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This just in: Peanut butter cures library fines By Kathleen Merryman Kathleen@tacomaweekly.com
Tacoma Public Library is about to redefine “fine food.� From Feb. 19 through March 2, it will offer a delectable deal to anyone who owes late fees on a book: Bring in any three non-perishable food items, and the library will erase $10 in overdue book fines. Repeat as needed. Imagine, a tin of tuna, a jar of peanut butter and a box of powdered eggs could erase the memory of the mystery hidden under the sofa cushions for two months. They would also make pretty good Mystery Basket contents on the Food Network’s “Chopped,� but that is another story. “We hope that this program will encourage people to return overdue items and clear their library records while having the opportunity to donate food to help people in their community rather than just pay fees,� said librarian Rhonda Kristoff. This program is her recipe, down to the details. s !LL EIGHT OF 4ACOMA S PUBLIC LIBRARIES
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are participating. s !LL THE FOOD WILL GO TO FOOD BANKS IN the neighborhood where it was donated. s $ONATIONS MUST BE NON PERISHABLE
canned, boxed or sealed. No fresh veggies, fruits or meats. s .O HOME CANNED OR HOMEMADE ITEMS
no matter how tasty they are. s .O ALCOHOL OR MIXERS s .O RUSTY OR UNLABELED CANS NOR ANY that are within 30 days of the past due date. s 9OU DO NOT HAVE TO OWE FINES TO donate. s $ONATIONS CANNOT PAY FOR LOST OR damaged items. $ONATIONS CAN HOWEVER RESTOCK FOOD banks running low after the holidays. They can get the food banks on track to surpass the 6,313,944 pounds of food Emergency Food Network distributed in 2012. That food went home in 530,278 client visits. ! CLIENT VISIT COULD REPRESENT ONE PERSON
or a family of any size, said Emergency &OOD .ETWORK %XECUTIVE $IRECTOR (ELEN McGovern. She said that each month, 110,000 people seek help finding food. Nine-
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FILE PHOTO
MONEY FOR SAMI. Students at Science and Math Institute
explore Point Defiance Park as part of a class project. When inside, students and teachers spend their time in portable structures. Bond money will be used to pay for permanent buildings for the campus.
The second is that parents and other residents recognized the need for the improvements. (E MENTIONED THE NEWEST HIGH school, Science and Math Institute. It is housed in portable BUILDINGS AT 0OINT $EFIANCE Park. The bond would fund construction of a campus of permanent buildings. “When people think of that situation, they see a need,� he said. “The community as a whole believes in education.� The third is “the dynamic leadership of our new superintendent,� Carla Santorno. Stewart said she is committed to boosting test scores and graduation rates. Proposition 1 received endorsements from Tacoma/ Pierce County Chamber of Commerce, labor unions and COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS h!LL of those things enabled us to be successful.� Passage of the bond would
ty-nine percent of them fall below the national poverty line, and almost half are families with at least one adult working. Of those 110,000 people, 39 percent are younger than 18 and 14 percent are people older than 55. “The number one item area food banks are especially in need of is peanut butter,� McGovern noted. ! HUNGRY KID DOES NOT HAVE TO COOK peanut butter. McGovern rounded out the most wanted list: canned tuna, chicken, beef, chili, stew, ravioli, cannelloni, fruits and vegetables; hot cereals, powdered eggs and milk, juices, Ensure and other supplemental drinks, baby formula and diapers. She is delighted with the food drive. “Our libraries are the heart of the community, a place where people come together,� she said. “Our neighbors are in need, and this is a way to show the generosity of the residents in Tacoma. This is a win-win. The fine is paid. Materials can be checked out, and families can have access to nutritious food at their local food bank.� Fine food, indeed.
result in a seven-year reduction in property taxes. This is because the district will eliminate approximately $70 million in taxes that voters approved in 2010 to pay for new schools and refinance the costs of two projects that were approved at THAT TIME n 7ASHINGTON (OYT %LEMENTARY 3CHOOL AND (UNT Middle School – with longTERM DEBT FROM THE BOND $IStrict officials estimate the bond would cost the average homeowner $58 per year. Three schools listed on historic register designations – Washington and McCarver elementary schools and Stewart Middle Schools – would be modernized, with efforts made to preserve their architectural CHARACTER 7ILSON (IGH 3CHOOL would get new wings for classrooms. Results of the election are not official until certification takes place on Feb. 26.
