Describing Archives: A Content Standard

PO Box 94728 600 Fourth Avenue, Floor 3 Seattle, WA 98124-4728 Phone: 206/233-7807 Email: archives@seattle.gov http://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives

Finding aid encoded by Shannon B. Lynch and Julie Kerssen 2004 Finding aid written in English. Finding aid based on DACS ( Describing Archives: A Content Standard). Seattle Municipal Archives

PO Box 94728 600 Fourth Avenue, Floor 3 Seattle, WA 98124-4728 Phone: 206/233-7807 Email: archives@seattle.gov http://www.seattle.gov/cityarchives

4681-02 Sibonga, Dolores Dolores Sibonga Subject Files 1979-1990 4.4 cubic ft. 11 boxes Correspondence, memoranda, draft legislation, reports, testimony, and notes regarding important issues in the City Council work of Dolores Sibonga, 1979-1990. Collection materials are in English. Biographical Note

Born in 1931, Dolores Sibonga grew up in Seattle's International District. She received her B.A. in journalism in 1952 and a law degree in 1973, both from the University of Washington. She was the first Filipina-American admitted to the Bar Association in Washington State. Prior to attending law school, Sibonga worked in radio and television in Spokane and Seattle, including producing documentaries, and publishing a community newspaper. After receiving her law degree, Sibonga served as a public defender and later was Deputy Director of the Washington State Human Rights Commission.

Sibonga was appointed in 1978 to fill Phyllis Lamphere's seat until a special election was held. She did not run in the special election, but was subsequently elected to Council for the term beginning in 1980. She chose not to stand for reelection in 1992. While on Council she chaired four committees: Personnel and Property Management (1978, 1980-1981), Parks and Community Resources (1982-1983, 1988-1989), Finance (1984-1987, 1990-1991), and Labor (1986-1987). During her tenure on the City Council, Sibonga championed minority hiring by the City, increased expenditures for parks, Japanese-American reparations, and maintaining the local character of Seattle Center during a proposed redesign of the facility by the Disney Corporation.

After her Council term expired, Sibonga resumed her law practice and served on the Horse Racing Commission and Human Rights Commission.

Correspondence, memoranda, draft legislation, reports, testimony, and notes concerning issues before City Council while Sibonga was a council member. The collection contains a significant volume of materials relating to the Pro Parks levy. This $188 million bond issue would have financed park improvements and acquisitions of land for new parks. The levy appeared on the ballot in 1982 and was defeated. Also documented in Sibonga's files are discussions about the site of the Martha Washington School. When the school closed, the city purchased the property and eventually turned it into a park. Other materials in the collection cover the planning for the new downtown Seattle Art Museum, which opened in 1991, funded by a 1986 levy.

Additionally, the materials document Sibonga's work on issues relating to Seattle Center, including redevelopment of the Fun Forest amusement area, as well as the Walt Disney Company's 1988 proposal to revitalize the Center, which was rejected after citizens protested Disney's plans to commercialize the campus and demolish the International Fountain, Center House, and other structures. Other topics covered in the collection include the Seattle Mariners, Japanese-American reparations, the proposed Ackerley Arena, and the Nuclear Freeze Resolution.

Records are open to the public.

[Item and date], Dolores Sibonga Subject Files, Record Series 4681-02. Box [number], Folder [number]. Seattle Municipal Archives.

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the online catalog. Researchers desiring materials about related topics, persons, or places should search the catalog using these headings.

Seattle (Wash.)--City Council Martha Washington School for Girls (Seattle, Wash.) Fun Forest (Seattle, Wash.) Seattle Center (Seattle, Wash.) Seattle Art Museum Seattle Mariners (Baseball team) Seattle (Wash.)--Politics and government Antinuclear movement--Washington (State)--Seattle Japanese Americans--Washington (State)--Evacuation and relocation, 1942-1945 Parks--Washington (State)--Seattle Government and Politics Women Seattle Women city council members--Washington (State)--Seattle

The following section contains a detailed listing of the materials in the collection.

