this was a town of just

19
00:01:46,96 --> 00:01:52,64
a couple hundred that the
founders decided that they needed

20
00:01:53,27 --> 00:01:59,57
a territorial university
What an odd thing to do in

21
00:01:59,58 --> 00:02:06,15
a town of two hundred people and yet they
did it and today that university. Is the

22
00:02:06,16 --> 00:02:07,57
very center of

23
00:02:07,58 --> 00:02:14,40
a remarkable prosperity and
culture it is the anchor of the

24
00:02:14,41 --> 00:02:21,15
business miracle that has been our
Puget Sound region you think about

25
00:02:22,70 --> 00:02:29,70
the late fifty's Eddie Carlsen He's the
head of Western international hotels

26
00:02:29,71 --> 00:02:36,24
and he sits down and sketches
out a strange spire with

27
00:02:36,25 --> 00:02:42,66
a rotating restaurant on top and
not three years later this odd

28
00:02:42,67 --> 00:02:47,70
little town up in the corner of nowhere
cording to most of the rest of the country

29
00:02:47,71 --> 00:02:51,91
is putting on a world's fair
not just a World's Fair

30
00:02:52,67 --> 00:02:59,00
a twenty first century exposition in
the mid one nine hundred seventy S.

31
00:03:00,12 --> 00:03:05,33
a Couple of guys named Gates and Allen
decided that the path to riches is to drop

32
00:03:05,34 --> 00:03:08,09
out of college and they start

33
00:03:08,10 --> 00:03:14,90
a company to make software
for personal computers to

34
00:03:14,91 --> 00:03:17,35
items that most people had never given

35
00:03:17,36 --> 00:03:21,50
a second thought to and
built our region into

36
00:03:21,51 --> 00:03:28,08
a global leader in technology to make
things happen you have to dream big

37
00:03:29,56 --> 00:03:34,53
and then you have to have the grit and
the determination to make those things

38
00:03:34,54 --> 00:03:41,09
happen. It isn't always easy but
that's exactly what we did with this

39
00:03:41,10 --> 00:03:47,61
campaign we did something
really difficult if it was

40
00:03:47,62 --> 00:03:49,88
easy it would have been done

41
00:03:49,89 --> 00:03:55,87
a long time ago. I want to thank the sound
trance board members who worked so hard

42
00:03:55,88 --> 00:03:57,18
to make this initiative possible

43
00:03:57,19 --> 00:04:02,12
a lot of them are behind me here today we
come from all parts of the region from

44
00:04:02,39 --> 00:04:07,42
from Pierce County in Sonoma County from
King County and we represent diverse

45
00:04:07,43 --> 00:04:13,98
communities and unique needs and
agendas. But it sound transit

46
00:04:14,56 --> 00:04:21,28
we check our parochial interests at the
door and we focus on the needs of the

47
00:04:21,29 --> 00:04:28,27
region because to the people we represent
this really is one big metropolis

48
00:04:28,28 --> 00:04:34,58
the place they live and they work and they
raise their families and we set those

49
00:04:35,38 --> 00:04:37,82
local interests to the side for

50
00:04:37,83 --> 00:04:42,28
a moment so that we can think about what
it's going to take to do really big things

51
00:04:42,29 --> 00:04:48,88
for all of our people will sound trance
of three was the biggest achievement

52
00:04:49,87 --> 00:04:55,80
of our lifetimes some said we
should've waited some said we should

53
00:04:55,81 --> 00:05:02,06
a scaled back and scaled down but from
the very beginning Sound Transit three

54
00:05:03,10 --> 00:05:07,89
like some of those earlier accomplishments
in the history of our region sound

55
00:05:07,90 --> 00:05:14,36
trance of three was audacious back in two
thousand and twelve when then board chair

56
00:05:14,39 --> 00:05:15,62
Pat McCarthy hosted

57
00:05:15,64 --> 00:05:20,19
a workshop for board members we looked
at our region's transit needs and the

58
00:05:20,20 --> 00:05:21,56
possibility of putting

59
00:05:21,56 --> 00:05:28,34
a plan before the voters and we realized
that half measures just weren't going to

60
00:05:28,35 --> 00:05:33,70
cut it they weren't going to cut it in
terms of transportation and they weren't

61
00:05:33,71 --> 00:05:40,36
going to cut it at the ballot box we
decided to put the pedal to the metal and

62
00:05:40,37 --> 00:05:45,56
then somehow I found myself in the driver's
seat of that effort as board chair for

