Later this year, the city of Tukwila will seek voter approval to fund much-needed improvements to our city facilities.
I did not realize the extent of the need until I attended a recent council work session on facilities assessment. Supervisors from public works, police, fire and our court system presented the day-to-day challenges of operating in sub-standard facilities.
Some structures are on land subject to liquefaction during an earthquake. They must go. The city built the existing facilities when the city population, as well as staff, was much smaller; it is easy to anticipate that at some point storage, parking, bathrooms and showers, work areas, meeting areas – pretty much anything that requires space – will become problematic. That is where we are now.
Building new structures offers the opportunity to address these challenges and to make it so that departments that work in close cooperation with each other (court and police, for example) will be better situated to do so.
There is no question that our city facilities have to be replaced or remodeled. The questions are how, when and where. Please pay close attention. You have to pay for it.