4681-02-02 Dolores Sibonga Subject Files 1979-1990 1/1 Ackerley Arena 1990 1/2 Ackerley Arena: Ackerley Communications of the Northwest, Inc. 1990 1/3 Ackerley Arena: Central Staff 1990 1/4 Ackerley Arena: Correspondence, Middle of the Road 1990 1/5 Ackerley Arena: Correspondence, Opposition 1990 1/6 Ackerley Arena: Correspondence, Opposition 1990 1/7 Ackerley Arena: Correspondence, Positive 1990 1/8 Ackerley Arena: Correspondence, Positive 1990 1/9 Ackerley Arena: Executive Proposal 1990 1/10 Ackerley Arena: Initiative CF-297827 1990 1/11 Ackerley Arena: Mailing List 1990 1/12 Ackerley Arena: New Seattle Arena Presentation 1990 1/13 Ackerley Arena: News Clippings 1990 1/14 Ackerley Arena: News Releases 1990 2/1 Ackerley Arena: Ordinance and Agreement 1990 2/2 Ackerley Arena: Public Hearing, April 24 1990 2/3 Ackerley Arena: Resolution 1990 2/4 Ackerley Arena: Save Seattle Center Downsizing Coliseum Petitions 1990 2/5 Ackerley Arena: Sibonga Form Letters 1990 2/6 Ackerley Arena: Tobacco/Liquor Advertising in Ackerley Dome 1990 2/7 Japanese-American Reparations: Japanese-American Community 1983-1984 2/8 Japanese-American Reparations: News Clippings 1982-1984 2/9 Japanese-American Reparations: Redress for City 1983-1984 2/10 Japanese-American Reparations: Redress for City 1983-1984 2/11 Mariners 1985 2/12 Mariners 1985 2/13 Mariners 1985 3/1 Mariners: Chamber Promo Material 1981-1985 3/2 Mariners: Chronological Note File 1985 3/3 Mariners: Conlon Study (Masters Thesis) 1982 3/4 Mariners: County/Mariner Original Agreement 1976-1985 3/5 Mariners: Financial Statement 1983-1985 3/6 Mariners: Issues Analysis, Major League Baseball Commission 1985 3/7 Mariners: Kingdome Impact Study 1979 3/8 Mariners: Major League Baseball Commission, Report 1985 3/9 Mariners: News Clippings 1985 3/10 Mariners: Original Material 1985 3/11 Mariners: Outline of Questions 1985 4/1 Mariners: Proposal Working Papers 1985 4/2 Mariners: Special Review Panel Mailing List 1979-1990 4/3 Mariners: Support of ML Baseball in Seattle, Summary Report 1985 4/4 Mariners: Testimony 1985 4/5 Martha Washington Site 1978-1986 4/6 Martha Washington Site 1978-1988 4/7 Martha Washington Site 1978-1989 4/8 Martha Washington Site 1980-1984 4/9 Martha Washington Site 1982-1988 4/10 Martha Washington Site 1982-1988 5/1 Martha Washington Site 1983 5/2 Martha Washington Site 1983-1984 5/3 Martha Washington Site 1984 5/4 Martha Washington Site 1984-1987 5/5 Martha Washington Site 1984-1987 5/6 Martha Washington Site 1988 5/7 Martha Washington Site: Adaptive Reuse Project 1983-1984 5/8 Martha Washington Site: City Attorney Opinions 1984-1987 6/1 Martha Washington Site: Demolish Buildings Support 1988 6/2 Martha Washington Site: Kubota Gardens, Correspondence Between Parties 1986-1987 6/3 Martha Washington Site: Kubota Gardens, Exchange Agreement 1986 6/4 Martha Washington Site: Kubota Gardens, Legislation 1982-1987 6/5 Martha Washington Site: Kubota Gardens, Staff Memos 1986-1987 6/6 Martha Washington Site: Lorig Proposal, Support Letters 1988 6/7 Martha Washington Site: Newspaper Clippings 1982-1987 6/8 Martha Washington Site: Proposed Park, PPG Com Meeting & Site Study Final Report 1980-1988 6/9 Martha Washington Site: Public Comments/Hearings/Articles 