The Seattle City Council is expected to take up the issue of “hostile architecture” at a hearing on Tuesday.
Last fall, the Seattle Department of Transportation installed a series of bike racks underneath the Highway 99 approach to the Battery Street Tunnel.
However, as city leaders have come to acknowledge, the installation, which cost several thousand dollars, was meant to deter sidewalk camping.
Council member Teresa Mosqueda wrote a scathing letter to SDOT in December, questioning the use of public funds. Her comments were echoed by colleague Mike O’Brien on Monday, who chairs the transportation committee.
O’Brien says SDOT’s Interim Director has agreed to relocate the bike racks.
Mayor Jenny Durkan's office released this statement:
“Mayor Durkan has made it clear that bike racks should be deployed to support and encourage biking. Last month, SDOT notified members of the City Council stating that the Durkan administration’s policy was to not use bike racks as impediments. SDOT plans to remove the bike racks after a location is identified to ensure the greatest use to bicyclists in Seattle.”
