Monday, September 16
One day before the council sent an unfunded “alternative” to social housing to the February ballot, where it will appear alongside the original proposal to fund permanently affordable, mixed-income housing, Mayor Bruce Harrell sent an email to council members saying social housing raised unspecified “legal issues.” And: King County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay wants the county to look into issuing debt to pay for low-income housing.
Former Community Police Commission Director’s 2025 Budget Slashed Staff Unnecessarily
Cali Ellis, the director of the Community Police Commission, reportedly decided to cut two positions from the CPC’s small staff after being told the city’s police accountability agencies don’t have to make cuts. Ellis, who is technically on administrative leave, is reportedly planning to sue the CPC for pushing her out.
Council Wants to Increase Lateral Police Hiring Bonuses to $50,000 and Make Bonus Program Permanent
Police hiring is on an upswing now that brand-new officers are guaranteed six-figure salaries, but the city thinks even more money will entice people to become cops here. They’re planning to make police bonuses permanent, modify rules so officers can keep some of the money even if they leave within five years, and increase bonuses for officers who come from other departments to $50,000; the money will come from the millions of extra funds SPD always has sloshing around in its budget thanks to unfilled but funded positions.
Tuesday, September 17
The city council forged ahead with its “alternative” to social housing—a plan to put $10 million a year into traditional affordable housing that would need ongoing operations subsidies because, unlike social housing, low-income housing does not include relatively high-income tenants subsidizing lower-income tenants’ rent. The council’s plan would siphon funding from the JumpStart payroll tax, which pays for other affordable housing programs, in lieu of the excess compensation tax that would provide about $50 million a year for social housing.
Wednesday, September 18
Companies like DoorDash spent millions trying to repeal a law that requires them to partly compensate their workers for costs like business insurance, employer-side taxes, and mileage; now, lobbying reports suggest, they’ve conceded defeat. And: As the city council considered a measure that would eliminate design review for housing, hotels, and life sciences buildings downtown, the head of the downtown design review board said he would love to be out of a job.
With Police On Hand, Council Adopts Drug, Sex Work Banishment Zones
Despite plentiful evidence from recent Seattle history that arresting women for “prostitution loitering” on Aurora and banishing people from “drug areas” and “areas of prostitution” are ineffective strategies, the council voted to reinstitute these old, rejected strategies, confidently predicting that the banishment zones and loitering law will “disrupt” drug activity, help people get sober, and teach women they should stop being sex workers. Ten cops were on hand to deal with “disruptions” from the crowd, which occur when the council refuses to let public commenter speak and those people yell in protest.
Department of Public Defense Director Resigns Abruptly
Anita Khandelwal, the longtime director of King County’s public defense department, resigned abruptly (her last day will be October 4), surprising many staff. Her departure comes amid internal debate about the role of DPD and how much funding it needs to keep caseloads sustainable; King County Executive Dow Constantine will release his new budget next week.
Seattle Nice: Will All the New Drug Laws Help Drug Users?
We brought on UW researcher and epidemiologist Caleb Banta-Green to discuss the new Stay Out of Drug Area law, which council members (and Sandeep) claim will reduce addiction by disrupting “open-air drug markets.” Banta-Green explained why strategies that push people around without providing a wide range of treatment and harm reduction options are doomed to fail.
Friday, September 20
The council made the I-137 alternative official in a special meeting, pushing the measure through just under the wire before budget deliberations start. And the council’s land use committee agreed to move forward with the three-year pilot that will end design review downtown.
Agreement Between City, King County Would Allow More Jail Bookings from Across the City
Harrell and Constantine have agreed to a deal that will allow police to send people accused of any misdemeanor, including public drug use, to the downtown jail. The jail has restricted bookings because of short-staffing, but will now allow the city to use up to 135 beds at a time (up from a current average of 75). The jail will also take bookings on any misdemeanor from all over the city; previously, police could only bring in people arrested in the greater downtown area.