63
00:05:45,57 --> 00:05:47,83
the past three years so thanks

64
00:05:47,85 --> 00:05:53,65
a million Pat. The planners and the
engineers and the outreach folks at Sound

65
00:05:53,66 --> 00:05:56,52
Transit push themselves to come up with

66
00:05:56,53 --> 00:06:01,16
a package that would meet the region's
needs they listened we listened to the

67
00:06:01,17 --> 00:06:06,38
community after community as our citizens
detailed what it is they needed to make

68
00:06:06,39 --> 00:06:11,90
their lives work better we amended and
fixed and took back different versions for

69
00:06:11,91 --> 00:06:18,13
people to consider and to offer their
opinions. And when the board finalize sound

70
00:06:18,14 --> 00:06:24,87
trance at three it was the plan the
people want it now sound trance

71
00:06:24,94 --> 00:06:31,39
three that plan earned the support of
business and of labor of the environmental

72
00:06:31,40 --> 00:06:38,01
community and of social justice groups
Microsoft inexpedient the building trades in

73
00:06:38,02 --> 00:06:43,86
the state Labor Council one America and
Puget Sound sage the Sierra Club and The

74
00:06:43,87 --> 00:06:49,35
Washington Conservation Voters shoulder
to shoulder a strong coalition that built

75
00:06:49,39 --> 00:06:56,31
a strong campaign and we got the message
out this campaign participated in

76
00:06:56,32 --> 00:07:01,60
two hundred thirty five debates and
community events organized more than

77
00:07:01,61 --> 00:07:07,38
a thousand volunteer shifts and made
an astonishing two hundred fifty seven

78
00:07:07,50 --> 00:07:14,30
thousand phone calls and of course let's
not forget the polar bear costume the

79
00:07:14,31 --> 00:07:21,03
voters got the message they responded
and the transit maps that once showed

80
00:07:21,04 --> 00:07:27,79
a future vision will now be our
blueprint for construction and then the

81
00:07:27,80 --> 00:07:32,30
mobile reality we live with for
decades to come we will have

82
00:07:32,31 --> 00:07:39,02
a network the network that this region
deserves This victory belongs to an entire

83
00:07:39,03 --> 00:07:44,83
community but those standing behind me
they should feel particularly proud

84
00:07:46,42 --> 00:07:53,17
after more than forty years of waiting
forty years of lamenting our missed

85
00:07:53,21 --> 00:08:00,08
opportunities forty years of watching other
regions across this nation benefit from

86
00:08:00,09 --> 00:08:07,02
rail we will have the best and Peter
wrote off the best maintained

87
00:08:07,22 --> 00:08:13,74
transit system in the nation
so today. Even amid some

88
00:08:13,75 --> 00:08:20,08
storm clouds nationally we can say
that the future of this region

89
00:08:20,66 --> 00:08:26,05
never looked brighter thank
you so much. Thank you.

90
00:08:28,08 --> 00:08:34,95
Thank you. Thank you as
Tao pointed out the whole

91
00:08:34,96 --> 00:08:39,31
process of going back to the voters for
Sound Transit three began under our prior

92
00:08:39,32 --> 00:08:45,43
board chair Pierce County Executive Pat
McCarthy. Few things have happened with Pat

93
00:08:45,44 --> 00:08:51,58
along the way she's became our vice chair
as we well she became our past chair as

94
00:08:51,59 --> 00:08:55,86
we move forward with this plan but always
reminded us of the vision that she had at

95
00:08:55,87 --> 00:09:00,80
the very beginning I'd like to invite up
to speak now Pierce county executive and

96
00:09:01,02 --> 00:09:03,88
state auditor all worked out McCarthy.

97
00:09:10,14 --> 00:09:14,22
Well done for leading us in this
effort and let me just tell you I am

98
00:09:14,26 --> 00:09:20,54
a static about today about us celebrating
this great victory for the people of

99
00:09:20,55 --> 00:09:24,98
Pierce County and the people in the south
sound the approval of this mass transit

100
00:09:24,99 --> 00:09:31,37
improvement realizes as Del eluded two
decades long vision Pierce County residents

101
00:09:31,38 --> 00:09:34,98
boarding at a light rail
station in Tacoma East

102
00:09:34,99 --> 00:09:40,71
a coma or Fife will be able to write
congestion free light rail trains running

103
00:09:40,75 --> 00:09:47,59
every six minutes during peak hours
connecting to Federal Way Sea-Tac Seattle