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decades. “I’m trying to think 10 steps ahead,� Mello said. That could change with the Transportation )MPROVEMENT $ISTRICT FORMATION THAT NOW COLLECTS $20 from vehicle license tabs, since Mello plans to forward the idea of using some of the revenue from that fee to develop a city-wide plan that would cover roads, bike routes, walking paths and sidewalks, bus routing and future Link expansions when that day comes. “Without it, we have missed the boat time and time again,� Mello said. That plan, however, will come too late for the current Link discussions. Sound Transit is entering the final stages of the PROCESS TO SELECT A WAY TO EXPAND LIGHT RAIL SERVICE ! top choice and a fallback route are expected to face a Sound Transit Commission vote this spring after transit officials do further research of each of the six routes under initial consideration. The options have been studied for the last two years and once included 24 routes or variations. 4HE ROUTES ON THE SHORT LIST ARE TH !VENUE TO 5NION !VENUE WITH A ROUTE ALONG 3TADIUM 7AY AND $IVISION 3TREET ! VARIATION OF THAT ROUTE WOULD LOOP down Jefferson Street to connect back to downtown’s MUSEUM DISTRICT STATION !NOTHER OPTION WOULD RUN ALONG 3TADIUM AND $IVISION BEFORE RUNNING TO TH Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Way. Expanding THE CURRENT LINE FROM THE $OME $ISTRICT TO TH AND Portland is another idea, while another would run the LINE FROM THE $OME $ISTRICT STATION INTO &IFE ALONG 0ACIFIC (IGHWAY 4HE FINAL ROUTE UNDER REVIEW WOULD SEE TRACKS RUNNING ALONG 0ORTLAND !VENUE THEN TH Street to the Tacoma Mall along 48th Street. 4HE MILE ROUTE ALONG TH !VENUE IS PROJECTED to cost $163 million. It has high potential ridership by providing transit service to downtown and THE 4ACOMA $OME ALTHOUGH THAT SERVICE IS ACTUALLY slower than current bus routes on the strip. It also has low potential of economic development spinoffs because the area is largely built out as well as could affect historic and park sites in the area. The downtown loop option would run 4.2 miles at a cost of $249 million. It touts a high potential OF RIDERSHIP WITH FAST SERVICE TO THE 4ACOMA $OME
particularly for disadvantaged and low-income riders. On top of its high price tag, it could create noise concerns and could affect park and historical sites. The Martin Luther King Jr. Way route would cost $133 million and span 2.3 miles if built. It would also have high ridership and serve minority communities but also run along a route that is largely built out, which limits economic development opportunities as well as could have noise and landmark effects. 4HE 0ORTLAND !VENUE ROUTE WOULD COST MILlion and run 2.3 miles. It better connects the area to downtown, serves minority communities and has LITTLE IMPACT ON LANDMARKS !LTHOUGH IT HAS FEW CONnections to other transit options, it would run along a route that does not support higher density and would
have little potential for local funding through a tax district. 4HE 0ACIFIC (IGHWAY ROUTE WOULD IMPROVE TRANSIT time from the area to downtown Tacoma, and would be the first big infrastructure in the area in more than a decade. It also has a large amount of vacant land that could spark redevelopment and economic growth and has a low impact on landmarks. The route, however, would cost $164 million to run 3.3 miles and would serve the lowest number of regional destinations and transit connections. It also has the lowest potential ridership. The Tacoma Mall route would run 5.4 miles at a cost of $292 million along a route with few redevelopment sites, but has the largest number of regional destinations and community centers with little impact to landmarks. The route, however, is also not faster than current bus routes, lacks much economic development potential and is more expensive than other routes. Those facts make it unlikely to be among the routes forwarded for further review. /NCE A TOP CHOICE IS SELECTED IN !PRIL THE FUNDing dance begins. Sound Transit has projected about $150 million in funding for the route expansion, with about $50 million coming from the regional transportation agency, $50 million through federal grants and the remainder coming from partnerships and other sources, including options for a Local Improvement $ISTRICT AND PRIVATE INVESTMENTS THAT COULD INCLUDE talks with the Puyallup Tribe to contribute to the route heading into Fife if that route makes the cut this spring. The current 1.6-mile light rail line serves six staTIONS FROM THE 4HEATER $ISTRICT TO THE 4ACOMA $OME Station, with trains running every 12 minutes during the day. The 10-year-old service cost $77 million to construct. It served a million riders last year and marks its 10th anniversary this summer. Voters in 2008 approved an expansion of Tacoma Link as part of the Sound Transit 2 ballot measure. Routes have been talked about ever since, with formal study starting in 2010. !ND THEN THERE IS ALSO TALK OF ANOTHER 3OUND Transit ballot measure coming down the line as early as 2016. “Those are very, very preliminary discussions,� Sound Transit spokesperson Kimberly Reason said.
Anyone can complete an online survey through Feb. 28 at www. surveygizmo.com/s3/1152431/ Tacoma-Link-Expansion-SurveyFebruary2013. More details about each of the routes can be found with the online version of this article at TacomaWeekly.com as well as at SoundTransit.org.
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