SEATTLE — On Tuesday, a Seattle City Council committee decided the biggest property tax measure in city history will move forward.
The committee approved a $1.55 billion transportation levy proposal that the full council will vote on next week. If it is approved by the full council, it will be on the November ballot so voters can decide.
More than 800 people died on Washington roads last year. That is a 33-year high and a factor in some people’s push to pass the transportation levy.
Rita Hulsman has been on a mission for months, advocating for safer roads after what happened to her family.
"It happened four days before Christmas. It was the worst Christmas of my life,” Rita Huslman said, referring to the December day when she lost her husband, Steve.
Steven Hulsman was an expert cyclist, according to Rita. He was on his bike in West Seattle when a driver struck and killed him.
"I can't get Steve back. Nothing will bring him back. I just don't want this to happen to anyone else,” said Rita.
She is calling for a sizeable investment to improve transportation for people who walk, roll, bike, rely on transit, and drive.
Alex Pedersen, a former Seattle City Council member and former chair of the Transportation Committee, said the proposed levy is too complicated and too expensive.
"They need to invest smartly at those intersections that are the most dangerous, but that doesn't cost $1.5 billion,” said Pedersen.
As part of the levy, the average homeowner with a home valued at $800,000 would pay about $500 a year in taxes.
"There is going to be a lot of sticker shock for families, small businesses, renters,” said Pedersen. “They should repave the roads, fix the bridges, and add the sidewalks, just stick to the basics is what they need to do.”
"I support taxing me more so that no one else has to die, so that no one else has to be injured on our streets, it is devastating. It is devastating,” said Rita Hulsman.
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