Seattle Chinatown-International District Businesses File Claims Over September Planned Outages, Disclosed November 4
Business owners in Seattle's Chinatown-International District disclosed on November 4 that they have filed claims against Seattle City Light over a planned outage that ran for four consecutive nights in September, forcing shorter hours and spoiled inventory and catching many off guard because of inadequate notice. According to the utility, at least 12 claims have been filed for lost revenue, inventory, wages and other losses; customers are encouraged to file by November 30 but may do so within three years.
On October 28, the CID Vision Group and other community organizations met with Seattle City Light representatives at Tabletop Village to debrief the September outages. The utility said customers at at least 20 affected properties received advance notice, but community groups said the door-hanger notices were not accessible to the district's many older residents who do not read English. A resident's video showed the area around Donnie Chin International Children's Park near Maynard Avenue South and Seventh Avenue South in darkness during an outage night.
Tuyen Than, executive director of the Chinatown-International District Business Improvement Area, said parts of Japantown were dark on the first night while diners were still eating at restaurants such as Chengdu Memory. Michael Itti, executive director of the Chinese Information and Service Center, noted that some buildings house a hundred residents who do not speak English and depend on caregivers, making door hangers ineffective. Seattle City Light pledged that future planned-outage door hangers will be printed in 10 languages, including Chinese, with a language-assistance phone number.
(Source: South Seattle Emerald)
Source: South Seattle Emerald
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：西雅图市政厅（GSM 固定图库）。 / Photo: Seattle City Hall (GSM image library).
