CITY OF SEATTLE
RESOLUTION __________________
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A RESOLUTION relating to the University of Washington Husky Stadium Transportation Management Plan; approving a revised framework document that includes performance standards and access management strategies to be included and detailed within in an annual operating plan for certain events at the stadium; and superseding Resolution 27435.
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WHEREAS, the University of Washington’s (UW) Husky Stadium has operated with the same Transportation Management Plan (TMP) and Operating Supplement since the Stadium was expanded in 1986 and many of its provisions are no longer relevant; and
WHEREAS, mobility options for Husky Stadium event attendees have expanded and improved over the past 35 years to include an expanding regional light rail system with a station adjacent to the stadium entrance, micromobility options, and transportation network companies not reflected in the 1986 TMP and Operating Supplement; and
WHEREAS, the existing Husky Stadium TMP, adopted in 1986, set what was at that time an ambitious goal for no more than 71 percent of attendees to arrive at Husky Stadium football games by automobile and that goal has been surpassed with approximately 48 percent arriving by private vehicle during the 2019 football season; and
WHEREAS, the 1986 TMP’s limitations constrain UW’s ability to invest in and promote smarter Husky Stadium mobility solutions by requiring specific tactics and investments that require spending on ineffective and, in some cases, obsolete options; and
WHEREAS, in 1998, the City and UW entered into an agreement to govern campus master planning and off-campus leasing, which was amended in 2003 and 2004; and
WHEREAS, UW proposes to replace the 1986 TMP and Operational Plan with a revised TMP defining goals which will be met via an annually updated Operations Plan approved by a new Husky Stadium TMP Advisory Committee comprised of representatives from Seattle Department of Transportation, Seattle Police Department, King County Metro Transit, Sound Transit, the City-University Community Advisory Committee (CUCAC), and University staff; and
WHEREAS, UW prepared an environmental impact statement (EIS) in 2018 to inform the public including the neighborhoods surrounding the Stadium of the environmental impacts and the proposed process for revising the TMP and the alternatives considered; and
WHEREAS, in 2017 and 2018 UW briefed the CUCAC and community councils for neighborhoods around Husky Stadium as part of scoping the EIS, soliciting feedback on the Draft EIS, and incorporating that community feedback into the proposed revised TMP; and
WHEREAS, UW has continued to engage the campus community, including surrounding neighbors and partner agencies, in developing in the updated TMP that incorporates more aggressive mobility goals and covers events, large and small, other than football; and
WHEREAS, the revised TMP establishes non-automobile mode split goals for weekend football games of 54 percent one-year after opening of Northgate Link service, 58 percent one-year after opening of Lynnwood Link service, and 62 percent one-year after opening of Everett Link service; and
WHEREAS, the City Council supports the Vision Zero goal of eliminating traffic fatalities and severe injuries and expects that UW’s implementation of the TMP will prioritize additional investments to improve the safety of pedestrians and pedestrian pathways, which could include enhancements to sidewalks near Husky Stadium; and
WHEREAS, the Husky Stadium TMP Advisory Committee described in Resolution 27445 took action on January 21, 2020 recommending approval of the proposed revised TMP;
NOW, THEREFORE,
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SEATTLE, THE MAYOR CONCURRING, THAT:
Section 1. The University of Washington (UW) Husky Stadium Transportation Management Plan (TMP), a copy which is attached as Attachment A to this resolution, is approved. The TMP replaces the plan approved by Resolution 27435 and contained in Comptroller File 294614.
Section 2. UW will convene and support a Stadium TMP Technical Advisory Group. The Technical Advisory Group will include representatives from the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT), Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections, Seattle Police Department, Washington State Department of Transportation, UW, Metro Transit, Sound Transit, and the City-University Community Advisory Committee (CUCAC). The Technical Advisory Group must meet a minimum of twice per year (typically between January and May) to review the Annual Report from the past year and to approve an Operations Plan for the upcoming year. As part of the annual review, the Technical Advisory Group will consider whether more aggressive non-automobile mode split goals than established in the TMP are warranted in the Operations Plan.
Section 3. By February of each year, UW will present an Annual Report to Technical Advisory Group members. The report must include results of event attendee surveys; operations feedback from agency partners; feedback from surrounding neighborhoods via outreach to community groups, including CUCAC. The Annual Report will include the following information:
A. Surveys of attendees of at least one Pac-12 Conference weekend game after the start of the previous fall quarter. Attendees of at least one weekday game must also be surveyed if one occurs the previous season. The survey results will capture attendee mode of travel for “last mile,” vehicle occupancy and general location if parked, usage of transportation network companies (TNC), and specific mode of public transit; and
B. Performance monitoring data which assesses traffic operations, transit operations and user experience, pedestrian queuing, TNC operations, and parking management strategies.
Section 4. Each year, UW will present a draft update of the TMP’s Operations Plan (“Operations Plan”) to the Technical Advisory Group, describing strategies and tactics for reducing single occupancy vehicle trips consistent with the TMP’s stated goals, managing stadium-related parking, access-related and other transportation related services for events scheduled from July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022 and for each year thereafter. The annual Operations Plan will incorporate data and feedback from surveys of Husky Stadium event attendees, along with input from agency partners, the surrounding community, and the Technical Advisory Group. The Operations Plan must be approved by the Technical Advisory Group and submitted to the SDOT Director no later than May 31 of each year.
Section 5: Costs associated with the annual Operations Plan and transportation management activities related to stadium events will be UW’s responsibility, including, but not limited to, traffic control personnel and supplemental service for transit, such as buses, shuttles, and charter services.
Section 6. By no later than June 30, 2036, the Technical Advisory Group will present to the Council a proposal for updating the TMP. The proposal will include a workplan for assessing changed conditions and establishing new performance goals, including environmental review if necessary; a public outreach and engagement strategy; and a proposed schedule for Council consideration of a TMP update.
Adopted by the City Council the ________ day of _________________________, 2021, and signed by me in open session in authentication of its adoption this ________ day of _________________________, 2021.
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President ____________ of the City Council
The Mayor concurred the ________ day of _________________________, 2021.
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Jenny A. Durkan, Mayor
Filed by me this ________ day of _________________________, 2021.
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Monica Martinez Simmons, City Clerk
(Seal)
Attachments:
Attachment A - Husky Stadium Transit Management Plan