SEATTLE, Wash. — Two days after approving a head tax for large businesses, Seattle is considering a local improvement district (LID) tax to pay for waterfront improvements.
KOMO reports this idea is not sitting well with the roughly 2% of property owners that would have to pay.
Steve Danishek owns a waterfront condo and says he’d have to pay $10,000 to help Seattle raise $200 million for a new park and green space. He drew applause for a comment at a committee meeting: “We’ve had it. I’m asking for the entire Seattle City Council to resign. Resign, because you think you can get away with picking our pockets, and you can no longer be trusted with Seattle’s future.”
Nearly all 40 opponents at the committee meeting Wednesday say the tax is not fair and for some property owners it would be yet another hit on top of the head tax and potentially rising property values.
KOMO reports the council committee approved the LID and it will come to the whole council on Monday, where they say they plan to get more public comment before a final decision in September.