Northwest Briefly: Chopp’s Seattle viaduct plan called flawed

SEATTLE — The Downtown Seattle Association said state House Speaker Frank Chopp’s proposal for replacing the Alaskan Way Viaduct is fundamentally flawed.

The association said there’s no market for retail space Chopp wants to incorporate in a mile-long elevated highway. Chopp said renting space would help pay for the project.

A Seattle newspaper reports the city also opposes Chopp’s proposal.

City, county and state transportation agencies are reviewing options for replacing the 55-year-old viaduct.

@3. Headline News Briefs 14 no bold lede-in:Sea-Tac fraud figure says he followed orders

The manager of Sea-Tac Airport’s third-runway project who resigned after a contract fraud report says he was unfairly targeted.

The manager, John Rothnie, told a Seattle newspaper he followed orders and legal guidance from his superiors at the Port of Seattle. He describes his role as a soldier in the middle of the organization.

Resignations from Rothnie and the port construction services manger were accepted Tuesday, and four other officials were suspended and three reprimanded as the port responded to the report.

@3. Headline News Briefs 14 no bold lede-in:Two wounded men not talking to police

Two men who were shot Tuesday night in Seattle are in satisfactory condition at Harborview Medical Center.

Police said they may have been wounded during a car chase but they aren’t cooperating with gang investigators.

@3. Headline News Briefs 14 no bold lede-in:Man dies digging while testing for a utility job

The King County Medical Examiner’s Office is awaiting toxicology tests to help determine the cause of death for a man who collapsed while shoveling sand at a Seattle Public Utilities open house.

The 28-year-old man, Jonathan Falo, was one of 900 people who showed up Saturday to preview testing for 28 apprenticeship jobs involving pipes and drainage.

A utility spokesman, Andy Ryan, said the testing at a training facility included math, reading comprehension and physical endurance.

@3. Headline News Briefs 14 no bold lede-in:School district revises its closure proposal

The Seattle School District has updated its school closure proposal. It no longer plans to close Rainier Beach High School. But eight other schools are on the list, and the district plans to end or relocate some programs to save money.

Changes made at Tuesday’s school board workshop will be discussed at public hearings Monday, Tuesday and Dec. 18. The board will discuss the plans at meetings next month and take a vote Jan. 29 on school closures.

Seattle School Superintendent Maria Goodloe-Johnson said the district must reduce buildings or cut jobs to close a budget gap of as much as $37 million in the 2009-10 school year.

Anacortes: Tame deer killed in neighborhood

Anacortes Police Chief Bonnie Bowers said she’s disgusted by the most recent case of a deer killed by an arrow in a city neighborhood. In this case the body was left; the buck’s antlers sawed off.

In recent months, three deer have been killed illegally in the city limits. The first, shot with a gun, was found in late September. The other two were killed with arrows, the most recent found Friday.

Neighbors said the deer had been seen in the neighborhoods for years and were very tame.

Bowers said she thinks the two cases in which deer were shot with arrows are related.

Olympia: State writing tickets for pollution

Inspectors for the state Ecology Department are beginning to write water pollution tickets at industrial or construction sites with storm water or runoff violations. The tickets carry fines of $500 to $3,000.

The department said tickets are new tool for inspectors to quickly respond to violations at 4,400 sites with water quality permits.

Wenatchee: Apple crop may set a record

This year’s apple crop in Washington is estimated at a record 113 million boxes.

The Wenatchee World reported that the Dec. 1 estimate is 3 percent higher than Nov. 1 estimate. The previous record in 2004 was 105 million 40-pound boxes.

Associated Press