Tune in to hear new District 2 Council Member Eddie Lin break down the latest council dynamics, the future of the city's housing strategy, comprehensive planning efforts, public safety issues in District 2, along with his thoughts about the Mayor Katie Wilson administration ... and more.

Our editor is Quinn Waller.

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Mayor Katie Wilson unveiled her police CCTV camera plan on Thursday, which she immediately acknowledged "will please no one," according to Publicola.

The plan introduces a partial and temporary halt to the expansion of CCTV cameras across the city, allowing for a months-long audit of camera protocols with assistance from New York University's Policing Project. Despite the pause in expansion, the mayor is allowing new cameras to be installed in the stadium district before the World Cup, which she stated will only be activated if there is a credible security threat. Furthermore, Wilson will retain the 62 existing police cameras in areas like downtown, Aurora Avenue, and the Chinatown International District, exempting only a camera near a reproductive health clinic.

This plan immediately raises a number of questions for Seattle Nice: Is this a political “capitulation” by Wilson, as Erica argues, in an attempt to counter the perception that she is too far left? Does it represent an effort to “split the baby,” as Sandeep suggested, a move reminiscent of former Mayor Harrell’s tendency to try to please all sides and ultimately satisfying none? Or is it, as David suggests, a pragmatic effort to allow limited use of CCTV surveillance, balancing legitimate concerns about potential misuse against urgent safety concerns?

Our editor is Quinn Waller.

Send us a text! Note that we can only respond directly to emails realseattlenice@gmail.com

Thanks to Uncle Ike's pot shop for sponsoring this week's episode! If you want to advertise please contact us at realseattlenice@gmail.com

Support the show

Your support on Patreon helps pay for editing, production, live events and the unique, hard-hitting local journalism and commentary you hear weekly on Seattle Nice.

This week Jon Scholes, President and CEO of the Downtown Seattle Association (DSA), joined us to discuss the state of downtown. He pointed to positive momentum towards economic recovery and the dream of a “24/7 city,” with so many people moving downtown, but also warned of challenges including the high office vacancy rate. Other topics included:

• Jumpstart payroll tax: Debate over whether the outcome has been more positive or negative for Seattle.
• Residential Conversion: Why converting office buildings to apartments is complicated and expensive, and what can be done.
• Job Market Outlook: Scholes highlighted the fact that downtown Seattle is losing jobs while Bellevue is growing employment.
• Crime: Crime is significantly down in the commercial core but has increased in Belltown and the ID.
• Commuting trends: Scholes said people are still choosing transit, rideshare, or walking over cars, mostly because employers have maintained or increased their investment in employee transit passes.
• Transit: Light rail ridership has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, and train service is improving.
• Homeless Solutions: Scholes spoke about the need to scale up the "gold standard" model for dedicated outreach and enhanced shelters.
• Overdose Rates: Fatal and recorded overdoses in the downtown area are trending downward.
• City Spending: Should success be measured by increased spending or results? Not much debate about this.
• Convention Center: Is it all one big boondoggle?
• Police Cameras: More debate about the use of public safety cameras, only this time it’s Erica v Jon.

Our editor is Quinn Waller.

Send us a text! Note that we can only respond directly to emails realseattlenice@gmail.com

Thanks to Uncle Ike's pot shop for sponsoring this week's episode! If you want to advertise please contact us at realseattlenice@gmail.com

Support the show

Your support on Patreon helps pay for editing, production, live events and the unique, hard-hitting local journalism and commentary you hear weekly on Seattle Nice.