Seattle Forward

Another Win for Anti-Gang Efforts

Another big win on Friday for our city's effort to get gun-violence gang members off our streets.  Read the story here.  The earlier victory is described here. 

Finally!

Here's some interesting news (Download News release Aurora Aug 25 2009) from the Mayor's office this afternoon.  It's about time, is all I have to say.  These motels have been magnets for crime and contributed to neighborhood degradation for years and it's good to see the City taking unified action against the owners. 

I've visited these hotels and walked nearby neighborhood streets with community leaders on several occasions.  Neighbors have been urging action like today's for a very long time.  We have problems with other hotels in the south end as well as this piece in The Stranger documented last week.  I'm working on new legislation that will provide the City with additional tools to deal with chronic nuisance properties like the Aurora hotels, legislation that will enable the City to move sooner to cure nuisance activities and stand with neighbors to protect their neighborhood.

Big Win for Anti-Gang Efforts

Here's some good news on the gang front from today's Seattlepi.com.  This case, now wrapped up with the sentencing of the defendant, is a good example of regional law enforcement cooperation, especially between Seattle police and federal prosecutors. 

The City is spending several million dollars this year to help young people involved in gangs or tempted to join.  Our efforts our focused on counseling, job training, job placement, mentoring and tutoring, and a wide range of social services.  But the City has been consistent in drawing the line when guns and violence are involved . . . no tolerance.  Pick up a gun and you will face severe consequences as Eric Sanford now realizes. 

The Business of Business Competition

Our city's tax revenues continue to decline and we probably won't see an uptick until late next year at the earliest, perhaps not even until 2011.  Clearly, the stagnant economy is taking a toll, but will our economic competitiveness environment stand in the way of robust growth once the economy begins to pick up steam? 

This question is brought into sharp focus by a study published last week by the Washington Research Council (WRC) that shows Seattle suffering a net job loss since 2000 compared to adjacent cities.  You can get the study here: Download Seattle's Lost Decade.  (The report covers private employment only and is based on data from the Puget Sound Regional Council which uses Washington State employment records as the basis of their analysis.  Some data suppression is involved, so read the data criteria carefully for an accurate picture of the job counts.)

Between 2000 and 2008, Seattle's population grew by 39,000, according to the WRC study.  During the same time period, we lost almost 7,900 private sector jobs.  So, one might conclude that people like living in Seattle but don't necessarily work in the city; a reverse commute environment compared to historic patterns for our region.  Of course, jobs are the foundation of our economic stability and growth, so we want jobs and residents.

During the same 2000 to 2008 period, some of our surrounding cities experienced job growth.  

Read the study for interesting perspective on why Seattle's job growth has been negative compared to our population growth; WRC concludes that it's all about the cost of doing business in the city.  They present some compelling facts worthy of discussion.

This is an important discussion in times like these where city revenues are falling sharply and we face some tough decisions.  It's entirely possible that the Council will be forced to terminate city employees, perhaps a couple of hundred, and eliminate many projects in order to balance our budget.  It's not going to be an easy time, for sure.

Watch These Videos!

If you want to catch a glimpse of what traffic flows might be like along Alaskan Way and through the new deep-bore tunnel watch these two videos.  One is a driver's perspective traveling northbound, and the other offers a southbound perspective. 

The Alaskan Way surface street and the replacement deep-bore tunnel are part of a major project that will transform how traffic moves through the center city, including Spokane Street and the Mercer Corridor Project.  These projects must be viewed in their totality, not as individual elements.  They are integrated and well justified.

Let's keep our eyes on the end result we desire:  improved transportation flows, including for freight mobility, improved bicycle and pedestrian access, and reconnecting the central waterfront with the rest of downtown. 

Compare Your Neighborhood; Get FREE Trees

Here's a great visual image of the city's tree canopy: Download 2007 Tree Canopy Map

Download the PDF image and see how your neighborhood stacks up against the rest of the city.  The City's goal is to rebuild our tree canopy to at least 30%. 

You can also get FREE trees for your neighborhood, plus a FREE fruit tree for your own yard through a new City program.  Check it out here, but beware of the pending deadline of August 21.  

More on the Carrot and Stick

A lot has happened since last Thursday night's "call-in" of individuals responsible for a great deal of the open-air narcotics trafficking along 23rd Avenue in the Central District. 

One of the "dealers" the police and local prosecutors offered a second chance to was arrested as the weekend began because he had returned to the street to sell drugs.  The Seattle Times has that story here.

Some have suggested to me that this new approach amounts to nothing more than an admission of failure in our efforts to eliminate these open-air drug markets that cause such havoc in our neighborhoods or that we are being "soft on crime."  Not true.  The police have completed their investigations and the criminal charges are ready to file the moment the "candidate" returns to the street to sell drugs. 

When pressed, those who complain about this experiment have nothing to fall back on except for more of the same strategies and tactics that we have been trying for years:  arrest, prosecute, release, arrest, prosecute, release, and on and on.  I'm very proud of Seattle police for their willingness to try something different, a new strategy that recognizes the value of every individual yet unleashes the power of the community to express its disdain for the damage being done by these individuals.

Here is The New Yorker piece on David Kennedy as a PDF.  It is well worth the read.

Drug Policy Formation

Former Seattle police chief Gil Kerlikowske, left, Congressman Jay Inslee, and King County Sheriff Sue Rahr, plus about 30 others, were part of a guided discussion on drug policy on Saturday, August 8 at the Shoreline YMCA.  Inslee called the meeting and it was used to kick-off Kerlikowske's national drug policy discussion; he's going to eight other cities to listen and collect opinions as he crafts positions for the president.  I shot this photo with my iPhone about half way through the discussion.

Carrot and Stick: New Approach to Crime

I had an incredible experience last night. 

Frankly, before I walked into the Langston Hughes Cultural Center, I feared the event might be hokey, a total bust. But by the time I sat down and looked around the room I knew it would be a remarkable event.  Never before done in Seattle, the Drug Market Initiative (DMI) Call-In was dramatic, powerful and profound.

Council Study on Jail Capacity

Seattle should not build its own jail.  That's my conclusion after reviewing an extensive staff study on jail capacity issues.

Our policy staff reports that by 2018 Seattle and our north- and east-county partner cities will experience a capacity gap of over 300 beds for misdemeanants; by 2022, the capacity gap is projected to grow to nearly 500. 

Our study finds we cannot close the capacity gap simply through treatment programs for drug users. We could not do so even by halting all lower-level drug arrests. The reality is that we just don’t arrest that many individuals where the only offense is a misdemeanor or low-level drug felony, and those we do arrest on such charges do not account for many jail days. 

Determining the need for future jail services must be addressed at a regional - not local - level so the public safety requirements of the entire county are addressed. In addition, King County should remain the sole provider of jail services. Why? Because complex factors drive the demand for jail services and these considerations cross multiple jurisdictions. Good planning cannot be done in isolation. Economies of scale considerations are also an important factor to keep in mind.  For these reasons, I firmly believe that Seattle should not build a new jail.

Regional planning can be successful if the county extends the current jail services contract with Seattle and the suburban cities for a minimum of 10 years and then closely partners with all of the cities to put together a solution that will close the capacity gap.

Alternatives-to-jail and even pre-arrest diversion programs should be continued and expanded, as Seattle has effectively done in recent years. These alternatives have merit for many reasons, but play only a part in meeting the jail capacity challenge.

Here are copies of the documents released this afternoon.

Policy Staff Study:  Download Jail Capacity Study 9-8-09

Fact Sheet:  Download 20090806 fact sheet - jail capacity study - final