Zoo Garage Permit Appealed!

On Monday, the Phinney Ridge Community Council, Save Our Zoo, Seattle Community Council Federation, and eleven individual appellants filed an appeal challenging the decision by the Seattle Department of Planning and Development (DPD) to allow the Zoo garage. We've posted the appeal documents at www.phinneyecovillage.net/saveourzoo. We've also posted a press release and a drawing of the zoo garage from the Zoo's final Design Commission meeting in January.

Because the zoo garage permit decision involved the Seattle Land Use Code, there was a two-part appeal process. The permit decision gets appealed to the Hearing Examiner. That appeal is called a Master Use Permit (MUP) appeal. There is also a preliminary requirement that appellants pay DPD $2000 to explain its one sentence conclusion that this garage is allowed in a park in a single family zone. This is called an "Interpretation Request." We think it is an outrageous requirement of the city code but we had to follow it to preserve the ability to appeal the land use issues. For now, we await a decision from DPD on the Interpretation Request, and then a hearing will be scheduled before the Hearing Examiner.

We hoped that the Zoo Society would realize that this garage is the wrong solution. But evidently nothing will convince them to stop the garage, and so litigation, unfortunately, is a last resort.

It's not too late for the Zoo Society to withdraw its permit application. And it's not too late for the City Council to follow its earlier letter with stronger action and take steps to stop the garage. Unfortunately, neither acted before the appeal deadline, but we hope they will stop the garage before the litigation proceeds much further.

Public opposition to the Zoo garage has continued to grow as more details about the project are revealed. In addition to appellants Phinney Ridge Community Council, Save Our Zoo, and Seattle Community Council Federation, numerous city-wide organizations have spoken out against the Zoo garage, including Sierra Club, Transportation Choices, Wallingford Community Council, 36th District Democrats, Friends of Olmsted Parks, and Seattle Urban Forest Stakeholders. Hundreds of individuals throughout the city, including Zoo members, have testified and written in opposition to the garage. The Seattle P-I has published three editorials against the garage.