104
00:09:47,88 --> 00:09:54,05
and points across one hundred sixteen
mile regional system that's audacious and

105
00:09:54,06 --> 00:09:58,36
that is great Pierce County residents
will be able to get to their flight set

106
00:09:58,37 --> 00:10:04,18
Sea-Tac airport car free in just thirty
three minutes and they will avoid huge

107
00:10:04,24 --> 00:10:09,85
parking fees to watch the Seahawks and the
Huskies and I can tell you at that at

108
00:10:09,86 --> 00:10:14,73
that Husky game on that beautiful day I
was out there waving my signs in front of

109
00:10:14,74 --> 00:10:18,91
the transit station watching all those
people with smiles on their face they were

110
00:10:18,92 --> 00:10:24,29
coming out of the Huling station in contrast
to the purple wave that were walking

111
00:10:24,30 --> 00:10:31,13
for miles to get as we did to get to park
away from the stadium Sound Transit three

112
00:10:31,14 --> 00:10:35,79
funds parking expansions and other
improvements to help more people access the

113
00:10:35,80 --> 00:10:42,12
system because of our policy of said
area equity tax dollars raised in Pierce

114
00:10:42,13 --> 00:10:48,62
County benefit Pierce County. Those projects
that are invested we heard from local

115
00:10:48,63 --> 00:10:53,10
residents would make the greatest
improvement in their daily lives whether

116
00:10:53,14 --> 00:11:00,12
a given individual rides the expanded train
service or not he or she will benefit

117
00:11:00,33 --> 00:11:05,11
from the important role transportation
infrastructure plays in creating economic

118
00:11:05,12 --> 00:11:10,08
prosperity and interests and attracting
more regional jobs our annual customer

119
00:11:10,09 --> 00:11:15,08
surveys show we have thousands of happy
writers in Pierce County who take advantage

120
00:11:15,09 --> 00:11:16,75
of sounder and S.T.

121
00:11:16,76 --> 00:11:22,97
Express service every day the passage of
this measure will make room for them to

122
00:11:22,98 --> 00:11:28,61
reach their jobs when people leave their
cars at home and take trains or buses it

123
00:11:28,62 --> 00:11:34,40
helps unclog the freeway making it easier
for other uses like moving freight this

124
00:11:34,41 --> 00:11:39,59
was an historic vote good for all citizens
of the region and I have to tell you

125
00:11:40,21 --> 00:11:44,92
many would complain about the fact that
the when they when they would see the

126
00:11:44,93 --> 00:11:49,42
system built out would be many years and
they may not still be alive but I will

127
00:11:49,43 --> 00:11:53,73
tell you with ten grandchildren and
another one on the way I am happy that my

128
00:11:53,74 --> 00:11:56,69
grandchildren will know that
all of these people took

129
00:11:56,70 --> 00:12:02,01
a risk to do something great for our
entire region so thank you very much.

130
00:12:09,29 --> 00:12:15,52
Thank you next I'd like to call Paul
Roberts our Vice Chair Paul serves as

131
00:12:15,56 --> 00:12:20,95
a Everett city councilman as as been as
engaged in the planning of this plan not

132
00:12:20,96 --> 00:12:24,91
just in stone which county but across
the entire taxing district Paul.

133
00:12:31,13 --> 00:12:36,14
Thanks Peter. Light rail is
coming to pain field and every.

134
00:12:38,42 --> 00:12:42,28
Light rail is coming to Paine
Field in Everett I just.

135
00:12:46,61 --> 00:12:53,36
I just love saying that. I love
saying that but we've thank the

136
00:12:53,37 --> 00:12:59,23
board and we think I have to thank
the voters of this region who made

137
00:12:59,27 --> 00:13:01,63
a real heavy lift and

138
00:13:01,64 --> 00:13:07,31
a hard decision to do what we didn't do
forty years forty five years ago and build

139
00:13:07,32 --> 00:13:12,65
the system that rid the region needs today
and tomorrow so we came together as

140
00:13:12,66 --> 00:13:19,56
a region and we connected or will connect
the centers where people live and where

141
00:13:19,57 --> 00:13:24,45
they work in my community we have the largest
manufacturing center in the state of

142
00:13:24,46 --> 00:13:31,39
Washington and people who come and work
there come from all over the region it also

143
00:13:31,39 --> 00:13:38,13
recognizes that we're experiencing
what growth brings good and bad it's

144
00:13:38,14 --> 00:13:38,43
like

145
00:13:38,44 --> 00:13:43,99
a shockwave people now move to chase where
they can live because they can't afford

