COMMISSION 
AGENDA MEMORANDUM                Item No.       3b 
ACTION ITEM                   Date of Meeting    August 15, 2017 
DATE:    July 28, 2017 
TO:     Dave Soike, Interim Executive Director 
FROM:   Lindsay Wolpa, Regional Government Affairs Manager 
SUBJECT:  Safe and Swift Corridor Program MOU with the City of Seattle 
Amount of this request:         $15,000,000 
ACTION REQUESTED 
Request Commission authorization for the Executive Director to execute a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) for $15 million with the City of Seattle to launch the Safe and Swift
Corridor Program to support projects and other efforts to improve transportation flow and
safety along key freight transportation corridors. 
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 
Through the Port and City's joint efforts to close the funding gap for the South Lander Street
Bridge Project, we created a new partnership to promote freight mobility and increase safety
around three key corridors in the City including South Spokane Street, East Marginal Way, and
15th Avenue West/Elliott Avenue West/Mercer Street. As the Port and the City continued
talking about the Lander project, both governments recognized many other joint priorities
throughout Seattle. With so many shared interests in different neighborhoods, it made sense to
extend our new partnership further north from the SODO neighborhood and cargo terminals. 
JUSTIFICATION 
Execution of this MOU contributes to the Port's Century Agenda goal to position the Puget
Sound region as a premier international logistics hub. As the Puget Sound region continues to
experience unprecedented growth, the increased population has created mobility and safety
challenges within the local transportation corridors. 
One result of the region's strong growth is increased traffic congestion, often impacting flow of
freight through the City. In addition, regional growth has contributed to increased construction,
often reducing road lanes, also adding to traffic woes. With a pus h to decrease single
occupancy vehicle use throughout the City, we have also seen more transportation modes
mixing throughout key corridors. Ensuring the safe split of bicyclists and freight trucks is critical. 


Template revised September 22, 2016.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. __3b__                    Page 2 of 4 
Meeting Date: August 15, 2017 
Entering into this agreement with the City will launch a new program to support projects and
other efforts to improve transportation flow and safety along key freight corridors. Minimizing 
such congestion and improving safety contributes to a successful logistics hub. 
DETAILS 
As one of the action items resulting from the Port's Hamburg study mission, the Port and the
City of Seattle staff have held several meetings to discuss ways to improve and deepen the
relationship between the two organizations. One route discussed included  creating a
Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to address projects of mutual benefit to
each organization. 
With a confluence of shared transportation priorities, combined with a sense of urgency and
opportunity, this makes it the right time for the City of Seattle and Port of Seattle to execute a
MOU around specific transportation principles and projects. The purpose of this MOU is to
launch a new partnership between the City and the Port, to be known as the Safe and Swift
Corridor Program. This program will update multiple efforts to improve critical transportation
corridors in Seattle and will be focused on moving cargo, cars, transit and cyclists safely and
swiftly on city streets. 
Terminal 5 sits at one end of a key corridor  Spokane Street. The redevelopment of Terminal 5
is a key project the Northwest Seaport Alliance, the Port's joint venture with the Port of
Tacoma. This MOU will provide opportunities to improve the Spokane Street Corridor for
multiple stakeholders, especially West Seattle residents. 
Another important corridor is East Marginal Way. That corridor has long been identified as an
important route for both freight and commuters. As East Marginal acts as a key connector for
the Port's cargo terminals, partnering with the Port around the City's improvement project just
makes sense. With bikes and trucks sharing the road around East Marginal, we recognize the
importance working collaborative to improve the route for the safety of all modes. 
That mode sharing is not a unique challenge along East Marginal Way. With the explosive
growth all around Seattle, the Ballard and Interbay neighborhoods are having many of the same
conversations. The 15th Avenue West, Elliott Avenue West and Mercer Street corridors are
critical to those neighborhoods. As many are already aware, the Port runs both Fishermen's
Terminal and Terminals 90 and 91, both assets being a key part of the Ballard and Interbay
neighborhoods. Fishermen's Terminal is the home of the North Pacific Fishing Fleet and
Terminals 90 and 91 is the Port's primary cruise operation. 
The 15th Avenue West, Elliott Avenue West and Mercer Street corridors are also critical to
Seattle's tourism economy, a growing industry in Seattle and King County, with visitors
spending $7 billion and generating $718 million in state in local taxes in 2016. Further, each
time a cruise homeport ship docks here, it generates $2.7 million to the local community and
the fishing industry generates more than 40,000 jobs in our region. In addition, Key Arena is an

Template revised September 22, 2016; format updates October 19, 2016.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. __3b__                    Page 3 of 4 
Meeting Date: August 15, 2017 
important civic asset, and a historic anchor to the Seattle Center and the City's Uptown
neighborhood as well as a valuable source of tourism for the region. As the City seeks to enter
into a future development agreement for Key Arena, this MOU will help support port-related
transportation needs in the area. 

ALTERNATIVES AND IMPLICATIONS CONSIDERED 
Alternative 1  Do nothing. 
Cost Implications: Zero. 
Pros: 
(1)   No impacts on the Port's budget. 
(2)   No impact on staff time with respect to implementation. 
Cons: 
(1)   Negative implication on our relationships with other governments. 
(2)   Negative timeline impacts to key priorities around Seattle. 
This is not the recommended alternative. 
Alternative 2  Authorize to execute a different agreement. 
Cost Implications: It would depend. 
Pros: 
(1)   If it included more dollars, the Port might have more input around Seattle Center. 
(2)   If it included fewer dollars, there would be less of an impact on the Port's budget. 
Cons: 
(1)   If it included more dollars, there would other Port projects that could not happen. 
(2)   If it included fewer dollars, there could be negative implications on relationships. 
This is not the recommended alternative. 
Alternative 3  Authorize to execute this agreement. 
Cost Implications: $15M 
Pros: 
(1)   Provides a new partnership to guide much of our work with the City. 
(2)   Strengthens our relationship with the federal delegation. 
Cons: 
(1)   Impact on the Port's budget. 
This is the recommended alternative. 

Template revised September 22, 2016; format updates October 19, 2016.

COMMISSION AGENDA  Action Item No. __3b__                    Page 4 of 4 
Meeting Date: August 15, 2017 
ATTACHMENTS TO THIS REQUEST 
(1)   Slide deck 
(2)   Draft memorandum of understanding, including the following Exhibits: 
o  Exhibit A: MOU Between the Port of Seattle and the City of Seattle to Establish a
Railroad Quiet Zone, authorized by The Northwest Seaport Alliance on August 1,
2017 
o  Exhibit B: MOU Between the Port of Seattle and the City of Seattle to
Permanently Close W Mariginal Way SW, Authorized by The Northwest Seaport
Alliance on August 1, 2017 
o  Exhibit C: MOA Between Port of Seattle and City of Seattle, Lander Project,
authorized by the Port of Seattle Commission, executed August 31, 2016 
o  Exhibit D: MOU For Intergovernmental Cooperation between the Port of Seattle
and The City of Seattle for Future Roadway Repair, authorized by the Port of
Seattle and the Seattle City Council, executed October 30, 2015 
o  Exhibit E: Map of locations referenced in this MOU 
o  Exhibit F: Current Summary Estimates of Cost and Funding Shares 
o  Exhibit G: EMW-HHN Project details 
PREVIOUS COMMISSION ACTIONS OR BRIEFINGS 
August 9, 2016  The Commission authorized the execution of an agreement with the City
of Seattle to provide financial support for the Lander Street Grade Separation Project 








Template revised September 22, 2016; format updates October 19, 2016.