Seattle's Good Neighbor Policy

Wilcox, Lynn; Goetz, James; ,

Seattle's Good Neighbor Policy

by Lynn Wilcox, Project Manager; Municipality of Metropolitan Seattle, Seattle, WA,
James Goetz, Project Manager; CH2M Hill, Bellevue, WA,

Serial Information: Civil Engineering—ASCE, 1991, Vol. 61, Issue 12, Pg. 58-60

Document Type: Feature article

Abstract:

The West Point wastewater treatment plant in Seattle sits on a spit of land jutting into Puget Sound. Close by is Discovery Park, a haven for nature lovers, located on a bluff above the plant. The plant and park coexisted peacefully until 1984, when controversy erupted after Seattle Metro (the agency that provides wastewater treatment as well as public transportation to the area) recognized that secondary treatment was required at the plant. A court order in 1986 established a tough implementation schedule, but Metro, a design team of more than 200 and an activist local community have managed to come up with a design/construction plan that enhances the park while expanding the plant. Construction is now under way on the $578 million public-works project and will be completed by 1995. More significantly, the West Point plant expansion in Seattle is an object lesson in how to shepherd a megaproject through the maze of legal, technical and management challenges. Aesthetic requirements, a workable and acceptable design, community involvement, mitigation, and innovative contracting and project management are all part of the mix.

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