Tacoma City Council Study Session on Connect Tacoma Levy - April 14, 2026
Tacoma City Council Study Session on Connect Tacoma Levy - April 14, 2026
On April 14, 2026, the Tacoma City Council held a study session focused on an update from the Public Works Department regarding the proposed Connect Tacoma Safe Streets and Sidewalks Levy. The presentation covered the accomplishments of the 2015 Streets Initiative, lessons learned from the failed 2025 levy proposal, community engagement efforts, and the framework for a new 10-year levy to be placed on the August 4, 2026 ballot.
Discussion Items
- Background on 2015 Streets Initiative: Public Works Director Curtis Kingsalver reported that the 2015 initiative, which included Proposition A (sales tax) and Proposition 3 (gross earnings tax and property tax), raised $202 million from voters plus $30 million in city funding. Through aggressive grant matching, the city secured $144 million in grants, enabling a total investment of $358 million in completed projects, far exceeding the original $325 million goal. Over 6,000 blocks of residential streets were improved (exceeding the 5,600-block commitment). Key benefits included eliminating half-street reconstructions, partnering with utilities and schools, and passing every audit.
- Lessons from 2025 Proposal: Joe Franco, special assistant to the public works director, explained that the 2025 levy failed because the proposed 2% gross earnings tax and 25-cent property tax lacked a defined duration, community awareness of the 2015 initiative was lower than expected, and voters wanted a sunset. Feedback emphasized a focus on arterials, safety, traffic calming, and improved connections.
- Community Engagement: A 23-member Community Levy Committee was formed, representing labor, business, community organizations, disability advocates, and public partners. The city also held a Connect Tacoma listening session on April 2, 2026, with over 100 attendees and more than 120 comments, plus one-on-one conversations with stakeholders.
- Proposed Levy Structure: The Connect Tacoma Safe Streets and Sidewalks Levy would raise approximately $320 million over 10 years ($200 million from the levy, $90 million in grants, $30 million in partnerships). It includes three investment themes: Better Neighborhood Streets ($85 million for residential maintenance plus safety improvements), Safer Streets for Everyone ($85 million for arterial projects and grant match), and Improved Connections ($40 million for sidewalks, trails, and connections to schools/parks/transit). The property tax increase is $0.20 per $1,000 assessed value ($8.46/month for an average home) and a 1.5% gross earnings tax on utilities ($1.97/month), totaling $10.43/month. Seniors and people with disabilities qualifying for existing property tax relief would be exempt from the property tax portion.
- Council Questions and Comments: Deputy Mayor Bushnell praised the focus on missing link sidewalks and safety, and confirmed the levy is a replacement for the expiring 2015 measure with the same rates. Councilmember Diaz asked about inclusion of curb cuts, ADA accessibility, and tree canopy; Curtis Kingsalver confirmed these are covered under the arterial and improved connections categories. Councilmember Palmer raised concerns about ballot language using “increase” versus “replacement”; the city attorney explained legal constraints on ballot titles. Councilmember Hines questioned why the partner contribution estimate remained at $30 million despite cost escalation; Kingsalver noted they are being conservative. Councilmember Rumbaugh highlighted the need to fill gaps when environmental services do stormwater projects, and the director confirmed the new levy would address those opportunities. Councilmember Sidalga asked about the exemption program; staff did not have an immediate answer but promised to follow up. Mayor Ibsen and Councilmember Hines commended the community engagement and the restitching of communities through complete streets.
Other Business
- Roll call was taken: Deputy Mayor Bushnell, Councilmembers Diaz, Heinz (present), Palmer (absent), Rumba (present), Sidalgay (present), Scott (present), Walker (absent), and Mayor Ibsen (present).
- Deputy City Manager Alison Griffiths announced three proclamations for the evening's regular meeting: Black Walnut Week (April 13–17), Cambodian Genocide Awareness Remembrance Week (April 12–18), and Sexual Assault Awareness Month (April 2026).
- Mayor Ibsen and Councilmember Sidalga reported on a delegation trip to China to commemorate the 55th anniversary of Ping Pong diplomacy and discuss trade partnerships, noting the participation of Lincoln High School's flag football team.
- The council voted to convene to executive session under RCW 42.30.110(1)(g) to review the performance of a public employee, not to exceed 30 minutes.
Key Outcomes
- No formal vote was taken on the levy during the study session. Director Kingsalver stated he would bring a proposal to council that evening to put the Connect Tacoma Safe Streets and Sidewalks Levy on the August 4, 2026 ballot.
- The proposed levy is a 10-year measure with the same tax rates as the 2015 initiative, aiming to raise $320 million.
- Councilmembers expressed broad support for the framework and emphasized the importance of clear communication to voters, accountability through a sunset, and continued grant matching.
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon. I'd like to call to order the study session of April 14th, 2026. First, we're going to start with our roll call. Deputy Mayor Bushnell. Present. Councilmember Diaz? Here. Councilmember Heinz. Councilmember Palmer. Absent Councilmember Rumba? Here. Councilmember Sidalgay? Here. Councilmember Scott? Here. Councilmember Walker, absent. Mayor Ibsen. Here. We're going to start with our only briefing item today, which is uh connected to Coma, an update from uh our uh public works department starting with the Director Curtis Kingsalver. Go ahead. Not sure if I'm on yet or not. Oh, I am? Okay. Thank you, Mayor, Deputy Mayor, members of the council. So we have a presentation up. Since we're up and running here. So I'm going to apologize up front. We've got quite a bit to cover today, so we'll go as quickly as we can. I'll try not to talk fast, which I do naturally, but I'll try to talk as clearly as I can. So we'll go ahead and next slide, Joe. So just for agenda to give you an idea of what we're going to talk about today. Too many. So I'm going to start out with a little bit of background regarding the 2015 Streets Initiative, really about what it was, what we believed it would raise, and how we committed to spend those revenues. Then I'll talk a little bit about the 2015 streets initiative accomplishments, what we did and what we did raise. Joe's going to go into some lessons learned from the 2025 initiative that didn't pass. He's going to talk a little bit about our community engagement efforts that we've been underway for the last few months. How we want to invest those dollars. And then I'll close a little bit about you know what that is for voters and what we're proposing. So let's start with 2000. Actually, I'm going to start with 2014. So many of you may not remember maybe you probably do. In 2014 was the first time we went out for a ballot initiative. It did not pass. But we did learn a few things at that time. Number one, uh we learned it was actually too small. People at the time wanted us to go bigger. They wanted us to do something that they could visibly see improvements. Um but they also told us uh very loud and clear that they wanted us to improve residential streets. That was their biggest focus. That was where they felt the biggest need was, and so what you what became the 2015 streets initiative was a focus on residential streets.
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