Dear supporters of a Safe 35th ave NE, We had hoped that by this time we could share good news about the 35th ave NE road safety project, but unfortunately this project still needs your help. A few days ago the group opposed to the 35th Ave NE road safety project sent out the message below urging their supporters to flood the mayors office with calls and emails. It is very uncharacteristic that the Mayor's office would be open to input at this very late stage in the process when the contract for construction has already been awarded and signed. Please take a moment today or tomorrow to contact the mayor's office, preferably by phone (but an email will work too). Call: (206) 684-4000 Email: Jenny.durkan@seattle.gov and Shefali.Ranganathan@seattle.gov We encourage you to remind the mayor that: - Most people walk to local businesses, and many would like to bike if it were safe to do so. Businesses have been proven to thrive in all studies where parking was removed to install bike lanes that make it safer to walk and bike. - SDOT's plan uses established engineering to provide safety for the most vulnerable users without causing significant delays to those who drive. Flashing crosswalks are not enough to make this dangerous street safe, and the bike lanes are an integral part of a design that increases safety for all users including people on foot and in cars. - The vast majority of businesses on 35th ave NE have off-street parking lots. People with disabilities who rely on close parking will still have places to park, while those who rely on the bikes or using the sidewalk will have a dramatically safer experience. - SDOT has been doing outreach on this project for over two years and has heard that there is support for this project. The city should not violate its own Complete Streets ordinance and Vision Zero promises because a vocal minority has spread misinformation and fear. Thank you for your continued support. Neighbors for a SAFE 35th ave NE. ---- The below message was sent by Save 35th (the group opposed to this safety project) on May 7, 2018 --- Dear Save 35th Supporters! UPDATE: Save 35th recently met with Deputy Mayor Shefali Ranganathan as well as staff from Seattle DOT, Office of Neighborhoods, and Office of Economic Development. We made some progress: SDOT and the Mayor’s office will do a guided visit to 35th and will look into conducting a new parking study. The paving part of the project may begin soon, but we were told there is still time to talk about the bike lanes and elimination of parking because they are primarily a matter of striping, which happens toward the end. We are also continuing to alert more and more neighbors to what is going on by putting informational door hangers on their homes. Our petition now has more than 3,050 signatures and is still growing. It is time for us to flood the Mayor and Deputy Mayor’s office with calls and emails. We think that calls will be particularly effective since they demand more attention than an email. Do both! One request: Please, be Civil. We want to bring pressure but want to keep the tone collaborative. This seems to be the most effective approach right now. CALLS: Please Call the Mayor’s Office – more than once! The number is (206) 684-4000. A sample message is below. Let us know at Save35thAveNE@gmail.com about your actions. "This is [name] and I’m calling to ask the Mayor to stop the bike lanes and elimination of parking on 35th Ave. NE. She should also tell SDOT to work with the neighborhood. SDOT’s plan will hurt business, make 35th less safe, and it is discriminatory." EMAILS: Send a message with the following points to the Mayor and Deputy Mayor ASAP. (jenny.durkan@seattle.gov)( Shefali.Ranganathan@seattle.gov) You can copy and paste this or make the same points in your own way. Create your own subject line -- include the words 35th Ave NE Dear Mayor and Deputy Mayor: Save our neighborhood! Please tell SDOT to listen to us and change its plan to remove 60% of the parking on 35th Ave NE in order to add unnecessary bicycle lanes. We use our local businesses and want them to thrive. This will hurt business. We want safe streets. 35th is too narrow to safely accommodate all forms of transportation. This plan will send cars into the side streets. Put bike lanes on side streets. We want access for all. This plan discriminates against people who are elderly or disabled and families with children. We ARE making headway and it is your support that is getting us there. Let's stay Unified and Strong! Thank you, Amy @Save35thAveNE