146
00:13:43,100 --> 00:13:49,92
always to live in the community they work
and that person in my community who has

147
00:13:49,93 --> 00:13:55,56
to come to Seattle every day but can't
reliably get there their employer still

148
00:13:55,57 --> 00:13:56,52
wants them there at

149
00:13:56,53 --> 00:14:03,39
a certain time now they have some
prospect of actually getting there on

150
00:14:03,40 --> 00:14:09,19
time. So I want to thank the people of
this region for coming together and making

151
00:14:09,20 --> 00:14:13,58
that very hard decision I also want to thank
Dave Summers our county executive who

152
00:14:13,59 --> 00:14:18,13
couldn't be here today and Dave Erling the
mayor of Edmonds both of whom are board

153
00:14:18,14 --> 00:14:22,52
members I also want to thank Mayor Ray
Steffensen because we pulled together in

154
00:14:22,53 --> 00:14:28,29
snow Homesh County to try to come up with
the same expedited permit and planning

155
00:14:28,30 --> 00:14:33,42
system that we used for aerospace to bring
two airplanes triple seven and seven

156
00:14:33,43 --> 00:14:38,94
eight seven that same coordinated effort
is there and the cities of Linwood

157
00:14:39,09 --> 00:14:42,37
Snohomish County and
Everett have signed M.O.

158
00:14:42,38 --> 00:14:47,31
Use to expedite the planning engineering
and development of this and that and

159
00:14:47,32 --> 00:14:52,13
that's with sound trance it we need to
all continue to work together and I'm

160
00:14:52,14 --> 00:14:56,87
excited to be part of that and I want to
thank our board the but I really want to

161
00:14:56,88 --> 00:15:01,98
thank most of the people of this region
for recognizing that it's time to move

162
00:15:01,99 --> 00:15:03,29
forward as

163
00:15:03,30 --> 00:15:12,52
a region so thank you very much. Thank

164
00:15:12,53 --> 00:15:15,33
you Paul I know I just
take a few minutes to talk

165
00:15:15,34 --> 00:15:19,70
a little bit about the details and what
from the agency's perspective has been

166
00:15:19,71 --> 00:15:24,98
accomplished over the last week has
been pointed out this really has been

167
00:15:24,99 --> 00:15:31,64
a historic action by the people of this
region to create the regional high capacity

168
00:15:31,65 --> 00:15:38,07
transit network throughout the region
that has eluded them for decades Today I

169
00:15:38,08 --> 00:15:43,56
speak for hundreds of sound transit
employees in expressing our humility and

170
00:15:43,57 --> 00:15:49,55
gratitude for the trust that the taxpayers
of this region have placed on us we are

171
00:15:49,55 --> 00:15:54,97
up to the task and we're
starting work today indeed

172
00:15:56,82 --> 00:16:01,37
the difference that Sound Transit three
makes over the ballot measures that have

173
00:16:01,38 --> 00:16:07,43
been adopted to date is it really allows
us to keep rolling. We had Sound Transit

174
00:16:07,44 --> 00:16:13,75
will literally keep rolling north south
east and west over the next twenty five

175
00:16:13,76 --> 00:16:19,96
years. And that is really all due to the
foresight that the board of directors many

176
00:16:19,97 --> 00:16:25,53
of whom are here have brought to the
Enterprise their regional hats that they where

177
00:16:25,54 --> 00:16:32,29
as Sound Transit board members we
have heard from the public over and

178
00:16:32,30 --> 00:16:36,16
over again the Sound Transit three
development process as we said started four

179
00:16:36,17 --> 00:16:42,37
years ago and we heard from dozens and
dozens of mayors city councils municipal

180
00:16:42,38 --> 00:16:46,36
groups citizens groups and
with those inputs we crafted

181
00:16:46,38 --> 00:16:51,45
a plan that was approved by the board that
reflected the communities priorities and

182
00:16:51,45 --> 00:16:57,31
nobody else's It was at that point that the
Sound Transit three plan left the Sound

183
00:16:57,32 --> 00:17:01,79
Transit offices and was handed to these
board members and these advocates and these

184
00:17:01,81 --> 00:17:07,91
community spokes people to sell that
plan to the voters and thankfully they

185
00:17:07,92 --> 00:17:09,40
succeeded and as

186
00:17:09,41 --> 00:17:15,44
a result Sound Transit will now have the
plans the resources and the public support

187
00:17:15,77 --> 00:17:21,19
to deliver the regional transit network
that the region has long deserved I want to

