September 2005

As voters begin to receive their absentee ballots for the Sept. 20 primary, a foreboding will creep into many minds about when - and whether - their votes will be counted.

When election snafus first surfaced two years ago, most King County residents shrugged it off as one of those things that happens, and felt certain the problems would be solved - they weren't.

An elections officer was fired, a new elections directed was hired and many of us figured the problem now had been solved.

Then election of November 2004. it was a grim, unfunny story that unfolded.

Have you heard this one? The federal government says your boss can tell you not to talk with your co-workers when you're off duty. Can you imagine not being able to say "hi" to your co-workers at the local coffee shop or department store?

A statue of the famous Viking explorer Leif Erikson has been looking out over Shilshole Bay since 1962. It will soon be surrounded by the inscriptions of hundreds of Scandinavian immigrants who will donate money to have their names etched into its new base.

The statue will also be moved to a more prominent location at the Shilshole Bay Marina, as part of a huge renovation project by the Port of Seattle.

The Port of Seattle has lost its focus, said candidate for Port Commissioner Richard Berkowitz. He charged that the Port is focusing far too much on real estate and biotechnology, instead of maritime industry related functions.

"They (the Port of Seattle) are working from a business plan," he said.

When Al Runte is asked a question his demeanor is one of calm assurance that he knows the subject and exactly what he wants to say about it.

He appears exactly what he once was, a professor of history and environment at the University of Washington for much of the 1980s. Since then he has been an environmental consultant, historian and author.

Runte has never before been a politician, nor has he been an executive, yet he wants to be both by unseating strongly entrenched Mayor Greg Nickels this fall.

Seattle City Councilman Richard McIver supports building a downtown waterfront tunnel to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct, opposes the monorail, but supports a light-rail line to West Seattle.

McIver is running for his third four-year term on the City Council. His challengers include King County Councilman Dwight Pelz and housing advocate Robert Rosencrantz.

McIver favors a regional approach to the transportation problems of the Seattle-Tacoma-Everett area. It would take a new regional agency to coordinate buses, commuter trains, light rail lines and monorail, he said.

Robert Rosencrantz sees in his own neighborhood what happens when different levels of government don't communicate with each other and it's one of the reasons he's campaigning against Seattle City Councilman Richard McIver in the Sept. 20 primary election.

Rosencrantz lives in the Montlake area near Husky Stadium. State Route 520 runs east and west along the edge of the neighborhood.

In 1992,

For the first time, Great Harvest Bread Co. is teaming up with Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center for a month long fundraising effort to benefit the hospital's uncompensated care fund. The Raising Dough for Children's' promotion kicks off this month.

For the entire month of September, "Miracle Bears for Children's," can be purchased for $1 at all nine Western Washington Great Harvest locations, including the Ballard site on Market Street.