News

Seattle Republican Association

Seattlerepublicans.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Aug. 1, 2011

Contact: Mary Strow

Seattle Republicans' new group to advocate for more effective approaches to city's challenges

Seattle, WA - The Seattle Republican Association (SRA) is a new organization which will focus exclusively on policy issues affecting the quality of life in Seattle. Its mission is to advocate for positions it believes will make Seattle a better place to live, but which are routinely ignored or dismissed by policymakers.

The group was founded by a number of longtime Seattle Republican activists and leaders. Its board members and advisors include past King County GOP chairman Michael Young, current and recent city GOP legislative district chairs including Andy MacDonald and Ross Marzolf, former state legislator Warren Peterson, former U.S. Dept. of Labor official Walter Liang and Washington Federation of Republican Women director Kristi Brown.

The SRA founders came together out of concern that elected officials' handling of many critical issues shows a disconnect from the needs of many of the city's residents, particularly families with children and people who work outside of government:

  • On basic transportation, the city is spending astonishing amounts of money on bicycle projects that serve only a tiny fraction of residents, while putting off basic road maintenance and other safety improvements.
  • The city's parking policy makes shopping and dining in certain neighborhoods prohibitively expensive, motivating customers to take their business elsewhere.
  • The Mayor and Council are considering only two unpopular and irresponsible proposals to replace the Viaduct: an unaffordable tunnel which is already $400 million in the hole, and the surface gridlock option which would wreak havoc on the Port and other job creators. The SRA agrees with the plurality of Seattleites who say that repairing/replacing the Viaduct is the most responsible and effective option.
  • The City Council should be making Seattle a more attractive place for businesses to create jobs. Instead, it is now considering a sweeping mandate to force all companies to offer employees personal paid leave. Many Seattle businesses already struggling in the recession economy could never afford to offer their employees this exact benefit; they would have to either leave town or go out of business, with more Seattle residents losing their jobs. If we want to bring more jobs to Seattle, city government can't be micromanaging companies out of existence.

In the months ahead, the Seattle Republican Association will continue to respond to the city leadership’s counterproductive and harmful proposals, offering sensible alternatives to improve mobility and make Seattle a more attractive place for businesses to create jobs and for families to raise their kids.

For more information, visit the SRA website at http://seattlerepublicans.org.

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