188
00:17:21,20 --> 00:17:21,30
give

189
00:17:21,31 --> 00:17:24,83
a little bit of an overview of what it is
we're actually going to build and what

190
00:17:24,87 --> 00:17:26,30
Sound Transit three will now

191
00:17:26,31 --> 00:17:31,68
a label us to do it will enable us to turn
out new transit services every three to

192
00:17:31,69 --> 00:17:35,36
seven years for the next
twenty five years until

193
00:17:35,37 --> 00:17:41,26
a full one hundred sixteen mile light rail
network is completed by two thousand and

194
00:17:41,27 --> 00:17:45,77
twenty one we're on trap to deliver light
rail to Roosevelt and North Gate are

195
00:17:45,78 --> 00:17:50,64
tunnelling is complete the stations are
beginning to be under construction two

196
00:17:50,65 --> 00:17:56,49
years later will extend to shoreline
Montlake terrace and Lynn Wood but now with

197
00:17:56,50 --> 00:18:02,59
Sound Transit three we will keep rolling
north up to Mariner to ASH way to the job

198
00:18:02,60 --> 00:18:07,77
center of pain field and yes finally up to
Everett. Also in two thousand and twenty

199
00:18:07,78 --> 00:18:12,17
three new light rail service will begin
in Mercer Island Bellevue and over lake

200
00:18:12,35 --> 00:18:18,34
near the Microsoft campus but now with Sound
Transit three we will be able to keep

201
00:18:18,35 --> 00:18:23,92
rolling east to get to downtown Redmond.
We are on track to deliver light rail to

202
00:18:23,93 --> 00:18:29,62
Kent the Boynes in twenty twenty three but
now with Sound Transit three we will be

203
00:18:29,63 --> 00:18:35,13
able to keep rolling south and actually
deliver light rail to Federal Way just one

204
00:18:35,14 --> 00:18:41,79
year later and from there we'll keep
rolling south further to Fife to Tacoma

205
00:18:42,04 --> 00:18:47,20
and finally all the way to Tacoma community
college we will also keep rolling West

206
00:18:47,21 --> 00:18:52,64
and finally clean that connect West
Seattle to the rail network we will roll

207
00:18:52,65 --> 00:18:59,09
further north and west to get to Ballard
and connect Ballard to the rail network we

208
00:18:59,10 --> 00:19:04,02
will also expand sounder service both
in terms of the size of the trains the

209
00:19:04,03 --> 00:19:06,96
frequency the trains and the
comfort of those trains

210
00:19:06,97 --> 00:19:11,68
a service that is just grew by fifteen
percent just in the last year we'll be

211
00:19:11,69 --> 00:19:16,78
building bus rapid transit real bus rapid
transit in this region for the first time

212
00:19:17,40 --> 00:19:23,70
on three sides of Lake Washington and on
five twenty two and importantly we're

213
00:19:23,71 --> 00:19:28,52
going to be working with our partners in
the communities to deliver projects sooner

214
00:19:29,69 --> 00:19:31,26
what we really hope to bring about is

215
00:19:31,27 --> 00:19:36,66
a new compact with the local communities
all built around the single goal of

216
00:19:36,67 --> 00:19:41,65
delivering these transit projects as
soon as we can cumin the get them to the

217
00:19:41,66 --> 00:19:46,01
taxpayers in the voters who delivered this
program they deserve nothing less they

218
00:19:46,02 --> 00:19:51,42
are paying the taxes and they want the
service tomorrow. So I do want to make

219
00:19:52,05 --> 00:19:54,19
a short notice there's

220
00:19:54,20 --> 00:19:57,70
a great many Sound Transit staff here
and there were literally hundreds and

221
00:19:58,11 --> 00:20:02,30
hundreds of Sound Transit staff people
who participated in bringing this plan

222
00:20:02,31 --> 00:20:06,22
together I can't name them all I can name
their departments and talk about their

223
00:20:06,23 --> 00:20:10,58
contributions the planning department has
been at this for years putting together

224
00:20:10,59 --> 00:20:15,03
projects liaising with communities and
figuring out what they want and what we can

225
00:20:15,04 --> 00:20:19,62
make happen the legal department if anyone
seen the number of legal documents that

226
00:20:19,86 --> 00:20:23,27
the that accompany this
plan we have killed

227
00:20:23,28 --> 00:20:29,85
a lot of trees making this plan happen.
Communications the outreach to all of the

