Governance

Dunking on Tammy With multiple open air drug dens and homeless encampments thriving in Chinatown-ID, Seattle council candidate Tanya Woo (@votetanyawoo) and CM Sara Nelson (@CMSaraNelson) teamed up to bring attention to this unfolding disaster in D2, also known as “Tammy Town.” But it quickly turned into a dunk fest on CM Tammy Morales (@TammyMoralesSEA @CMTammyMorales) and her failing record as a leader. Nelson totally picked her apart in an unprecedented take down. It got so bad, Morales actually responded to Nelson on social media. Here is Nelson’s entire monologue during Tuesday’s press conference. I sprinkled in a few highlights. By the way, I spend way too much time in the underbelly of this city. No on else has this Read More ›

It should come as no surprise that an enterprising San Franciscan came up with the idea to host a “doom loop” tour of the moldering city on a hill. The plot twist is that Alex Ludlum, who put together the tour, canceled and refunded tickets for his “Downtown Doom Loop Walking Tour” before its intended Aug. 26 debut. That would be the weekend Nordstrom shuttered its flagship store in downtown San Francisco. It turns out, the San Francisco Chronicle reported, Ludlum serves on Ess Eff’s Commission on Community Investment and Infrastructure. He had planned on giving the tour as an “anonymous insider.” After his identity was outed, Ludlum apologized for a “deep error in judgment” and canceled the tour. “How Read More ›

This is the second in a series. Read the first column here. Our tendency when we hear of a disaster is to ask when FEMA — the Federal Emergency Management Agency — will arrive. But because of some curious federal rules, Perryton Mayor Kerry Symons said his community will receive nothing. That’s because the threshold for FEMA help depends on meeting requirements that vary by state population. Damage that would be large enough to warrant help in Rhode Island doesn’t cut it in Texas. The logic is that a large state can bring to bear more resources than a small one. That bureaucratic rule hurts Perryton residents like Maria Marufo, who depended on income from renting out six mobile homes Read More ›

In Case You’re Wondering During Wednesday night’s Republican primary debate, FOX News anchor Martha MacCallum cited data showing homelessness in America is up 11% in the past few years, “the largest jump in recorded history.” The candidates were asked about their position on this issue. But the conversation ended up being dominated by crime, drugs, and public safety. We have to follow up on the homeless crisis topic at the next debate. We have to know what the GOP candidates are going to do about one of the most pressing issues facing this nation, especially in West Coast cities. Because the current “housing first” national plan is failing.

Only 16 people have been housed in units with only 11 landlords participating in the program since the program’s launch in 2022 which had a goal of 800 units. A Seattle area program that offers funds to landlords to incentivize them to rent vacant units to the homeless has hit a snag, as there are more units available than eligible homeless people. Because of this, landlords are being turned away from the program. The agency, however, continues to say that they need more units. The King County Regional Homeless Authority (KCRHA) in Washington State has confirmed that landlords in Seattle are being turned away from a program aimed at incentivizing them to take in homeless tenants. Advocates for those living on the streets Read More ›

Exclusive King County Executive Dow Constantine (@kcexec) says “I’m not familiar with the situation you’re talking about,” after I asked him why landlords were being turned away from the King County Regional Homelessness Authority’s (@kingcorha) highly touted incentive program to get people off the streets. It’s a story KVI Radio’s Ari Hoffman (@thehoffather) and I broke earlier this week. Either Constantine was giving me spin today, or his media handler Chase Gallagher did not brief him on the situation. Constantine is on the KCRHA Governing Committee, responsible for oversight and approving budgets. Either way, Constantine went on to say he believes they should be working with more landlords in the private sector and gave a vote of confidence to KCRHA. Read More ›

Homeless advocates, politicians, and leaders at the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (KCRHA) continue to say that “housing saves lives” and affordable housing is the solution to homelessness. King County Executive Dow Constantine has said that “we must make it affordable for everyone here,” and KCRHA interim CEO Helen Howell wants “every person [to] have a roof over their head.” This is why KCRHA launched a landlord incentive program in 2022 that promised housing providers an attractive package in “an effort to end homelessness.” The incentive program offered landlords on-time payment backed by KCRHA and tenant conflict resolution in exchange for rental units for the homeless. Funding for “Partnership for Zero,” a publicly and privately funded program, would offset the Read More ›

Why are they letting crime run rampant in cities? Why don’t they mandate treatment to the people living and dying on the streets? Watch Michael Shellenberger speak on the ideology behind progressive cities allowing their citizens to live and die on the streets. Shellenberger created the North America Recovers Coalition that Discovery Institute is proud to be a founding member of. Watch the speech here. Read some highlights here: My own journey on this issue began after writing Apocalypse Never. I was getting ready to go on book tour, and save nuclear plants around the world, and then covid hit. It was very disorienting, as all of you can remember  I found myself feeling sad about it. I’ve been teaching myself Read More ›

Final Countdown August 1 primary is on Tuesday. There is still plenty of time to vote. So many tight races in Seattle, especially in District 7. Councilmember Andrew Lewis (@CMAndrewJLewis ,@LewisforSeattle) remains one of the most vulnerable incumbents in the city. I reached out to him for an interview on this election story but he never got back to me. Candidate Bob Kettle (@Kettle4Seattle) dissed me as well. Instead I spoke to Olga Sagan (@OlgaSaganWA) and Aaron Marshall(@MarshallFor7) about top priority issues on my beat like homelessness, public safety, and the fentanyl addiction crisis. More importantly, they walked with me through some of the most notorious crime hot spots and open air drug dens in the downtown core. Clearly, they Read More ›

Arguably Worst Month for Governor Jay Inslee July was a total disaster when it comes to the homeless crisis exploding on Washington State Dept. of Transportation (@wsdot) right of ways. National media picked up on the insanity being built on WSDOT properties like the notorious West Seattle swimming pool, homeless cave/underground tunnel system, and EWOK Village in the trees. Making matters worse, this week a DRUG WAR involving homemade BOMBS caused one of the largest explosions in downtown Seattle along I-5. The Mayor of Seattle had to go in and clear the encampment since it was taking the state way too long to address this emergency. And there are still more than 2K encampments on state right of ways with Read More ›