Port of Tacoma: This year's election may decide its fate

If there is any question about what is at stake in this election, look no further than the Port of Tacoma. This year’s election will decide whether we keep the family wage, blue-collar jobs that have defined our city for decades, or whether we turn our port into a park.

There are those in our community who believe this is is an either/or proposition; you are either pro-environment or pro-business. This was evident by the spectacle that occurred in front of the Tacoma City Council during the hearing on interim regulations.

As one speaker lamented the potential of losing a whale to starvation, I empathized with those in our community who face hunger on a daily basis due to a lack of good, family-wage jobs.

The threat of interim regulations must be taken seriously. Businesses and labor have united to fight against these regulations due to the harm of unintended consequences.

We need to avoid extremes and elect moderate candidates who represent the “sane center” — those who will work with business, labor and the environmental community to develop balanced policies that promote prosperity and responsible growth.

This story was originally published October 19, 2017 at 5:06 PM with the headline "Port of Tacoma: This year's election may decide its fate."