1985-1987 6/10 Nuclear Freeze 1981-1982 7/1 Nuclear Freeze: Issue Binder 1980-1982 7/2 Nuclear Freeze: News Clippings 1981-1982 7/3 Nuclear Freeze: Nuclear Arms Control Material 1982 7/4 Nuclear Freeze: Nuclear Technology 1979-1982 7/5 Nuclear Freeze: Nuclear Weapons Issues Handbook 1982 7/6 Nuclear Freeze: Physicians for Social Responsibility 1980-1982 7/7 Nuclear Freeze: Resolution 1982-1983 7/8 Nuclear Freeze: Resolutions 1982 7/9 Nuclear Freeze: Roundtable Discussion Materials 1982 8/1 Nuclear Freeze: Roundtable Project 1982 8/2 Pro Parks Levy: Capital Improvement Program Environmental Impact Statement 1982 8/3 Pro Parks Levy: City Council Memoranda 1982 8/4 Pro Parks Levy: Correspondence 1982 8/5 Pro Parks Levy: Correspondence, King County Council 1982 8/6 Pro Parks Levy: Correspondence, Parks Board 1982 8/7 Pro Parks Levy: Correspondence, Public 1982 8/8 Pro Parks Levy: Correspondence, Walter Hundley 1982 8/9 Pro Parks Levy: Issue Binder 1981-1982 8/10 Pro Parks Levy: King County Legislation 1982 8/11 Pro Parks Levy: News Clippings 1979-1982 8/12 Pro Parks Levy: Notes, Alan Osaki 1982 8/13 Pro Parks Levy: Notes, Dolores Sibonga 1982 9/1 Pro Parks Levy: Notes, Memoranda, Reports 1981-1982 9/2 Pro Parks Levy: Official File 1982 9/3 Pro Parks Levy: Ordinance Drafts 1982 9/4 Pro Parks Levy: Parks and Community Resources Committee Meetings 1982 9/5 Pro Parks Levy: Preliminary Report (July) 1981 9/6 Pro Parks Levy: Public Hearing (May) 1982 9/7 Pro Parks Levy: Public Hearing, Sign-up Sheets (May) 1982 9/8 Pro Parks Levy: Reference File 1981-1982 10/1 Pro Parks Levy: Working File 1979-1982 10/2 Seattle Art Museum: Chamber of Commerce 1986 10/3 Seattle Art Museum: Debt Financing 1986 10/4 Seattle Art Museum: Executive Branch Correspondence 1986 10/5 Seattle Art Museum: Kreielsheimer Foundation 1986 10/6 Seattle Art Museum: Law 1986 10/7 Seattle Art Museum: Mayor's Proposal 1986 10/8 Seattle Art Museum: Museum Development Authority 1986 10/9 Seattle Art Museum: Museum Development Authority, Museum Cooperation Agreement 1986 10/10 Seattle Art Museum: News Clippings 1986 10/11 Seattle Art Museum: News Releases 1986 10/12 Seattle Art Museum: Public Hearing Sign-Ups 1986 10/13 Seattle Art Museum: Sam Smith Proposal 1986 10/14 Seattle Art Museum: Seattle Times Poll 1986 10/15 Seattle Center: Disney Plan 1988 10/16 Seattle Center: Disney Plan, Citizen Correspondence 1988 10/17 Seattle Center: Disney Plan, Correspondence 1988 10/18 Seattle Center: Disney Plan, Council Decision Schedule 1988 10/19 Seattle Center: Disney Plan, Disney Study Advisory Group 1979-1990 11/1 Seattle Center: Disney Plan, Mailing List Advisory 1988 11/2 Seattle Center: Disney Plan, Memoranda 1988 11/3 Seattle Center: Disney Plan, Newspaper Articles 1988 11/4 Seattle Center: Disney Plan, Public Hearings 1988 11/5 Seattle Center: Disney Plan, Seattle Center Coalition 1985-1988 11/6 Seattle Center: Fun Forest, Lawsuit 1982-1983 11/7 Seattle Center: Fun Forest, Request for Proposal 1983 11/8 Seattle Center: Fun Forest, Request for Proposal 1983 11/9 Seattle Center: Fun Forest, Request for Proposal 1983 11/10 Seattle Center: Long Range Master Plan Approaches, Phase II Report 1988 11/11 Seattle Center: Northwest Plan 1988