Take 5 minutes and do this right now! Here are the email addresses of the current Seattle City Councilmembers:

[email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected], [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected]

Here is a sample letter you can copy and paste elements from in your personalized email:

Honorable Councilmembers:

Please vote YES to approve the Occidental Street Vacation for the SoDo Arena. Below are several key reasons why this is an important, prudent and justified step for the future of our region:  

- This is a unique opportunity in our region's history. It offers our city a positive opportunity to maximize the infrastructure improvements and community benefits made possible by significant new private investment into our city. The vacation of the one-block stretch of Occidental Avenue South is the final step in a lengthy and costly EIS process. Vacating this street will put our city in the best place possible to bring an NBA franchise back to Seattle and creates an opportunity for any NHL investor who wants to bring professional hockey back to Seattle, as well as providing a much needed modern venue for concerts, conferences, conventions and community gathering events.    

- The arena investment team spent many millions of dollars getting the arena solution to this point including acquiring the land, architects, economic studies, lawyers, traffic engineers and environmental studies. After considering impact on existing SoDo operations, Hansen pledged an additional $40 million in private money specifically to address traffic infrastructure. They have acted in good-faith and done everything asked of them over the past four years.  

- Mr. Hansen has entered into Labor Peace Agreements with a coalition of unions to make sure arena workers are paid a living wage and everyone gets their fair share. Union support includes UNITEHERE Local 8, Service Employees International Union Local 6, and Teamsters Local 117. 

- The SoDo arena location is in the area zoned for sports facilities. It is also in the largest transportation hub in the region with Link Light Rail, a Sounder train line, three bus rapid transit lines, 21 Metro bus lines, 9 Sound Transit Express bus lines, 2 state ferry routes, 2 interstate freeways converging in this neighborhood. No other site in the region has these transportation assets, which is why the two existing sports facilities are located there.  

- The Final Environmental Impact Statement was clear that the arena would have no significant unavoidable adverse impacts to the street system, public transportation, bicyclists or bicycle corridors. The FEIS found that the change in traffic volumes caused by the arena falls with the range of current experience and that this portion of Occidental does not serve as a critical function to the street grid and does not serve a critical function to maintain freight mobility. Arena opponents have failed to provide any legitimate data supporting their claims against the arena, relying instead on unsubstantiated fear tactics and an unethical disinformation campaign. Arena supporters are an organized local constituency that represents the will of the people.   

- The SDOT commissioned multi-modal transportation and parking study found that Arena event traffic is well within the existing parking, traffic and transit capacity of the area. The Seattle Downtown Design Review Board voted unanimously to approve the arena design and the Design Review Commission voted unanimously after 10 meeting over a period of 3 years to recommend approval of the street vacation. 

- Unlike past stadium proposals, the SoDo Arena plan utilizes a revolutionary private-public partnership that protects citizens and reduces public risk to zero. All public bonds are repaid by revenues generated exclusively within the arena, and Mr. Hansen has included safeguards that will revitalize the area with much-needed infrastructure using private investment dollars for public benefit.