SEATTLE – The moving trucks weren’t only rented, they were loaded with Seahawks gear, and were on the road to Southern California.
Long before Blue Fridays and 12s were part of Northwest culture, the Seahawks were headed out of town. It was 1996. King County and the State of Washington sued then-team owner Ken Behring alleging he was violating anti-trust and consumer protection laws by threatening to move the team to Los Angeles.
“The state, the region wanted the Seahawks, and we had to have some way to demonstrate we were not going to go easy,” said then-Washington Attorney General Chris Gregoire.
She does not take credit for saving the team but said the lawsuit made its point.
A year later voters supported efforts to replace the aging Kingdome, and Paul Allen bought the team from Behring.
Gregoire, who went on to serve two terms as Governor, wasn’t only acting as an attorney when she filed the suit. She and husband Mike bought season tickets in the team’s first season, 1979,
“Which I think cost $12 each, per game,” said Gregoire.
The Gregoires cancelled their season tickets in the late 1980s when family and work demands kept them busy in Olympia. But she said she still loves going to Seahawks games and would like to see the Seahawks play in the Super Bowl in February.
