By Gwen Davis

The Delridge Neighborhoods District Council meeting on Wed. featured the council's Kerry Wade, the Port of Seattle commissioner Courtney Gregoire, Seattle City Councilmember Tom Rasmussen and the director of Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT), Scott Kubly.

"We have a great lineup for tonight," said Mat McBride, chair of the council.

Here are the takeaways:

-> Gregoire said a three-year study will begin to improve the Port of Seattle. The port also needs to have conversations with the port of Tacoma. It will be a race-to-the-bottom if otherwise. "We need to generate more market share, and we need to think about how can we do this collectively," she said. "I'm optimistic that we'll come out as a strong region."

-> "The Rapid Ride [transit is now functioning," said Councilmember Tom Rasmussen. "Giving priority to transit is one of the primary things we can do," to ease overcrowding, ensure public safety and overall enhance transit in West Seattle, he said. "The key thing that all of us can do is vote Yes on transit Prop. 1," he said. "There's no one magic bullet to solve this issue," he said, but the good news is everyone is supportive of the light rail system, and there should be a ballot funding measure by 2016 to support such efforts.

-> Attendees expressed gratitude to Rasmussen about the impact fee meeting last week. "My take away is it might be more beneficial to our schools than anything," he responded. "I didn't even realize we could use all that funding."

->Scott Kubly was recently confirmed as director of SDOT. "I can't promise that you'll always like what we do, but I can promise that we'll listen to you to make it better," he said. "The least we can do is explain how we arrived where we did and take in everyones concerns."

-> A Nov. 15 event will provide interested neighborhood residents with information of how neighbors can stay informed, as well as provide a discussion about safety projects. Additionally, a meeting about the roads safety corridor project of 35th Ave. SW will happen at Neighborhood House on Oct. 22.

Summary of the meeting:

The Port of Seattle's Commissioner Gregoire first took the floor.

"We are thrilled to be here," she began. "We have a lot going on. I joined the commission a little over a year ago, and we are helping our century agenda. What would it mean to add 100,000 jobs to the region while being economically stable?" she asked.

In regard to Terminal 5, the commissioner said that there are unfortunately fewer port calls as time goes on, and that the port needs to remain competitive, as everyone knows.

"Upgrading that facility is vital to that growth," she said. Within the past 10 years, she traveled around the country witnessing port activities. Here at home, she said, there is work to be done.

"We will keep making investments to make sure we remain a leader," she said. Additionally, "the Port of Seattle is about supporting future economic growth, and I care about doing that in a way that promotes quality growth. It can't be outsourced, it can't be pushed out," she said

The port can also promote workforce economic equity for many groups of people in the greater area.

An attendee asked about the $15 minimum wage. "We are going to make sure there are quality jobs," she said. There were many workers in her authority who had very low wages with high turnover rate. Beginning in 2015 their wages will go up to over $11 an hour.

However, the commissioner said that she is continuing to seek to extend the port's authority so more workers are paid higher wages. The finances of the port are very transparent and are all online, she said in response to someone asking about use of finances.

Councilmember Tom Rasmussen then addressed the council, specifically regarding transportation.

The councilmember actively helps develop master plans for transit, he said.

"We put money into the budget for safety projects," he said. "Bicycle safety is critically important. All bicyclists converge into this one point and we should be getting progress soon on that area. W. Marginal Way also needs improvements."

"We conducted a study about the economic toll of coal trains," he continued. The trains can be a mile and a half long. "They go on, and on and on. There is a concern about congestion, there is a concern about safety."

However, one attendee asked him "right now one in five citizens live someone where on the Peninsula. What's the city doing to look at long-range economic mobility improvements to benefit the citizens of West Seattle?" he asked. Rasmussen responded that funding public transit will be number one.

"Funding for transit is something difficult to persuade the legislator to support," Rasmussen said. "We don't have that yet. We hope more people will be elected to the legislature who will support transit."

A World's Fair in Seattle would improve transportation, the council member joked. But it is true: because of the last time Seattle hosted the fair, the monorail was put in place, as well as other transit avenues which are being used today.