Tag Archives: Renton

News

‘Our Community Has a Hole’: Family and Friends Mourn the Loss of Mahamadou Kabba, Man Slain in Renton Shooting

by Lauryn Bray

At 1 p.m. on Jan. 12, beloved family man and father of five, Muslim community leader, and ride-share driver Mahamadou Kabba, 35, was shot in Renton during a string of shootings that later killed him and seriously wounded two other men. Kabba and Sami G. Mebrahtu, 30, were both shot multiple times and subsequently taken to the Harborview Medical Center, where they both underwent surgery. A third victim, Leonard Walker, sustained gunshot wounds to his right thigh, right hip, left hip, and right wrist, but did not require extensive treatment. The shooter, Mamadou Aliou “Lee” Diallo, 32, was arrested in Tacoma and booked into the King County Correctional Facility at 2:40 p.m. With these acts of violence, Diallo had ripped apart the lives of several unsuspecting families.

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News

Renton Wins Governor’s Award for New Business and Residential Transit-Oriented Plan

by Jadenne Radoc Cabahug

In early November, the City of Renton’s Rainier/Grady Junction Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Subarea Plan won the Governor’s Smart Communities Smart Vision Award, which awards local leaders for city planning projects intended to support communities, sustainable infrastructure, and the economy. It is the ninth project from Renton to win this award since the award program began in 2006. 

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Community

South End Spots to Check Out for Seattle Restaurant Week

by Mark Van Streefkerk

Seattle Restaurant Week (SRW) is the city’s largest biannual dining promotion celebrating our local restaurant industry and diverse culinary communities. Taking place in the spring and fall, SRW typically features over 200 restaurants, pop-ups, food trucks, caterers, and other small food vendors, all with special curated menus, often at varying price points (from $20 all the way up to $65). Menus feature some of their most popular dishes or some best-kept secrets. 

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News

Seattle and Renton Land Use Plans Win State ‘Smart Communities’ Awards

by Ben Adlin

Seattle and Renton were among a handful of Washington cities to win awards this month for municipal planning projects intended to improve quality of life in the state. 

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News

Grant Program Cleans Up Contaminated Sites for Affordable Housing

by Agueda Pacheco Flores

King County is home to more than 500 contaminated sites, but now at least two will get cleaned up for a second chance as affordable housing. 

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Community

Renton Entrepreneur Brings Sea Moss to the South End and Beyond

by M. Anthony Davis

When Dannett Cage, owner of Beyond Bodi, began a Black-owned business selling skin care and edible products infused with sea moss, it was in response to increasing requests from friends and family to try, and often buy, her homemade products.

“I was really only making it just for my family, like my mom and my household,” Cage recalls. “Then, I made some on a Friday evening as I was going out for a girls’ getaway that weekend, and everyone tried it and couldn’t believe the energy it gave them.”

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News

King County Conservatives Discredit Progressive POC Candidates as ‘Defund’ Extremists

by Nathalie Graham

Earlier this month, King County Councilmember Kathy Lambert faced repercussions for a racist campaign ad she funded. The ad depicted her colleague, Councilmember Girmay Zahilay as a socialist puppeteer pulling the strings of Sarah Perry. Perry, Lambert’s opponent, is bringing Lambert the first real fight for a seat she’s held comfortably for 20 years. 

Lambert’s ad also associated Zahilay, who is not a socialist, with Vice President Kamala Harris and Seattle City Councilmember Kshama Sawant. After public outcry, Lambert resigned from the King County Council committees she chaired.

In the age of Trump and social media-fueled polarization, “conflict and sensationalism” sells, says Zahilay. Politicians have pivoted to “divisiveness and scare tactics” to “rile up their base.” Zahilay sees this trend emerging across all levels of politics, local King County elections included. 

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Voices

Growing South King County Pride Events Show Queer Communities We’re Welcome 

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by Allison Fine

The term “Gay Pride,” coined by gay rights activist Thom Higgins in Minnesota, has become the most common way to articulate the many celebrations held during this month every year. In the U.S., Prides and festivals are usually held in the month of June to commemorate the anniversary of the 1969 Stonewall riots, a series of demonstrations by the New York City Queer community protesting a violent raid of the Stonewall Inn and the ongoing brutality they were experiencing at the hands of the New York Police Department. Today, Pride Month is a time to celebrate the increased visibility of and continued desire for equality and self-affirmation for the LGBTQ+ community.  

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News

County Council Candidate Ubax Gardheere Centers Campaign Around Lived Experience

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by Chamidae Ford

Ubax Gardheere recently announced her plan to run for King County Council District 9, which includes portions of Renton and Bellevue as well as Maple Valley and Enumclaw. The single mother describes herself as a “bureactvist” who is looking to shift the King County Council to a more cooperative community. 

She currently oversees the Equitable Development Initiative (EDI) program as the equitable development division director for the City of Seattle Office of Planning and Community Development. She’s also the governance group member for Communities of Opportunity, a board member of A Regional Coalition for Housing, and a member of Fund 4 the Frontlines committee. Gardheere has also served on the advisory board of Seattle Foundation’s COVID-19 Response Fund and is a former board co-chair of Social Justice Fund NW.

Gardheere has experienced homelessness, poverty, a mental health crisis, and inaccessibility to resources throughout her life. These obstacles guide Gardheere’s platform and influence the policy she seeks to implement.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

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News

Metro Reveals Plans for RapidRide I-Line Stations in South King County

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by Stephen Fesler

(This article was previously published at The Urbanist and has been reprinted with permission.)

A new Metro RapidRide line is coming to Auburn, Kent, and Renton in 2023 to provide more than just more frequent and faster bus service. King County Metro also is planning new station standards at stops and making lasting improvements to streets. In the latest project update, Metro unveiled four types of station standards depending upon expected ridership and station access needs, which will dictate which improvements will be rolled out.

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