Puyallup's Public Safety Building Proposition Failing Again

PUYALLUP, WA — It's looking like Puyallup's Public Safety Building bond is going to fail for a second time in less than a year.

In the fall general election, and again in the recent special election, Puyallup voters were asked to weigh in on Puyallup Proposition 1, which would set aside roughly $83 million over 25 years to build a new public safety building. The building would house the police department, the local jail and the Puyallup Municipal Court.

Supporters of the project argued that current public safety buildings are out of date, including the current Puyallup police building, which was built in the late 1960s.

In both elections, local voters mostly agreed. In the general election last fall, the proposition received support from 59.3 percent of voters. The problem: in Washington, bond measures require at least 60 percent "yes" votes and a 40 percent voter turnout.

Hoping the failure was a fluke, Puyallup put a similar measure on the February 2022 ballot, but it appears that history is going to repeat itself: As of the latest tally, the measure has just 56.55 percent approval, and is on the road to failure, despite majority approval, for a second time.

While the vote is not set in stone just yet, it's extremely unlikely that the proposition will be able to pull off a win. Just 400 ballots remain uncounted in all of Pierce County— not enough to push past the 60 percent threshold, even if all were from Puyallup voters who unanimously voted yes. The election is set to be certified on Friday, Feb. 18.