August advisory vote will test waters on county building decision

The proposed Pierce County General Services Building may be in Tacoma, but the main opposition to the funding has ties to Gig Harbor.

Jerry Gibbs of Let Voters Decide is based in Fox Island. The petition and movement to get a vote on the November ballot began with Gibbs and his group.

“No one thought we would even qualify for the referendum. I had my doubts for awhile,” Gibbs said.

The Pierce County Council voted in February to approve plans for a $127 million building in Tacoma’s Lincoln District neighborhood. Then came a hitch in the works as a group led by Gibbs took issue with the lack of a public process.

In April, the council voted for a non-binding advisory vote in August. It’s a straight up yes or no to gauge public support or lack thereof.

The General Services Building will also spring up again on the November ballot, which makes things a little complex for voters.

The basic idea is the August ballot appearance was submitted by the county and the November ballot measure is a product of Let Voters Decide’s petition.

“November is the binding election which will answer the question of the referendum,” Gibbs said.

The question being, should there even be a new building?

While the August advisory vote is non-binding, it should send a clear message to both county and opposition alike, Gibbs said.

“A vote is a vote and a vote should not be ignored,” he said.

And no matter what, Gibbs said, he stresses that everyone no matter their stance on the building should vote in the primary and vote in the general election.

The primary election is on Tuesday, Aug. 4. Ballots have already been mailed and need to be either postmarked or dropped in the ballot box by that date.

This story was originally published July 30, 2015 at 12:19 PM with the headline "August advisory vote will test waters on county building decision."