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Des Moines authorizes airport-committee SEPA comments on SeaTac master plan after debate over accuracy
Summary
The City Council authorized the Des Moines Airport Advisory Committee to submit SEPA comments on the Port’s Sustainable Airport Master Plan (SAMP/DEIS). Council approved the submission 6–1 after concerns from Council member Harris about factual errors in the committee memo.
The Des Moines City Council voted to authorize the City’s Airport Advisory Committee to submit its SEPA comments on the Port of Seattle’s Sustainable Airport Master Plan draft environmental impact statement. The motion to allow the committee to proceed passed 6–1; Council member Harris opposed the motion and flagged factual inaccuracies in the committee’s memo.
Rebecca Deming and airport-committee members described outreach conducted and technical memos prepared with consultants and attorneys. Committee chair Joe Duesenberry said the public hearing that day had been "very successful," and that committee members had prepared memos for inclusion in the SEPA comment record. The committee requested the council’s authorization to submit those documents under the committee’s name because it is a council advisory body.
Council member Harris said he could not support sending the committee’s papers without additional fact checking, citing multiple errors and an overstatement of enplanement figures and program definitions. "This has too many errors of fact...it needs to go through some rudimentary fact checking," Harris said. He asked the committee to correct factual mistakes before submission; other council members stressed the committee’s expertise and the importance of submitting robust comments within the comment period.
Council discussion noted the SEPA comment deadline (the transcript references July 21) and that staff and consultants working through an interlocal agreement would prepare an official city response separate from the committee’s submission. The council also directed that the committee’s letter be distributed to council prior to release.
Next steps: The airport advisory committee may submit its memos to the SEPA public record, and the city’s formal comment package (prepared with consultants and legal review) will proceed through the interlocal agreement process. Council members asked for suggested corrections to be provided promptly so the committee can incorporate them before the filing deadline.
