PPOT committee backs SPU purchase of Telarus site to restore Yesler Creek, 5–0

The Parks, Public Utilities and Technology Committee on Dec. 10 voted unanimously to recommend passage of Council Bill 121138, clearing the way for Seattle Public Utilities to acquire the Telarus property in the Laurelhurst neighborhood so the utility can restore a natural channel of Yesler Creek.

Seattle Public Utilities General Manager Andrew Lee told the committee the proposed purchase — negotiated with the property owner in lieu of condemnation — would allow the utility to comply with Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife requirements to restore fish passage. Kevin Burrell, SPU senior policy advisor, said the site contains a 72-inch storm drain that now conveys Yesler Creek and is considered a fish barrier; when that pipe fails, state permits would require the city to make the corridor fish-passable within roughly five years.

The legislation augments $55 million already in SPU's adopted 2026 capital budget by an additional $9.2 million, creating an acquisition authority of about $64 million. "The proposed purchase of this property represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to continue the city's decades-long commitment to restoring urban watersheds and daylighting our creeks," Lee said at the committee. Burrell said the restored creek corridor would likely need an approximately 200-foot-wide corridor that includes the creek channel, a 100-year floodplain and adjacent riparian habitat buffer.

Public commenters including Colleen McAleer, who said she represented the (transcribed) Lower Hearst Community Club, and Pat Cheney, vice president of the (transcribed) lower risk community council, voiced conditional support for restoration work but pressed for more detail about the site’s landmark status and what portions of the parcel SPU intends to retain. "The request for an extra $9,200,000 makes it a $64,000,000 price tag," McAleer said, asking the council to clarify the scale of planned work and preservation commitments. Eugenia Wu of Historic Seattle also told the committee she supports acquisition for restoration but asked why the ordinance did not explicitly mention the parcel’s 2013 landmark designation and requested to be involved in community engagement.

SPU staff said omission of a landmark note in the ordinance was an oversight and that the proposed legislation does not change or remove the property's landmark status. Burrell said appraisers considered landmark constraints and that purchasing the site now could avoid later displacement or much higher costs if the pipe fails and a development had been built over the critical corridor. The purchase-and-sale agreement includes a time-sensitive close date; staff said the agreement sets a drop-dead closing date of Aug. 31, 2026, and SPU is prepared to close as early as Jan. 2 with council approval.

Committee members asked about ratepayer impacts and timing. SPU said acquisition would use rate-funded capital and that the department will study downstream technical work and funding implications as part of longer-term planning; potential rate impacts remain to be determined during subsequent planning and budgeting.

Chair Rhonda Hollingsworth moved the committee recommendation and the clerk recorded a 5–0 roll-call vote. The committee forwarded CB 121138 to the full City Council with a recommendation to pass; the bill is scheduled for the Dec. 16, 2025 council meeting. SPU told the committee it will pursue robust community engagement with neighbors, tribal partners, Historic Seattle and other stakeholders before design or construction begins.

What’s next: The full City Council will consider the ordinance on Dec. 16, and SPU said it will continue technical study and community outreach to determine how much of the 17–18 acre parcel it will require for creek restoration and what portions, if any, might be repurposed or disposed of pursuant to standard city policies.