Seattle City Council member Tom Rasmussen, chair of the council's Transportation Committee, stopped by the March 10 Ballard District Council meeting for a brief question and answer session.

Ballard resident Stephen Lundgren told Rasmussen that Ballard was promised access to Sound Transit and has paid into the system but has received very little actual service.

One of the biggest challenges for the city is providing good transit service to the west side of the city, including Ballard, Rasmussen said.

He said Mayor Mike McGinn wants to propose light rail service to northwest Seattle. During his campaign, McGinn talked about putting light rail service to Ballard to a vote within two years.

Rasmussen said he is interested to see how McGinn proposes paying for such a line, which could be wildly expensive.

Typically, light rail has been funded regionally because it serves regional areas, such as service to Sea-Tac or future service to Bellevue, he said. He said a line to Ballard would be the city's responsibility.

Another Ballard resident complimented Rasmussen on the 15th Avenue West bus-only lanes, saying they have sped up service and increased ridership.

Rasmussen said there is more demand for transit than there is service right now, and busses are packed.

The city needs to find new ways to improve the public transportation system to better serve its residents, he said.

"Right now, it's not working for many, many communities," he said.

The comments on transportation that he is hearing from communities over and over again are more transit, more crosswalks, more sidewalks and better pedestrian and bicycle facilities, Rasmussen said.

In addition to serving as the chair of the Transportation Committee, Rasmussen is cochair of the Alaskan Way Viaduct & Seawall Replacement Committee, the vice chair of the Parks & Seattle Center Committee and a member of the Housing, Human Services, Health & Culture Committee.

Ballard resident Robert Drucker brought up the recently announced plan to build a two-acre exhibit for glass artist Dale Chihuly in the Seattle Center.

The plan has been controversial because the Century 21 Master Plan for the Seattle Center completed in the last few years calls for more open, green, public space. The Chihuly exhibit proposal calls for an admission fee for the public.

As someone who has been involved in a lot of neighborhood and city planning efforts, Drucker asked why he should bother with those efforts in the future if they can just be tossed aside.

Rasmussen said the Century 21 Master Plan included flexibility and generalities for that space that leave room for more specifics to be added.

"I think [the space] was always intended to be activated at some point, in some way," he said.

He said he thinks the Chihuly exhibit proposal has potential, but it depends on the landscaping and the amount of access to the public. He said it needs a lot more work, and the city council is being very cautious moving forward.

McGinn, who was at the Ballard District Council meeting to present the annual Community Service Awards, was also asked about the proposed Chihuly exhibit.

He said many tenants at the Seattle Center are hurting at the moment and asking for breaks on their leases. The exhibit could be a source of revenue for the center, he said.

There is a precedent for private tenants charging admission at the center, for example the Experience Music Project and the Science Center, he said.

McGinn said it is about striking a balance between public and private space.

"If we can get a good, paying tenant for a long time and make sure there is some access to the public, that might be the best we can hope for," he said.