I-123 seeks to preserve part of viaduct, build a mile-long elevated walkway

SEATTLE — Seattle has big plans for a waterfront makeover and an elevated walkway is not in those plans.

Supporters of Initiative 123 say it should be.

Opponents say the measure on the August 2 ballot could ruin years of planning for a future waterfront, when the new State Route 99 tunnel opens and this viaduct comes down.

Seattle Aquarium CEO Bob Davidson fears voters will be confused thinking a yes vote is an endorsement of the city's big waterfront makeover, which will include a boulevard, park spaces, and an overlook walk between the aquarium and Pike Place Market.

"I think it's very easy to think you're voting for all the work that's been done and the planning for the waterfront for all. And that's not what this is," Davidson said.

What it is, I-123 sponsor Kate Martin said, is an opportunity to preserve much-loved views from the viaduct by saving 400 feet of it, then building a elevated walkway that she calls a garden bridge.

It would be 55 feet high and one mile long, from Pike Place Market to CenturyLink Field.

"This elevated park is dreamy. No cars, spectacular panoramic views," Martin said.

Martin said a tax on nearby landowners would mostly pay for the structure.

"No one's going to look back and thank us for the freight route promenade. Everyone will look back and thank us for this elevated park," Martin said.

Opponents say an elevated park would create a new barrier between downtown and the waterfront, just as the barrier of the viaduct finally comes down.

"This is a big, big important issue for Seattle, it's a hundred-year issue and it's not something that you should just take lightly," Davidson said.

Kate Martin said Martin Selig, the developer who built the Columbia Center, gave her group $300,000.

Selig has since switched sides, and recently gave $5,000 to the "no" campaign.

When KIRO 7 called to request an interview, Selig's assistant said he "doesn't do TV."

Cox Media Group