Mike Salsbury/The Olympian
Workers rappel from the Capitol dome Monday as they try to assess the impact of Wednesday's earthquake. The assessment should be complete by the end of the week. The Senate met in the Cherberg building Monday, but House leaders are seeking a temporary space where all 98 members can gather. Lawmakers are considering limiting the agenda because of time constraints brought on by the quake.

Steve Bloom The Olympian
Third House Message Center Supervisor Joyce Dudley stacks boxes from her basement office Monday as she waits for a car to transport everything to a temporary workplace housed in a leased duplex several blocks from the Legislative Building.

Gavel falls, but not at Capitol

Senate holds full session in hearing room

PATRICK CONDON, THE OLYMPIAN

OLYMPIA -- The state Legislature slowly got back to business Monday as members and staff cleaned offices left a mess by last week's earthquake and legislative leaders began planning for what could be a long stretch locked out of the Capitol.

Senate and House leaders are bracing for the possibility that they may be doing business out of their respective office buildings for a while.

"At this point it's possible we could be in here the rest of session," said Senate Majority Leader Sid Snyder, D-Long Beach, minutes after the full Senate adjourned from a session held in a large hearing room in the Cherberg office building.

And many lawmakers are at least considering the idea that the session's agenda should be limited, considering the disruption the earthquake has caused.

Officials with the state Department of General Administration continued to evaluate the structural stability of the Capitol. Marsha Tadano Long, the director of General Administration, said they'd like to complete the assessment by the end of the week.

Legislators "need to know what to expect for the following week, and further out," Long said.

But she wouldn't speculate when Capitol occupants might be able to get back into the building.

Senators traded chandeliers and German marble paneling for fluorescent lights and plaster walls as they met in their temporary quarters.

Several senators took time out on the Senate floor to thank legislative staff for their response to the earthquake.

The mood was light and several senators joked about their new surroundings. Sen. Jim Hargrove, D-Hoquiam, pointed out that the shutdown of the Capitol makes it harder to get food.

"I have a point of inquiry," Hargrove said to Lt. Gov. Brad Owen, the Senate's presiding officer. "Where's the cafeteria?"

"Follow your nose, Senator," Owen retorted.

The Senate also amended its rules to allow policy committees one final day to hear bills. The deadline was supposed to be last Wednesday, the day the earthquake hit.

Snyder said the Senate will meet regularly this week, partly to make up for losing two days last week, and sessions are likely this coming weekend as well.

The state House of Representatives got off to a slower start.

Co-Speaker Frank Chopp, D-Seattle, did gavel the body into session for about 30 seconds -- with no other members present -- simply so Monday would count as a session day. The House's O'Brien office building took a harder hit in the quake and was still being fixed up Monday.

The full House won't meet in session until at least Friday, Chopp said.

"We've got twice the members, and less space, than the Senate," Chopp said. "Logistically, it's more of a problem for us."

If General Administration keeps them out of the Capitol building, Chopp said, they'll probably have to knock down a wall between hearing rooms A and B in the O'Brien building to hold a floor session.

In the meantime, Chopp said House fiscal committees will meet all week to review spending bills.

He said the lost time will likely result in some bills falling off the radar screen.

"Clearly there are big issues still to be addressed," Chopp said. "Some of the lesser bills may not be on the table anymore because of the earthquake."

As legislative leaders struggled to figure out how to keep the session moving, General Administration officials and engineers worked to figure out when they can reopen the Capitol.

Long listed five major concerns that must be addressed before they can let people back into the building:

-Pieces of stone have dislodged from the dome and are hanging loose. Today or Wednesday, workers will mount scaffolding and erect a wooden support next to the loose stone to shore up the lintel that it helps hold up. Once the temporary support is mounted, General Administration will set out to permanently fix the loose piece.

-The ceilings of the House and Senate chambers have not yet been determined to be stable. Workers are assessing the ceilings this week.

-Ten of the columns that ring the Capitol dome are out of plumb. While they don't pose an immediate threat of falling, General Administration Senior Property Manager Andy Stepelton said the department needs to decide how they'll be fixed before letting people back into the building.

-Large pieces of marble inside the building have fallen and shattered, and Long said General Administration must determine how it will be replaced, if at all.

-The chains of several chandeliers broke and are held up by safety wires. Long said the largest chandelier, which hangs over the rotunda, does not have a safety wire, though the chain links are thicker, but it will still have to be evaluated.

By Wednesday or Thursday, the ceiling inspections should be complete, and the structure to shore up the broken piece of the dome should be in place, Stepelton said. Figuring out how to permanently fix the broken piece will be the major factor in determining when the building is habitable again, he said.

"The condition of the dome is driving the whole discussion," Stepelton said.

On the web:

Status of State Buildings.

Access Washington.

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