• E.S.
• Republican Representative Maureen Walsh of Walla Walla, who gave the best speech at Wednesday's house vote on gay marriage—and was one of only two Republican house members to vote yes.

Gay marriage approved by the Washington State Legislature! Prop 8 again found unconstitutional! (With implications for this state's coming marriage referendum!) And... Santorum!?!?

It's been another big week, and we'll be wading through all of it—and taking your calls—this morning on Weekday.

That's 94.9 FM starting at 10 a.m.

• Kelly O

"We're envisioning a two-day celebration, involving a parade of people hand-carrying the pole from the waterfront and raising it on Sunday, and then a smaller, more intimate celebration of John's life on his birthday," says Connie Sue Martin, a lawyer associated with the John T. Williams Totem Pole Project.

But now that plan is in jeopardy of falling apart. Martin says that the memorial fund is roughly $60,000 short of its $160,00 fundraising goal, which includes $15,000 stipulated by the city to ensure the pole's future maintenance. "If we need that cash on hand, if that's a sticking point with the city, the project's a no-go," she explains. "With all the events planned for the Seattle Center for its 50th anniversary year, we have a very small window of opportunity for raising the pole this year."

"So we're in a big fundraising push right now," she adds.

In light of their lack of funds, private firms have stepped up and offered their pro-bono services to get the pole installed on schedule. "We have an architectural firm working on site design and permitting, and a construction company willing to dig a telephone-pole-sized hole for the totem's base," Martin says. "We're hoping the city will work with us on this."

Martin is scheduled to meet with city and Seattle Center officials at 3:00 pm today to ask for a concession from the city that would allow them to continue fundraising for the endowment once the pole is raised.

Last week, The Stranger was cc'd on a furious email chain involving residents of the Cascade Neighborhood, who were seemingly irate and ready to sue members of the Cascade Neighborhood Council over (from what I can tell) changes to the council's by-laws and $1,700 in funds that some residents believed were being mismanaged or misappropriated. It was a little hard to follow, as emotions were heated and there were email accusations of people being "CRAZY, CONSPIRACY THEORY PEOPLE, INTERWINING THINGS, NON PARTICIPANTS," and other people chiming in with "I'm confused," and "wow Sean The Stranger thanks!" (when we were finally added to the clusterfuck of emails).

I tried to follow up with several members on the chain and didn't hear back. Now today brings the news that the entire Cascade Neighborhood Council has resigned via email:

The purpose of this memorandum is to announce the resignation of the full Executive Committee of the Cascade Neighborhood Council, provide context and reasoning for the resignation, direct questions to the intermediary, and allow personal resignation from each officer.

We came to the Cascade Neighborhood Council because we care about our neighborhood and the council was a great opportunity to contribute in a positive way. At first this effort was focused on having a neighborhood center; after that we utilized new forms for fulfilling our mission of creating and strengthening connections between the people of the neighborhood, without the use of a primary facility.

A whole lot more after the jump...

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• E.S.
• Cheers in the state senate gallery after the marriage bill passed, 28-21, on Wednesday night.

Gay marriage! Cheryl Pflug! Porn in libraries! Mitt Romney's singing voice! Komen kraziness! It's been quite a week, and we'll be processing it all—plus taking your calls—this morning on Weekday.

That's 94.9 FM, starting at 10 a.m.

The volcano and the city. The image is perfect.

As we all know, Pioneer Square has been suffering from a nonfatal brain injury (or something) for years. But Mayor Mike McGinn would like you to know that city officials are busy nursing it back to health. Take it way, Mike:

Yesterday we met with the Pioneer Square Revitalization Committee and community members to report back on our progress so far and discuss ongoing challenges. We reported on recent accomplishments and projects launched in Pioneer Square:

North Lot Project: Introducing more market rate housing to Pioneer Square has been a priority in the community for decades. The long-planned North Lot redevelopment project will produce 513 units of housing, just in the first phase. Our Office of Economic Development (OED) is investing $1.7 million in equity and $7.2 million in low-cost debt financing via New Market Tax Credits to help move the project forward.

First Hill Streetcar: Access to high-capacity transit has long been a neighborhood priority as well. Recently the City confirmed that the new First Hill Streetcar will serve Pioneer Square with a stop at South Jackson and 2nd Avenue South. Construction begins later this year.

King Street Station: ...Three construction phases have been completed, including: station roof replacement and clock tower repair; Jackson Plaza rebuilt; and renovations to Amtrak’s new operations and administration areas. Next up is building and clock tower seismic retrofit, mechanical/electrical/plumbing systems distribution, and select interior and exterior restoration including the restoration of the ornamental plaster in the main waiting room. Construction began in March 2011 and will be completed in spring of 2013.

More on how Pioneer Square's gettin' healthy over here.

• E.S.

Snow, snow, snow. And so the question will be asked: What grade would you give the mayor? Also: The SOPA protest, the Kastama announcement, and Rob McKenna on gay marriage and women's health.