228
00:20:29,86 --> 00:20:34,38
stakeholders and making sure that they
understand what it is we're proposing and

229
00:20:34,39 --> 00:20:39,04
taking in their inputs through hundreds
upon hundreds of public meetings and bring

230
00:20:39,05 --> 00:20:43,62
them back to the agency and back to the
board government and community relations

231
00:20:43,94 --> 00:20:49,58
the extraordinary number of city council
mayors local elected who have an imprint

232
00:20:49,59 --> 00:20:50,82
on this plan is as

233
00:20:50,83 --> 00:20:55,63
a result of their outreach our operations
department had to make sure that what we

234
00:20:55,64 --> 00:21:00,35
were all conceiving could actually be
operated and our design engineering and

235
00:21:00,36 --> 00:21:04,14
construction department also had to
confirm for us for everything we were

236
00:21:04,15 --> 00:21:08,90
conceiving that it could actually be built
and they have all done that and brought

237
00:21:08,91 --> 00:21:09,26
together

238
00:21:09,27 --> 00:21:13,88
a comprehensive plan that works on behalf
of all those employees I really want to

239
00:21:13,89 --> 00:21:19,30
express our gratitude both to the voters
the taxpayers and our board of directors I

240
00:21:19,31 --> 00:21:22,97
want to provide one historical note because
I've only been in this region for ten

241
00:21:22,98 --> 00:21:24,96
months but in that time I've heard

242
00:21:24,97 --> 00:21:29,94
a great deal about the failed efforts to
pass to ballot measures known as forward

243
00:21:29,95 --> 00:21:31,89
thrust there's

244
00:21:31,90 --> 00:21:38,37
a great number of leaders here who participated
over decades to reverse that wrong

245
00:21:38,38 --> 00:21:45,09
decision. Mayors city councilman
county executives past present

246
00:21:45,16 --> 00:21:52,04
county councilman. But really if Sound
Transit three symbolizes one thing it's the

247
00:21:52,05 --> 00:21:56,51
reversal of that mistake in put
in not just citing not to build

248
00:21:57,03 --> 00:22:01,59
a high capacity rail network for this region
back in the late sixty's and seventy's

249
00:22:02,86 --> 00:22:06,52
no one deserves greater credit though he
will tell you that he is standing on the

250
00:22:06,53 --> 00:22:10,94
backs of giants No one deserves greater
credit in making that happen than our boy

251
00:22:10,95 --> 00:22:15,85
chair Dow Constantine this
campaign this effort has been

252
00:22:15,86 --> 00:22:22,29
a singular fixation of his I can tell you
stories about rainy Friday afternoons

253
00:22:22,49 --> 00:22:26,58
when he broke up all his schedule
called me and say we're getting in

254
00:22:26,59 --> 00:22:28,76
a car because he wants to go look in

255
00:22:28,77 --> 00:22:34,05
a lineman outside of King County just to
know precisely what we're doing that is

256
00:22:34,07 --> 00:22:38,32
the seriousness of purpose that he has
brought to this effort the number of hours

257
00:22:38,32 --> 00:22:42,00
and commitment that he has brought to this
effort and on behalf of the employees of

258
00:22:42,02 --> 00:22:46,32
Sound Transit I want to thank all of our
board members but most especially for all

259
00:22:46,34 --> 00:22:47,38
those efforts thank you.

260
00:22:55,73 --> 00:22:58,30
And now I'd like to invite out
the other board members we have

261
00:22:58,31 --> 00:23:01,22
a number of them here who would like to
speak I think Joe do you want to come up

262
00:23:01,23 --> 00:23:02,92
and join us John Marsh only

263
00:23:03,11 --> 00:23:08,71
a few words. You can do this Claudia
Belle do. Let me just say that.

264
00:23:12,74 --> 00:23:17,55
I do believe in the last several weeks
Claudia has spent more time debating Kevin

265
00:23:17,56 --> 00:23:23,15
Wallace than she has spent with her husband
and son hopefully now with this ballot

266
00:23:23,16 --> 00:23:29,03
measure passed she can rectify that inequity.
I don't really have much to add thank

267
00:23:29,04 --> 00:23:33,71
you I'm cloudy about which I represent King
County District Six which is largely on

268
00:23:33,72 --> 00:23:38,28
the east side of Lake Washington and the
former mayor of Bellevue and I really only

269
00:23:38,29 --> 00:23:41,83
have three things I want to add to all the
great words that have been spoken here

270
00:23:41,84 --> 00:23:46,26
today first of all I want to acknowledge
the people of East King County represented

