A roundup of this week’s news.
Monday, May 6
The Backlash to Harrell’s Comp Plan Proves We’re All YIMBYs Now
Mayor Bruce Harrell’s proposed One Seattle Comprehensive Plan has been widely panned for not allowing enough housing across the city—and not just by the usual suspects, like PubliCola. State legislators who supported a bill to require all cities to allow housing, including apartments, in more places say Harrell’s plan falls short of their intent. This represents a complete turnaround from just a few years ago, Josh Feit writes—a promising sign that there’s still time to fix the mayor’s plan for housing stagnation.
Tuesday, May 7
Burien Proposes Transitional Housing Ban that May Violate State Law
The Burien City Council is considering legislation that would ban “transitional housing,” including tiny house villages, within 500 feet of parks, schools, libraries, child care centers, and recreational facilities—effectively banning it in most of the city, including the Seattle City Light property where a tiny house village is currently planned. The bill may violate a state law that bars cities from making it impossible to build housing and shelter. The same day the council considered the ban, Burien Police Chief Ted Boe, who’s under fire from city officials, explained w ghy he isn’t arresting people for being homeless.
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Wednesday, May 8
Shakeup on Team Harrell: Budget Director Out, City Attorney’s Former Criminal Chief In
Mayor Bruce Harrell’s budget chair, Julie Dingley, resigned (or was asked to leave) last week just as the mayor and council gear up to address a budget deficit that could climb above $250 million, once unanticipated costs from 24 percent wage increases for police officers go into effect. Dan Eder, Harrell’s policy director, will take over Dingley’s position for now, part of an office overhaul that also includes the appointment of Natalie Walton-Anderson, City Attorney Ann Davison’s former criminal division director, as the mayor’s public safety director.
In an email sent immediately after Harrell announced his scaled-back comprehensive plan proposal, State Rep. Julia Reed (D-36, Seattle) wrote a letter to Harrell and the Office of Planning and Community Development expressing her disappointment that the plan fails to “maximize housing growth.” Without a bold plan for density, Reed wrote, it will be hard for Seattle legislators to advocate convincingly for funds to build housing at Fort Lawton, a long-delayed project that will require state funding to get underway.
Last week, PubliCola reported that SPD union leader Daniel Auderer, who was caught on tape laughing about the death of a 23-year-old student shortly after officer Kevin Dave struck and killed her last year, was appearing alongside another SPD officer at a high-profile conference on traffic safety. In a convoluted blog post that contained no information that contradicted our report, SPD’s media relations division called our report “inaccurate,” saying that he was “not representing” SPD at the conference.
SPD would not tell us why Auderer was appearing on a panel with “Seattle Police Department” listed as the department he was representing or answer other questions we asked them directly about Auderer’s appearance. His panel has since been removed from the conference program.
Thursday, May 9
City Council Bill Cutting “Gig” Delivery Workers’ Pay Moves Forward
Despite overwhelming opposition from delivery drivers, a council committee approved legislation that will reduce “gig” delivery drivers’ minimum wage by eliminating rules passed last year that help drivers pay for gas, maintenance, and self-employment costs such as the employer side of federal taxes and mandatory state workers’ comp insurance insurance. After deducting all those expenses, labor advocates estimate that minimum-wage drivers will earn just over $13 an hour. Council members who voted to repeal the new law said there was no other way to get delivery companies to drop the $5 fee they now append to every order.
Friday, May 10
Downtown Recovery Center Will Give Drug Users New Options After an Overdose
The Downtown Emergency Service Center officially announced a new post-overdose recovery center at its headquarters in Pioneer Square, which will give 20 to 25 people a day a place to rest and recuperate after an overdose and get connected to other services, including medication-assisted treatment. The city will use the rest of $7 million in community block grant funds to help Evergreen Treatment Services build out its campus nearby, including a “fire station” for mobile medical vans.