As the economy found stronger footing and Seattle began to grow, the transition from bust to boom left the city underprepared and understaffed to mitigate the impacts of construction on small business. On Capitol Hill, business owners' frustration with the speed of government has reached a boiling point as Crosscut wrote last month.
Access Seattle, the interdepartmental team responsible for softening the blow of construction, showed they understood these frustrations Tuesday. Representative of Access Seattle, plus Mike Wells of the Capitol Hill Chamber of Commerce, pressed the Seattle City Council's Transportation Committee to fund more inspectors capable of ensuring developers are playing by the rules and that businesses aren't overwhelmed by construction. Unfortunately for impatient business owners, the new positions can't be approved until budget talks next fall.
