Seattle

Political Liability? As the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (@KingCoRHA) figures out it’s identity and role after a tumultuous year, KIRO Newsradio politics reporter Matt Markovich (@mattmarkovich) is offering some tremendous insight into the agency. Markovich has followed KCRHA since it’s inception. There may be no other reporter in this region who knows the inner workings better than this 30 plus year news veteran. Here’s his hot take on why it was formed and how former #Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan (@jennydurkan, @MayorJenny) and King County Executive Dow Constantine (@kcexec) essentially wanted “deniability” when it came to addressing the region’s homeless crisis. And according to Markovich, there’s been on-going tension between former KCRHA CEO Marc Dones and current #Seattle Mayor Bruce Read More ›

Exclusive Finally tracked down D2 Councilmember Tammy Morales (@CMTammyMorales.) She’s been dodging me all year. I simply asked some basic questions on behalf of her constituents in the #Chinatown-ID, still dealing with a crush of crime and open air drug use. The homeless crisis is spreading into South Seattle neighborhoods, especially off Rainier Ave S. But she continues to be MIA on these issues. SODO also remains a mess before the Major League Baseball ALL-Star game but I didn’t have time to ask her about that since she ran off. Morales seems unfazed about canidates running for her city council seat. By the way, first time dealing with Evelyn Chow. She’s one of Tammy’s handlers and is now using the, Read More ›

Downtown Seattle Brawl I’m playing catch up on #Seattle news after being in Texas this past week on assignment. Saturday afternoon, I went straight to 3rd Ave & Pike St. Without fail, I witnessed drug deals happening on multiple corners, stolen items being sold on the streets, and an insane fight in front of tourists and children. Nothing has changed. The best part of the day, some WOKE IDIOT tried to snatch my phone saying I should not record because, “these people are having a crisis.” She went on to do absolutely nothing to help the victim being beat up. Virtue signaling at its finest. Then some looney tune says, “whoop his ass next” after I asked bystanders to call Read More ›

After Senior Fellow Jonathan Choe spoke with Dunn Lumber owner, Mike Dunn, about the impact of theft on his Seattle stores, Mike Dunn joined Fox News to share. Watch the clip on Fox News here. Watch Jonathan Choe’s exclusive coverage here.

Ballard RV Torched Tuesday afternoon, flames erupted inside an RV parked right next to the abandoned Jack in the Box (@JackBox) on NW Leary Way. Not sure if there were any injuries. Unclear how it started. Ironically, the fast food restaurant was burned down just a few months ago by homeless squatters. This part of Councilmember Dan Strauss’ (@CMDanStrauss) district remains packed with tents and RV’s on nearly every block. How many more incidents until the city moves in? Seattle Department of Transportation (@seattledot) is playing whack a mole out here. Every 72 hours, the RV’s just move around and come right back. Is the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (@KingCoRHA) focused on Ballard? Back in March Homeless suspected of Read More ›

All in on Seattle Massive turnout Saturday for Mayor Bruce Harrell’s (@MayorofSeattle) One Seattle Day of Service to help revitalize the community. Thousands of volunteers mobilized across the city to clean up trash, graffiti, and serve in various ways. Tremendous effort by faith based groups like Reach Ministry (@reachministrywa) and homeless outreach group We Heart Seattle (@weheartseattle). With that said, many volunteers also got a glimpse of the urban decay and problematic parts of the city still ravaged by homelessness and the fentanyl crisis.  I walked through the notorious 3rd Ave & Cherry St. drug den with former Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) player Jordan Babineaux (@jordanbabineaux. Nothing surprises him anymore. Btw, the “trap tents” have returned.  #Seattle Sightings in the Wild Read More ›

Follow the Money According to a 2022 document from the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (@KingCoRHA) the agency dished out a staggering $107, 396, 057.97 to providers. Look at all the non-profits and players in this industry. Stunning amount of money being spent to address the region’s homeless crisis. It’s broken down by agency name and project. So much to unpack. I encourage all journalists in #Seattle and #KingCounty to start picking this apart. According to a recent KCRHA call, homeless service providers also complained about late payments being an issue this year and last year as well. Post Mortem Check out this tweet showing records of KCRHA staff salaries. 30 of the 100 employees made at least $100,000.

Post Mortem Even before Marc Dones abruptly resigned on Tuesday as CEO of the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (@KingCoRHA), the agency was under heavy scrutiny for it’s performance or lack thereof. Questions were being raised about spending and salaries, especially after Dones asked for $12 billion dollars to fund housing in the region. As Helen Howell becomes interim CEO, the KCRHA Governing Committee and other boards have a lot of soul searching to do. Do they stay the course and stick to the framework left by Dones, or is it time for a total gut rehab? Clearly, the “HOUSING FIRST” strategy is not working. The public is asking for more transparency and accountability, like actual measures of success and Read More ›

Mother’s Day Weekend Madness The warm weather is bringing out even more open air drug use and dealers in downtown #Seattle and the #Chinatown-ID area. I’m seeing clusters of people passed out on the streets as locals remain desensitized and tourists literally just walk past the problem. The black market of stolen goods is hopping. People are jumping on and off the King County Metro (@KingCountyMetro) buses with tons of stolen merchandise. It comes and goes in waves. Without fail, evenings are the worst. Might as well call in the National Guard (@WANationalGuard) for a weekend stint. Can’t hurt right? It’s now been about a month since Mayor Bruce Harrell (@MayorofSeattle) announced his Downtown Activation Plan and signed the Executive Read More ›

(The Center Square) – The One Seattle Homelessness Action Plan’s first count of 2023 reveals the verified homeless tent count is down 42% from the end of last year. The latest count conducted in March by the city found 414 tents within the city limits. That is down from 712 counted in December 2022. The SODO District had the most tents and RVs counted with 158 combined. The city attributes the drop in tent numbers to its recently-launched Unified Care Team, alongside its partnership with the King County Regional Homelessness Authority. According to the city, its Unified Care Team facilitated 1,831 referrals to shelters and tiny house villages last year, with the help of the authority and 30 outreach providers.  The city Read More ›