271
00:23:46,27 --> 00:23:50,47
here today not just by me but by the deputy
mayor Bill the John Sherman Act who's

272
00:23:50,48 --> 00:23:55,68
here today the two of us ran for office in
Bellevue at the same time some years ago

273
00:23:56,08 --> 00:24:01,66
and we were told at that time don't say
that you support light rail because if you

274
00:24:01,67 --> 00:24:04,86
say that you support light rail the
people of Bellevue will not vote for you

275
00:24:04,87 --> 00:24:09,45
because they don't like light rail and I
think we have finally finally put that

276
00:24:09,46 --> 00:24:10,30
myth to bed.

277
00:24:17,68 --> 00:24:22,03
When the results are in I am very certain
that we will see that the east side of

278
00:24:22,04 --> 00:24:26,57
King County voted the way they talk to me
and to their representatives they will

279
00:24:26,58 --> 00:24:30,30
have voted that they wanted light rail they
want bus rapid transit they want better

280
00:24:30,31 --> 00:24:34,68
roads they understand the need for and the
value of transportation and they support

281
00:24:34,69 --> 00:24:38,83
it because they know those investments are
valuable and I am really excited to be

282
00:24:38,84 --> 00:24:42,55
part of that the second thing I want to
say is there's been talk about forward

283
00:24:42,56 --> 00:24:47,26
thrust forward thrust first came on the
ballot for this this regional transit

284
00:24:47,27 --> 00:24:50,33
system in one thousand nine hundred sixty
eight I was born in one thousand nine

285
00:24:50,34 --> 00:24:53,69
hundred sixty seven you can do the
math but I have this has been

286
00:24:53,70 --> 00:24:58,33
a discussion we've had my whole life and I
am absolutely delighted that we're going

287
00:24:58,34 --> 00:25:04,72
to get it done for the next generation
it's about damn time. Thank you.

288
00:25:08,88 --> 00:25:10,68
And the third and final
thing is we now have

289
00:25:10,69 --> 00:25:14,73
a commitment the board members the staff
of Sound Transit those who are here today

290
00:25:14,74 --> 00:25:17,76
and those who are to come in the future
as this project gets built out over the

291
00:25:17,77 --> 00:25:20,84
next twenty five plus years
we have a commitment we've

292
00:25:20,85 --> 00:25:24,69
a commitment to the people of the region
to you that we will build it we will build

293
00:25:24,70 --> 00:25:28,31
it on time we will build it on budget and
we will deliver these projects and we are

294
00:25:28,35 --> 00:25:33,67
all committed to making that happen starting
today and from now until twenty forty

295
00:25:33,68 --> 00:25:37,11
one or how ever much sooner Peter we
can get it done thank you very much.

296
00:25:43,28 --> 00:25:43,61
So just

297
00:25:43,62 --> 00:25:47,39
a quick comment about one of our board
members and I'll call it another one it

298
00:25:47,40 --> 00:25:51,71
needs to be remembered that the process
that enabled us to go to the voters started

299
00:25:51,72 --> 00:25:56,81
in Olympia. It started with the the
leaders of this region going to Libya and

300
00:25:56,82 --> 00:26:00,80
seeking the necessary authority to raise
the revenues and bring that question to

301
00:26:00,81 --> 00:26:05,40
the voters another important part of that
hold correspondence with Libya is our

302
00:26:05,41 --> 00:26:09,33
partnership with the Washington Department
of Transportation our secretary Roger

303
00:26:09,34 --> 00:26:11,81
Malar is here. They have been

304
00:26:11,82 --> 00:26:15,41
a great partner throughout they will be
an even more important partner going

305
00:26:15,42 --> 00:26:21,16
forward as we try to aggressively build
bus rapid transit on Interstate four

306
00:26:21,17 --> 00:26:26,21
o five as we run along the right of way
along several of the highways in our

307
00:26:26,22 --> 00:26:31,56
network and as we reconcile and make
work together a road network and

308
00:26:31,57 --> 00:26:35,57
a rail network that will work for everybody
so thank you Roger thanks to Governor

309
00:26:35,58 --> 00:26:42,17
Inslee and thanks for their leadership on
this throughout thank you would I. Would

310
00:26:42,18 --> 00:26:44,94
like to recognize mayor
Redmond John Marsh only.

