From the National Center for Biking and Walking, about the shake-up reported earlier this week:
PETE LAGERWEY DISMISSED AS SEATTLE DOT PED/BIKE PROGRAM COORDINATOR By Bill Wilkinson, NCBW Executive Director
At this week’s TRB meeting in Washington, DC, I was stunned by the news that the Seattle DOT (SDOT) has removed Pete Lagerwey from the manager’s position he has held for over 20 years and assigned him to a more limited set of duties as a “Ped/Bike Planner.” At the same time, another member of the small ped/bike office staff was reassigned to the SDOT sign shop! It is not clear what prompted these actions.
As virtually everyone in any way involved with bicycle and pedestrian programs in the U.S. knows, Pete is one of — if not the premier — planner working on these issues. Over the years, he has helped lead the City of Seattle to a well-earned status as having one of the best ped/bike programs in the country. The City’s many outstanding accomplishments have Pete’s stamp all over them. So, this sudden act by the Seattle DOT is of great concern. Have pedestrian and bicycle affairs become such big issues that we should expect to see such precipitous actions affecting those of us in the profession? I sincerely hope not. Additionally, the NCBW has another, related concern: we selected Seattle as the host city for Pro Walk/Pro Bike 2008.
Notwithstanding a broad base of support from the Seattle community for the City’s bid for the conference, it was Pete’s leadership and his program’s accomplishments that prompted us to select Seattle. What now? In a 22 January note to Grace Crunican, SDOT Director, I wrote, “I was planning a trip to Seattle in mid-February to meet with the local host committee and to formally kick off planning for the conference. Now, I’m not sure it is appropriate to move forward for the time being.”
I have not heard back from Grace, so I am writing to the City today to postpone the meeting until such time as City officials meet with us to explain what is going on, what we can expect, and to — we hope — reassure us that the City is committed to hosting the conference and that Pete will continue to lead the City’s efforts in this regard.
We’ll keep you posted.
Pro-Walk Pro-Bike is one of the nation’s leading conferences for bike advocates. It occurs every two years (last year it was in Madison). Perhaps this a chance to bring it back to Portland?
