City and Sound Transit Agree to End Litigation

The City of Mercer Island and Sound Transit announced that both agencies reached an agreement to end current litigation pertaining to the Mercer Island Transit Integration project. This is after several years of legal dispute. The agreement allows both agencies to avoid costly ongoing legal proceedings, including a trial set for early next year.

This agreement resolves litigation first filed after disagreements emerged regarding an earlier settlement between the two parties. That earlier settlement resolved impacts on Mercer Island from increased vehicle and pedestrian infrastructure needs brought on by East Link and King County Metro station use, and Sound Transit agreed to reimburse the City for $10,050,000 in infrastructure projects and improvements. This new agreement does not change those terms.

Under the new agreement, the City of Mercer Island will pay Sound Transit a total of $2.1 million over two years and end all current legal disputes between the City and Sound Transit.

City Council unanimously approved the new agreement on behalf of the City at the December 6, 2022 Regular Council Meeting, citing the benefits of ending a dispute between two public entities, which frees up resources to focus on transportation and infrastructure projects and improve collaboration as regional partners. Three members of City Council participated in the settlement negotiations along with City staff and legal team representatives.

The terms of the agreement can be found in the CR 2A Agreement.