Jonathan Choe

Breaking City of Burien one step closer to a NO camping ban on public property. Monday evening, the motion passed to have City Manager Adolfo Bailon craft the language of this ordinance, then present it to city council for vote at next meeting. That’s if he can get it done by then. Passionate testimony on both sides. YES VOTES: CM Jimmy Matta, CM Stephanie Mora, Mayor Sofia Aragon, Deputy Mayor Kevin Schilling NO VOTES: CM Cydney Moore, CM Sarah Moore, CM Hugo Garcia Currently, the city only has a no camping ordinance in public parks. Disaster in the Making Burien’s latest out of control homeless encampment is located at the corner of Ambaum Blvd SW & SW 120th St. It’s Read More ›

Will it Make a Difference? First weekend in #Chinatown-ID without the 12th Ave & Jackson St bus shelter. King County Metro (@KingCountyMetro) dismantled it because addicts were using it as a drug den and trash dump. Just to be clear, it is still a functional stop. But on rainy or snowy days, there will be no place to take cover. Meanwhile, it’s good to see Seattle Police patrolling this area. But all the action continues to scatter onto side streets whenever officers show up. I recently spoke to SPD Captain Steve Strand who is one of the main points of contact for the #CID. He says many customers fueling the black market of stolen goods are the Chinese and Vietnamese Read More ›

That’s a Wrap On Tuesday, FAR-LEFT activists threatened to disrupt the Major League Baseball All Star Game (@mlb) with an RV protest in SODO. Instead, Stop The Sweeps Seattle just displayed some banners before the game outside T-Mobile (@TMobilePark) and left pamphlets on car windshields. They also scrawled chalk messages on the sidewalks and plastered “Harrell Horror Show” stickers (@MayorofSeattle) on nearby signs. For whatever it’s worth, they’re also targeting the Seattle City Council. Always interesting conversations and debates with these folks when they take the time to explain their position. The question now, how long until the RV’s and tents return to this part of SODO? What’s the Next Play? Stop The Sweeps Seattle volunteers have been a major Read More ›

Total Chaos Now that the MLB Baseball All-Star Game is over, could we please refocus on the rest of Seattle that is falling apart? The Downtown Activation Plan is virtually non-existent at the corner of 12th Ave & Jackson St in #Chinatown-ID. I have literally documented this part of the city deteriorate for many months. Thursday night was no different. Virtually zero police officers in this area. Trash everywhere. And the mayhem is evident with open air drug use and the black market of stolen goods thriving. Indian American business owner Gurinderjit Purewal just moved in three months ago to start a restaurant called Amritsar Tadkas. But he’s already having buyer’s remorse after he says a deranged individual recently went Read More ›

Update on Tammy Town Private security is now guarding the site of the former homeless encampment off Rainier Ave S. in Seattle, aptly named for Councilmember Tammy Morales (@CMTammyMorales) who was not there to help her constituents for many months. This is private property slated for development. But will remain looking like a WAR ZONE and Third World Country for the next few days. It will take time to remove the trash and remaining vehicles. There needs to be a plan to get in front of these encampments before spiraling out of control. But that remains elusive. On Wednesday, outreach workers with the city, REACH, Salvation Army, and Urban League were on hand trying to track people and get them Read More ›

Homeless Swimming Pool I’ve seen a lot on my beat, but this is a new one. Wednesday afternoon, I went back to check on a NEW DEVELOPMENT at the Shag Arrowhead Senior Apts. encampment in West Seattle. I’ve been tracking this location along Myers Way S. for months now. Some of the campers here have been blamed for thefts, open air drug use, and there’s even been a homicide at this location. But the sight of a new inflatable SWIMMING POOL this past week really set off some neighbors. They say the Washington State Dept of Transportation (@WSDOT) is failing to enforce this illegal situation. Much of this land is on WSDOT property right along SR 509. I’ve reached out Read More ›

Human Tragedy The fentanyl crisis continues to play out on multiple streets in Seattle, especially in places like #Chinatown-ID. This evening, a young man in his 20’s showed me the early stages of “TRANQ FENTANYL” eating away at his skin. Pills laced with xylazine, an animal tranquilizer, are starting to show up more often on the streets. It’s also leaving addicts walking around in a zombie like stupor. Another man nearby using fentanyl said, “I can see the silhouette of a demon” in his friend’s flesh eating wound. @CampSiteSeattle and others have documented the aftermath of “tranq” across the city. There is no denying the zombie drug is here. Nothing has changed in Councilmember Tammy Morales'( @CMTammyMorales) district. Where is Read More ›

Total All Star Madness Tuesday at 1am, I saw the underbelly of downtown Seattle just one block from City Hall . It’s also a 10 minute walk to T-Mobile Park (@TMobilePark) where the Major League Baseball All-Star Game (@mlb) will be played tonight. Tourists should AVOID 3rd Ave & Cherry St at all costs. This one stretch has turned into a full blown hang out for drug addicts and attracts all kinds illicit activity at all hours of the day. As I have reported all year, a lot of these men and women stay at the Downtown Emergency Service Center (@descseattle) Lyon Building and Morrison. These facilities serve the homeless and mentally ill. The city regularly sweeps the tents and Read More ›

Who Are They? I went on Brandi Kruse this past weekend to talk about my encounters with FAR-LEFT activists and groups like Stop The Sweeps Seattle. Unclear if these militant activists are behind the protest threat during MLB All-Star Week.

All-Star Weekend Test More fans are expected to pour into Seattle as we get closer to the actual Major League Baseball All-Star Game (@MLB) on Tuesday at T-Mobile Park (@TMobilePark.) Saturday night, I showed you the crazy open air drug scene and thriving black market that’s still happening in the downtown hot spots. So on Sunday, I wanted to see if conditions improved during the day time hours. Not really. LOL. But no doubt there were more officers and clean up crews on the streets. Right now, tourists should continue to avoid parts of Chinatown-ID(12th Ave & Jackson St) and the area around Seattle City Hall near the DESC (@DESCSeattle) facilities(3rd Ave and Cherry St/James St.) But the SODO hood Read More ›