There was nothing lowkey about Mayor Bruce Harrell’s State of the City speech Tuesday. He hired Benaroya Hall, brought along much of the city top brass, the Garfield High School Band and Drumline, the Central Area’s Dragon and Lion Dancers — and his own optimistic view of Seattle’s recent progress.
The mayor contrasted where Seattle stood when he took office three years ago with the city’s condition today. His backwards look recalled Seattle parks and sidewalks crowded with tents, crime hitting an all-time high and the city’s downtown in disarray. Today, by Harrell’s estimate, Seattle is back on track. The police department is hiring more than it is losing, violent crime is down, more unhoused people are accepting shelter, and the city is working on a “Downtown Activation Plan.”
Harrell spoke of defending against Trump administration threats aimed at sanctuary cities. He pledged that Seattle will stand up for the peoples’ rights and values, serving all residents regardless of immigration status. He assured the audience that Seattle police would not cooperate in any way with immigration enforcement.
Halfway through his presentation, Harrell teased the audience, saying, “I have an announcement to make.” At that point, he pulled a basketball out from under his lectern, leading to an anticipatory hush. Would he reveal that the city’s much-lamented SuperSonics basketball team would be returning? But, no, it was a cruel jest, resolved by his words: “I was only joking.”
The moment was a stunt gone awry, not soon forgotten.
Getting back to his rosy assessment of the city’s trajectory, Harrell outlined ambitious plans for the year ahead. These included one year’s faster delivery of light rail to Ballard and West Seattle, breaking ground on a new “world class” memorial stadium at Seattle Center, providing help to small businesses, and expanding CARE, the city’s third public safety department.
There was more. The mayor foresees at last implementing the Fort Lawton housing plan and redefining Aurora Avenue. He’s anticipating renewal of the levy that funds the city’s much admired free pre-K and community college programs. Harrell spoke of a new office of the waterfront, talking about something he’s calling an “Emerald City Coast.” He endorsed downtown “walkability,” advocating plans for (someday) a traffic-free Pike Place in the Public Market. (Never mind that this is a controversial issue, with pros and cons long debated by the Market constituencies.)
Harrell announced the city will revisit his One Seattle Day of Service on Saturday, July 12, exactly one year ahead of the city’s hosting the World Cup in 2026. The mayor went on to promise he would work to streamline the time needed to secure building permits. At the same time, he acknowledged Seattle is “a city of neighborhoods” — neighborhoods that he said deserve to be preserved while, at the same time, the city approves an updated comprehensive plan siting four and six-unit dwellings throughout.
That Harrell will be on the ballot for reelection this fall likely wasn’t forgotten during the upbeat Benaroya gala. But, although the State of the City may have seemed much like a mayoral report card, the fall election went unmentioned, while the mayor worked hard delivering an abundance of good news.
What also went unmentioned were such contentious issues as the city’s struggles over a $250-million budgetary shortfall last fall, the city’s affordability crisis, the downtown exodus, and the fact that residents of the nearby Belltown neighborhood have been complaining about unsafe streets.
“PEACE IN OUR TIME!”
This reminds me of a town hall-ish meeting last September in Magnuson Park, a neighborhood where a youngfather of a newborn had just been shot and killed at 3 a.m, near his front porch, after he went outside to tell loud park partiers to hold the noise down. The killer was a juvenile. At the meeting, councilmember Maritza Rivera, the city attorney and city staffers all refused to take questions or comments. Each stood up and delivered a spiel essentially heaping praise on themselves, Mayor Harrell seems to be doing the same, continuing to insist that Seattle crime isn’t all that bad. I’m not sure I agree; last weekend, three young people in a crosswalk at 47th and University Way were struck down by an out of control driver, a juvenile driving a stolen car. Keep talking, Mayor Harrell, about your progress. We all know those tent dwellers are simply moving out of downtown into other neighborhoods.
Living near the U District, as I do, I know that city government is failing. Thanks, as always for writing, Jean Golden, you are a treasure.
Frankly, I am sick and tired of this city being cleaned up for outsiders and special events, whether it is FIFA, the NCAA Finals, some big baseball game, or whatever other sportsball thing might come to town. Why the hell don’t we clean up the city for the people who live and pay exorbitant taxes toward?
Despite the Mayor’s declaration that crime is down, the fact is people are not getting responses if they call 9-1- 1 (I was hung up on THREE times in 2024). We are often yelled at by 9-1-1 operators to “just go online and file a report for your insurance company”, which immediate says to crime victims that the City of Seattle does not give a damn about how they were victimized, how much it might have injured them, and the like. Going online to file a report, the online reporting tool kicked me out with the message, “this crime cannot be reported online and requires you to report to an officer”, with instructions to call the non-emergency number. But calling the non-emergency number 10 times over the next 7 days, I was on hold for an hour, at which point the caller is cut off. Meaning that the crime data is simply not captured. And for people in high crime areas, they are already grappling with high property insurance due to the crime in their area, they are wary about reporting a crime to the insurance company (unless the loss is many thousands) simply because they can’t afford the deductible (typically $1,000), and are worried about both premium increases and being canceled.
Anyone coming into the downtown core is assaulted by graffiti on everything. If one glances at our previously gorgeous, award-winning Freeway Park, the lid that was constructed in 1976, one sees blackberry brambles making much of the park impassable (but at least hostile to tent placements — maybe that’s why Parks hasn’t fixed this!); nevertheless, somehow, taggers managed to get in and spray paint their tags all over. Likewise, the Mercer Street exit that leads one to all those tech corporate buildings in South Lake Union, and to some of Seattle’s most iconic places remaining at Seattle Center. But here, the pressure isn’t from graffiti, drugged out zombies, or the homeless, but rather pending bad policy and development decisions that will reduce access or eliminate the majesty of the Pacific Science Center and other World’s Fair centerpieces. Another “world class” stadium”? Meh.
What has the mayor done for Chinatown/Internation District, except completely screw up light rail planning for the area? Has anything significant been done in Little Saigon? Or for that matter, Third Avenue? No, no, and no. Fix that, and then tell me how great you are doing.
Then, the minute I arrive in Bellevue …. the gang tagging, tents, bent-double drug addicts passed out on the sidewalk, gone. How’s that rehab, not arrest, plan working out Mr. Mayor? Another thing skewering crime statistics: they don’t typically include juvenile violent crime, which is staggeringly high in Seattle.
Absolutely correct, Trish!
And the minute I arrive in Bellevue, I see no gang tagging, sidewalk tents, or passed out addicts on the sidewalk (how’s that rehab plan working out, Mr. Mayor?). I don’t see juveniles committing horrific crimes.
The dude caught selling drugs, this week, in Cal Anderson park, is from Kirkland.
This messes up my mind. I would leave this drug infested city and move to Kirkland but I can’t afford to.
This dude cracked the code. Now I just have to convince my wife to deal.
PS I support our Mayor and have hopes for the City Council. It takes a little time to turn the S.S. Seattle. AND The Sonics are coming back dammit.