City of SeaTac recenters around Angle Lake light rail station

SeaTac's old city hall sits near a freeway onramp. It's hard to reach if you don't drive.

Officials say the building is crumbling anyway. So, they're starting over in a better spot.

SeaTac City Councilmembers James Lovell and Senayet Negusse stood on the platform at Sound Transit's Angle Lake station. They were looking at the property right next door to the west, a giant park-and-fly lot. A slab of asphalt. It stores travelers' cars while they’re gone.

But Lovell and Negusse have a different vision. They don’t see a parking lot. They see SeaTac's new city hall. They see a "civic campus" filled with social services, cultural spaces, food options, and affordable housing.

For them, this is about changing the city's identity.

"People, when they think of SeaTac, they think of the airport," Negusse said. "They don't see the people that live, work, and call this place home. We're primarily renters. We're primarily working-class folks who serve in the hospitality industry, transportation industry, in industries of service."

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The problem with the old city hall

Right now, the city’s government is hard to reach.

The old city hall sits on the edge of town, right next to an I-5 onramp. It feels like a remnant of the past, when people in suburban communities were expected to drive everywhere.

"The location is centered around car culture and car access," Lovell said.

It isn't just about location; it's about the building.

According to a city analysis, the old city hall is an aging concrete structure that isn’t up to modern earthquake standards. Its heating and cooling, plumbing, insulation, security and weatherproofing systems all need upgrades. There aren’t enough parking spaces to meet city zoning requirements.

The report determined it would take $74 million to redevelop the existing site. That price tag forced leaders to ask a tough question: Is it wise to throw good money after bad?

A new vision for access

The SeaTac City Council decided the answer was "no." They want to move government to where the people are.

The old building serves drivers. The new site at Angle Lake Station serves them, too, as it will likely include a parking garage. But it also serves transit riders. Many SeaTac workers take light rail to their jobs.

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Negusse said placing the campus next to the station will make life easier for the people who need government services the most.

"Whether you're going to access interpretation services, access housing assistance, the courts, the jails, whatever it is... we need to be accessible to our people," she said.

This follows a trend in the greater Seattle area. Cities that were once spread out are trying to build vibrant neighborhoods around Sound Transit stations.

The cost

The project won't be cheap. In late November, the SeaTac City Council approved around $40 million in municipal bonds – and that’s just to buy the land. The total civic campus cost could be three to four times that.

In a separate transaction, SeaTac’s also buying the old Bullpen restaurant site on the east side of the station. That land was heavily polluted by a former dry cleaner. It’ll need significant cleanup.

Some residents are worried about the price of these projects. On the city’s feedback webpage for the project, a user identified as Curtis R commented, "Worst use of public funds in 40 years!!!"

"Why is the city council going ahead with the new location for a city hall, when most of your constituents are saying no?" Debbi Myers asked on the same comment page. "There's more important issues in our city like sidewalks, fixing the roads in the neighborhoods… [and] hiring employees."

In response, city officials said an extensive public process showed significant support for a new civic campus, and that the City Council has not discussed any plans to raise taxes, though a business tax (B&O tax) may be one potential way "to address a structural imbalance in the City of SeaTac’s revenues."

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Lovell said the city has several funding "buckets" to draw from, many of which restrict spending to certain project types. Aside from municipal bonds used to purchase the land, officials could potentially tap the city’s hotel tax for performing arts spaces, or affordable housing funds for on-campus housing. Which buckets get used depends on what the community decides to put on the campus.

Residents are still deciding exactly what the mix of housing, business, and services will look like. That public decision-making process is ongoing. But for Lovell and Negusse, the goal is clear.

"We're trying to bring in business, bring in art, bring in culture and build that sense of community and identity that's been missing for so long in our city," Negusse said.