Seattle Metro News and Events for May 19-25, 2016

County Council Adopts Fall Transit Updates

Riders in South Seattle wanted Metro Transit service along the Martin Luther King, Jr. corridor to serve the International District. The Metropolitan King County Council gave its unanimous support to fall service changes for Metro Transit that reflect the desire to provide consistent bus service in this vital corridor.

The service changes adopted by the Council are the culmination of input from residents living along the MLK corridor, which extends from Rainier Beach to the Mt. Baker Transit Center. With the arrival of Link Light rail, bus stops in the corridor were reduced and while the frequency of service along the corridor was maintained, the frequency of service on a route that took riders into the International District was reduced and eventually eliminated.

Area residents contacted the Council and Metro Transit to see about increasing frequency of bus service and for a return of bus service that went into the International District. Metro worked with the community to develop routes that would meet the need of South Seattle passengers.

The result of the public input is Metro revising the routes serving riders in South Seattle, Tukwila and Georgetown:

• Replacing Route 38 with a revised Route 106, which would connect the International District and Renton via the Mt. Baker Transit Center and the Rainier Beach Link Station,
• Extending the Route 107 to connect the Beacon Hill Link Station with the Rainier Beach Link Station and then continue to the Renton Transit Center,
• Revising the Route 9X, converting the Rainier Beach to Capitol Hill route to peak-only service,
• And increasing service frequency on the Route 124 connecting the Tukwila International Boulevard Link Station with Downtown Seattle via Georgetown and SODO.

These changes will increase frequency of bus service to Beacon Hill, Georgetown, the International District, Renton, Skyway, Tukwila and Southeast Seattle.

Along with the service changes is South Seattle, the Council also approved the addition of commuter service in East King County with a new peak service rout. Route 243 will provide northbound morning peak and southbound afternoon peak service connecting Overlake Transit Center in the south and the Kenmore Park & Ride in the north via Redmond Transit Center, Totem Lake Transit Center, Kingsgate Park & Ride, UW Bothell and the Bothell Park & Ride. This route would use partnership hours earned by the City of Redmond for making RapidRide B Line infrastructure investments.

Chinatown-International District Receives Grant From Port of Seattle

Chinatown-International District Business Improvement Area (CIDBIA) is proud to announce it has been awarded $7,100 from the Port of Seattle. Port of Seattle has awarded almost $100,000 to 13 recipients to support tourism in Washington.

These funds will support website redevelopment and cooperative advertising in WHERE Magazine and WHERE Guestbook. The goal of the project is to promote Chinatown-International District as a destination neighborhood for tourists and visitors, and drive business to local restaurants, retail stores and other attractions the neighborhood has to offer.

More information about Port of Seattle and other grant awardees can be found here: http://www.portseattle.org/Newsroom/News-Releases/Pages/default.aspx?year=2016#590

The Chinatown-International District Business Improvement Area (CIDBIA), founded in 1994, works to improve and promote Seattle’s Chinatown-International District. In addition to providing sanitation services, the CIDBIA coordinates several of the neighborhood’s major events including Dragon Fest, and the Lunar New Year Celebration, in addition to Night Market and Autumn Moon Festival. The CIDBIA also advocates on behalf of its constituents with respect to a host of public policy, planning, and quality‐of‐life issues. For more information about the Chinatown-ID BIA, log onto www.cidbia.org.

DFI Warns About Payday Loan Collection Scam

The Washington State Department of Financial Institutions (DFI) warns consumers about providing sensitive bank account or personal information on the telephone to callers that initiate contact with the consumer. Consumers are urged to verify license status and the identity of any party prior to giving the financial institution, company, or individual any nonpublic personal information, such as social security number or bank account number or access.

DFI received a complaint indicating that a representative claiming to represent an entity identified as “Inside Capital” called a consumer and informed her that she needed to pay on a 2009 payday loan. The representative threatened to contact the consumer’s place of employment and to file a lawsuit. In addition, the representative had the consumer’s social security number and address. The consumer reported never having obtained a payday loan.

The following information was contained in the report:

• Phone numbers used or referenced in the call: 1-855-205-6357; 1-877-746-4334
• Those claiming to represent Inside Capital are not licensed by DFI nor registered to conduct business in Washington State by the Department of Licensing, the Department of Revenue, or the Secretary of State.

For more Seattle and Portland area events, see the Community Calendar.