Public Affairs Videos

With the Seattle Parks Department facing a $267 million maintenance backlog and the parks levy set to expire this year, parks advocates disagree over whether to support renewal of the levy or to replace it with a Metropolitan Park District (MPD), which could provide a larger and more stable source of funding. What is a MPD and who would operate it? Are Seattle`s parks being "loved to death" as some advocates claim? We visit Tacoma – home to the oldest MPD in the state – to see what lessons Seattle can learn. Joining us in studio are Seattle City Councilmember Sally Bagshaw, who chairs the Council`s Select Committee on Parks Funding; Acting Seattle Parks Superintendent Christopher Williams; and MPD opponent Don Harper, who chairs the parks committee for the Queen Anne Community Council.