The Seattle City Council voted 8-1 on Monday in favor of approving agreements that will allow the Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement project to move forward, overriding the Feb. 17 mayoral veto by Mike McGinn.

The council voted on the state Route 99 agreements between the city and the WSDOT on the 10-year anniversary of the Nisqually earthquake, an event that served as a wake-up call for the region to develop a replacement solution for the damaged and seismically unsafe viaduct.

“Today’s actions are the outcome of a passionate debate that our region has engaged in through these past 10 years. While there have been differing opinions, the contributions of thousands of thoughtful citizens have brought us to this solution,” said council President Richard Conlin.

McGinn has sought to stop the plan of a bored tunnel to replace the viaduct at every opportunity, as has the group Seattle Citizens Against the Tunnel.

The citizen group collected more than 27,000 signatures in an effort to put a measure on the August ballot to let voters decide if it should be illegal for city right-of-way property to be used to build a deep-bore tunnel.

The City Council said the agreements ensure that the Seattle Department of Transportation, Seattle Public Utilities and Seattle City Light are active partners on the project while the tunnel contractor finalizes designs and fine-tunes its construction plans.

McGinn, who has long been concerned about the fact that Seattle would be on the hook to pay cost overruns on the project, has repeatedly said the risks associated with the tunnel are too great.

Previous Stories: February 7, 2011: City Council Votes To Move Forward On Tunnel February 1, 2011: Group Hopes To Get Viaduct Replacement Measure On Aug. Ballot January 6, 2011: Work On New 1st Ave. S. Viaduct Onramp Beginning October 30, 2010: Gregoire: Alaskan Way Viaduct Replacement Proposals Come Within Budget September 24, 2010: McGinn, Conlin Face Off Over Tunnel Project Document July 27, 2010: Tunnel Debate Between Seattle Mayor, City Council Rages On