by Elizabeth Turnbull
After leading hundreds of protesters inside Seattle City Hall last night, Councilmember Kshama Sawant held an open mic where she emphasized the need to tax Amazon and defund the police, an agenda that some Black protesters felt co-opted the Black Lives Matter mission. Continue reading Sawant and Protesters Take Over City Hall Tuesday Night, Demand Amazon Tax
by Erica C. Barnett
As the Seattle Police Department announced it was removing all “sensitive items” from the East Precinct building on Capitol Hill in anticipation of another long night of protests, the Seattle City Council adopted a number of strongly worded resolutions demanding action earlier Monday afternoon.
Among other actions, the council unanimously signed two letters calling, respectively, for the demilitarization of SPD and for Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes to withdraw the city’s lawsuit against inquest reforms adopted by King County in 2019. Continue reading “You Can’t Fix What’s Fundamentally Broken.” Seattle City Council Considers Defunding Police Department
by Elizabeth Turnbull
Healthcare professionals and protestors marched from Harborview Medical Center to Seattle City Hall at 9:30 a.m. yesterday to protest racial violence and demand Washington elected officials declare racism a public health issue.
“We have to not just accept progress, but demand change!” said Dr. Estell J. Williams, Assistant Professor of General Surgery and Executive Director of the Doctor For A Day outreach program through the UW School of Medicine and one of the individuals who spearheaded the march. Continue reading UW Medicine Demands Elected Officials Declare Racism and Police Violence a Public Health Issue
by Erica C. Barnett
(This article previously appeared on The C is for Crank and has been reprinted with permission)
Nearly two years after King County first announced that it planned to open a modular shelter for people experiencing homelessness on county-owned property in Interbay, the project is almost ready to open for a new purpose: Providing non-congregate shelter for between 45 and 50 homeless men over 55 from the St. Martin de Porres shelter, run by Catholic Community Services. The modular buildings, which are essentially trailers with windows, fans, and high-walled cubicles to provide privacy and protection from disease transmission between the four men who will share each unit, were originally supposed to be dorm-style shelters housing up to eight people on beds or cots.
Continue reading As County Opens More Non-Congregate Shelter to Prevent Spread of COVID-19, City Plans to Remove Two More Encampmentsby J Seattle
(This article includes reporting by Capitol Hill Seattle Blog)
Seattle has announced its largest ever annual round of city funding for affordable housing with $110 million going to help start 13 projects across the city including five new buildings in Rainier Beach, Beacon Hill, and Othello that will create 861 affordable units in South Seattle. Continue reading Seattle Announces $110M for New Affordable Projects Including Five in District 2
by Aaron Burkhalter
City staffers from the Human Services Department, community members, and activists say that Mayor Jenny Durkan sidestepped the city’s own procedures and race-equity process in the appointment of Jason Johnson as the director of the Human Services Department (HSD).
by Carolyn Bick
With the exception of Councilmember Kshama Sawant, the Seattle City Council almost unanimously passed its $5.9 billion 2019-20 budget.
The nine-member council voted 8-to-1 in favor of passing a budget that included increases in funding for police and the city’s homelessness outreach program, as well as funding for a new program aimed at low-acuity mental health response. The budget largely reflected what Mayor Jenny Durkan originally proposed, with minor changes.
Continue reading Seattle City Council $6 Billion Budget Reflects Incremental Change
by Aaron Burkhalter
Councilmember Mike O’Brien took a stroll through a new solution to homelessness and the city’s lack of affordable housing.
It was a short walk — the length of a long trailer. At just a couple hundred square feet, the tiny cottage has enough room for a small table for two — maybe three — people, a downstairs queen-sized bed and an upstairs loft where children could sleep. It has a kitchen, indoor plumbing, and electricity, but it sits on a trailer hook up that is secured to the ground in the backyard of a home in Kent.
by Geov Parrish
Sept. 23, hundreds packed Seattle City Council chambers and an overflow room for their first chance to offer public testimony on Mayor Jenny Durkan’s proposed 2019-20 budget, and potential council amendments to it. Some 140 people and groups signed up to offer testimony in what turned out to be a frequently emotional four-hour marathon that hopefully left council members — at least those who weren’t looking at their phones all evening — a lot to think about. To her credit, Councilmember Sally Bagshaw chaired the hearing with a notably fairer and more restrained hand than council President Bruce Harrell employs in contentious council meetings.
Continue reading OPINION: Passionate Testimony Brightens a Bleak Seattle Budget
by Susan Fried
Thousands of people lined the streets around Seattle Center for a parade and filled Key Arena for a rally Sunday, September 16, for the WNBA Champion Seattle Storm. The team traveled a short distance around the Seattle Center in trolley cars to the Key Arena, where they were greeted by the adoring fans and a few dignitaries including Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan, Seattle Police Chief Carmen Best, and Washington Senator Maria Cantwell. Six-thousand people filled Key Arena and heard from the players and owners, watched highlights from the season, and cheered wildly when veteran Sue Bird said that she would be back next year for her 17th season.
Continue reading Photos: Storm Fans Celebrate Third WNBA Title