311
00:26:51,43 --> 00:26:55,61
I was first elected mayor in two thousand
eight and in two thousand and two

312
00:26:55,62 --> 00:26:57,94
thousand and nine their
area was going through

313
00:26:57,95 --> 00:27:04,35
a recession Microsoft actually laid off
people in that timeframe and my thought

314
00:27:04,36 --> 00:27:10,83
back then is I do not want Redmond to become
the Detroit of the software world and

315
00:27:10,92 --> 00:27:16,88
you can see this last national election
our area has thrived because we invest in

316
00:27:16,89 --> 00:27:22,22
infrastructure but we had to keep investing
and keep embrace in the twenty first

317
00:27:22,23 --> 00:27:28,19
century and not rely on old technology
old ways of going around the people that

318
00:27:28,20 --> 00:27:34,26
live on the people work on the east side
come from all over they come from Kent

319
00:27:34,27 --> 00:27:39,82
they come from. Redmond has hundred
twenty thousand people in the daytime but

320
00:27:39,83 --> 00:27:45,00
a sixty thousand population at night. We
double every day we have to be part of

321
00:27:45,01 --> 00:27:49,48
a regional system but we have to be can
we it's not just in Redmond we have to be

322
00:27:49,49 --> 00:27:56,41
connected to all these places Ballard
West Seattle Tacoma some and so I'm

323
00:27:56,42 --> 00:28:01,25
just thrilled that we are continuing to
invest because if we don't thrive we're

324
00:28:01,26 --> 00:28:04,44
going to slow down we're going
to die and we have to be

325
00:28:04,45 --> 00:28:08,92
a vibrant economy to keep our kids employed
in the future and we have to keep our

326
00:28:08,93 --> 00:28:12,87
kids moving so they can go to those jobs
and live in those places so I just want to

327
00:28:12,88 --> 00:28:17,34
say thank you to the voters of our three
counties to the people behind me who

328
00:28:17,35 --> 00:28:22,56
helped make this possible and I'm just
so excited to get started and I'm really

329
00:28:22,57 --> 00:28:28,35
excited that we adopted our forwarded the
contract to design the system out to

330
00:28:28,36 --> 00:28:31,92
downtown Redmond today so
let's go forward here.

331
00:28:38,00 --> 00:28:41,36
Earlier I said that we were going to get
started on this effort today and indeed we

332
00:28:41,37 --> 00:28:43,45
did earlier our board of directors had

333
00:28:43,46 --> 00:28:48,06
a capital committee meeting where we took
two actions that were triggered by the

334
00:28:48,07 --> 00:28:53,31
adoption of the Sound Transit three plan
John just mentioned one we knew that we

335
00:28:53,32 --> 00:28:57,84
would hoping to design getting rail all
the way to Redmond Town Center we didn't

336
00:28:57,85 --> 00:29:03,11
know that we would have the money until
this past election. So today's Capitol

337
00:29:03,12 --> 00:29:04,63
committee meeting we adopted

338
00:29:04,64 --> 00:29:08,22
a recommendation to the full board that
will come later this month and we get

339
00:29:08,23 --> 00:29:13,96
started right away on Plymouth engineering
to Redmond We also will be releasing in

340
00:29:13,97 --> 00:29:18,85
the next couple of days and F.B.I.'s the
federal environmental impact statement to

341
00:29:18,86 --> 00:29:24,68
get to Federal Way as I said earlier we
knew we were funded to get as far as can to

342
00:29:24,69 --> 00:29:28,89
mornings we now know we are funded to
get to Federal Way and beyond and that

343
00:29:28,90 --> 00:29:32,61
document will therefore have that much
more significance that was also approved

344
00:29:32,62 --> 00:29:36,97
today I finally just in closing I want
to thank so many of the people that are

345
00:29:36,98 --> 00:29:41,69
behind me not our board members but some
are former book board members former

346
00:29:41,70 --> 00:29:46,99
mayors current city council members
advocates from the community the Chamber of

347
00:29:47,00 --> 00:29:51,96
Commerce the environmental
community. It really was

348
00:29:51,97 --> 00:29:57,70
a true coalition that made this happen
Sound Transit staff rightly had to do the

349
00:29:57,74 --> 00:29:59,86
staff work and provide use

350
00:29:59,87 --> 00:30:05,67
a package for them to sell but we are so
glad that they did and they prevailed so

351
00:30:05,68 --> 00:30:09,01
from the Sound Transit staff
again I thank all of you without

352
00:30:09,02 --> 00:30:12,24
a folks have questions we're going to take
them off line on the side thank you so

353
00:30:12,25 --> 00:30:13,32
much for coming everybody.