Tacoma residents and business owners will have several options during the next two weeks to prioritize 14 capital facilities packages proposed by a citizen committee convened by the Tacoma City Council.
The package includes options for additional public investment in a new central police headquarters and neighborhood police stations, waterfront improvements, business district and neighborhood improvements, Cheney Stadium remodeling, Pantages Theater renovations and bicycle paths.
Beginning Nov. 2, citizens can find descriptions of all 14 potential construction packages on the city’s Web site at:
www.cityoftacoma.org/yourcityyoursay.
The site will feature an online survey for visitors to record their preferences.
Descriptions and background information on the packages also will appear in a booklet the city will deliver to more than 85,000 mail stops in Tacoma this week.
The booklet contains a postage-paid reply card on which citizens can rank the packages by Nov. 9.
Citizens can also let their voices be heard by calling the city’s hotline at 591-2020 and leaving a brief message.
Four community workshops will also be open to the public:
n Monday, Nov. 5, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Truman Middle School (cafeteria), 5801 N. 35th St.
n Wednesday, Nov. 7, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Main Library (Olympic Room), 1102 Tacoma Ave. S.
n Thursday, Nov. 8, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Meeker Middle School (commons), 4402 Nassau Ave. NE.
n Tuesday, Nov. 13, 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Manitou Community & Art Center, 4806 S. 66th St.
The city council decided it wanted to tap public opinions directly after four ballot propositions for capital facilities failed with voters in May.
During a series of nine community workshops last summer, some 240 citizens shared more than 5000 comments about what kinds of publicly funded capital facilities Tacoma needs the most.
A 47-member citizen advisory committee then used that data to create options of various capital facilities packages ranging from $2 million to 42.4 million to take back out to the community as a whole.
After citizens prioritize the proposed packages, the city council will use that information to determine what, if any, capital facilities package to place on the ballot.