All of that, plus your calls, on this morning's Weekday. (10 a.m. on 94.9 FM.)

Responding to a barrage of criticism, city officials gave a reprieve today to a homeless meal program that feeds hundreds of people a week under the downtown freeway.

Officials will no longer force Operation Sack Lunch (OSL) to move to an indoor location by February 29—a move the project's leaders had insisted would shut them down—and have instead given the program six-months to find a new location with indoor and outdoor components. "We had gotten feedback from the community and we wanted to take that feedback into consideration, so we thought it was necessary to do the six months," says Danette Smith, director of the Seattle Human Services Department.

The decision—both to boot OSL from the freeway and the extend the timeline—came from Smith, who had reportedly described the current conditions under the freeway as "undignified, inhumane, and disrespectful," according to Operation Sack Lunch's website.

"I used those terms to describe how I felt at times in my own personal journey and the way other people may feel," Smith explained today. "I just ask that we be mindful of the impact it has on the people receiving the services."

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The latest from the Emergency Operations Center:

With ice and snow continuing to cause challenging travel conditions, the City of Seattle is encouraging people to get home before dark if possible. After dark, icy conditions may worsen and ice will become more difficult to see.

Sunset today comes at 4:50 p.m., so plan accordingly. The rest of the release is in the jump:

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Sent by Slog tipper Sarah, who assures me it's not photoshopped:

Closer look in the jump:

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Slog tipper Valerie writes:

I was just walking up Queen Anne Ave. N., watching the sledding festivities on what may be the steepest street in Seattle. It's closed to traffic today, obviously.

I just watched four Seattle police officers tape off the hill, right under a happy gathering of sledders—mostly college students and people in their twenties. I asked a couple of the officers why, and was told "one of my chiefs ordered it." He wouldn't tell me which one.

This doesn't seem like the most sensible policing tactic ever to me—more like a Grinchy city liability pro-forma sort of thing. I told the officers that, if they can give feedback to their commanding officers, the public safety hazard re: sledding on QA Ave today is at the bottom of the hill, not the top. I saw one young daredevil sled right in front of (admittedly very slow) traffic at the notoriously confusing intersection of QA Ave and Roy at the bottom of the hill. Yellow police tape down there could dissuade that sort of behavior—most sledders are using common sense and there is a certain amount of peer pressure for people not to act like idiots.

Sending the police out to establish rules that no one sees the sense in following is weird messaging. I'd bet a lot of money that the sledders will come back in a few hours when the police are gone.

I have a call in to the SPD asking if this is, in fact, happening on Queen Anne—and if so, what the purpose is. My guess is it has something to do with this.

• E.S.
• Close, but not exactly what the City of Seattle's talking about.

Earlier today the Seattle Department of Transportation was bragging about taking on mother nature. Now, for its afternoon activity, it's taking on human nature:

Seattle deployed a fleet of 30 plows, de-icing trucks, and graders to remove snow from approximately 750 miles of priority roadways in the city today. Residents are discouraged from traveling to help keep roads open and safe for emergency vehicles, transit and snow removal.

Road crews continue to focus on plowing and salting major arterials and transit routes for emergency vehicles and buses. If you must drive, be prepared with tire chains, warm clothes and sturdy footwear. Be aware of the potential for icy or slippery conditions.

On residential streets, residents should be cautious about accumulated ice and snow which will not clear until temperatures rise above freezing for an extended period.

Melting snow can overwhelm storm drains by filling them with ice, leaves and accumulated street debris. Clogged drains can result in flooding and hazardous road conditions. In Seattle, there are about 80,000 storm drains — far more than city crews can clear quickly. Residents are asked to clear storm drains on their streets if it can be done safely.

Please use caution if sledding today. In 1989, a 12 year old girl was killed in a sledding accident in Magnolia.

Discovery Park, Camp Long, Carkeek Park and Seward Park are open for snow play.

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A program offering free meals to homeless people outside is in jeopardy. From the Operation Sack Lunch website:

Mayor McGinn and his new Seattle Human Service Director from Atlanta, Georgia, Danette Smith, have decided to close this invaluable resource to our entire community on 02/29/2012. The reason for this closure? Ms. Smith has told the outdoor meal providers that although we are well meaning, it is undignified, inhumane, and disrespectful to serve hungry people in an outside setting. These citizens, most of whom are unable to access a nutritional meal with more conventional means, will be forced to go back to dumpsters for leftover food. Ms. Smith has not accepted our invitation to serve with us at the site, nor will she speak with the people whom she will be denying lifesaving food.

OSL reportedly feeds about 200 homeless people a day and 6,000 different people per year. They're asking for your help contacting the mayor's office and city council so the city will reconsider. There's more from them here.

UPDATE at 5:00 PM: I've sent two requests this afternoon to the mayor's office seeking comment, but I haven't heard anything back. I'll post more when I hear more.

Slog tipper Adam writes:

I figured y'all would want to see this video of Seattle drivers doing a terrible, terrible job in the snow yesterday. Filmed on First Hill at Boren and University.