Despite the best efforts of the Port of Seattle and the Seattle Times, Chris Hansen's SoDo Arena plans got a big boost on Tuesday.
The Seattle City Council transportation committee voted 4-1 Tuesday to recommend selling part of Occidental Avenue South to make way for the proposed arena that would be built if the city lands a professional men's basketball team. The issue now goes to the full council on May 2.
The stretch in question, Occidental Avenue South between Massachusetts & Holgate avenues, has been called "vital" by the Port and those opposed to the arena deal. However, multiple people have spent good chunks of time watching the road to see how much traffic it gets and the armchair conclusion appears to be that it would be extremely minimal.
Of course even if the council approves the street sale, that doesn't mean the arena is good to go. There are still lots of legal and financial hoops for Hansen and his team to jump through, not to mention the threat of pending legislation from opponents. And then there's the tricky fact that in order for the arena to be built at all, Hansen must actually own an NBA franchise first.
· City Council committee gives Sodo arena a boost [PSBJ]
· The Seattle Times Really Does Not Like Chris Hansen's SoDo Arena Plan [CS]
· "Vital" Occidental Avenue Stretch Not Actually All That Vital [CS]
· SoDo Arena Opponents Consider New Legislation As Occidental Avenue Decision Nears [CS]