Do you have ideas?

Alright, we're gonna start.

Is my microphone on?

Awesome.

We're gonna start it out.

Everyone let me know.

I'm happy to all right.

I don't want to have to hit the gavel, but hold on.

That's my first time hitting the gabble.

I just want you all to know that.

I'll do it one more time.

Okay, we're gonna come to order.

Thank you.

So the May 12th meeting of the Seattle City Council will come to order.

It is 204.

Is that good?

Like 204 p.m.

I am Joy Hollingsworth, Council President.

Will the clerk please call the roll?

Present.

Council Member Rivera.

Present.

Council Member Saka.

Council Member Strauss.

Councilmember Foster.

Councilmember Warz.

Here.

Councilmember Kettle.

Here.

Councilmember Lynn.

Here.

Council President Hogs Ross.

Here.

I'm present.

Awesome.

Thank you.

Uh, Councilmember Saka has a proclamation for signature and presentation today.

The proclamation recognizes May 2026 as bike everywhere month.

After Councilmember uh Saka makes comments, uh the role will be called to affix signatures on the proclamation, and then we will suspend the rules to present the proclamation to our guests and allow the guests to provide brief comments.

Councilmember Saka, you are recognized.

Thank you, Madam Council President.

Uh, and it is my distinct honor to present this proclamation.

Again, recognizing May 2026 as bike everywhere month.

Uh this is a critically important proclamation now more than ever, uh, that we're bringing forward on behalf of Seattle's bicycle community, which here with us today include folks from Cascade Bicycle Club, but also our broader biking community includes Washington Bikes, Seattle Streets Alliance, West Seattle Bike Connections, Bike Works, Transportation Choices Coalition, the major uh Taylor Project, and countless others.

Uh, community partners who work tirelessly every single day to improve bike and pedestrian safety across our city.

Biking plays an incredibly important role in Seattle.

It helps us advance our climate and environmental goals, reduces congestion on our roads, and promotes healthier communities.

For many people, biking is also an affordable, reliable, and enjoyable way to get around the city.

Seattle has accomplished a great deal over the years when it comes to building out our wonderful bike network and supporting safer multimodal transportation options.

In many ways, we are viewed as a model city.

We are certainly a leading city.

Uh, thanks to the generosity of voters, the voter approved, the 2024 voter-approved transportation levy continues that progress and builds upon it with more than 133 million dollars dedicated toward bicycle investments across the city.

Now, there's a lot for us to be proud of and celebrate.

That said, we know that there's still more work to do.

Too many people continue to be injured or die while biking on our streets.

Just last Thursday, a young woman was the victim of a hit and run collision while cycling on 35th Avenue Southwest in the Arbor Heights neighborhood of West Seattle.

Incidents like these are totally unacceptable, and unfortunately, they're still far too common.

They underscore the urgency and importance of our continued investments and protecting our most vulnerable users on the road.

Cyclists and pedestrians, every Seattle light deserves to feel safe getting around their city, regardless of whether they are walking, biking, rolling, or driving.

But I'm grateful for the work that organizations and advocates here today do to keep cyclists safe and continue pushing our city forward.

Seattle has a strong and passionate cycling community.

Know this firsthand, and it is something that I'm incredibly proud of.

Thank you.

Actually, Madam Council President, I know we're gonna do the signing of signatures, see who wants to sign it at just a moment.

But I'm gonna take the take a moment to read a few select passages.

Uh this is a very well written, well crafted proclamation.

Uh so I'm not gonna not gonna read the entire thing, but uh I will read a few select passages.

The City of Seattle proclamation.

Whereas the bicycle is a healthy, financially accessible and environmentally sound form of transportation that reduces greenhouse gas emissions, eases traffic congestion, and provides independent mobility for people of all ages and abilities.

Whereas funding or funded by the levy and the sustained work of the Seattle Department of Transportation, the city has delivered transformational projects across Seattle's bike network, including protected bike lanes on Beacon Hill, in Soto along East Marginal Way, and on the waterfront along Alaska Way, adding more than 20 miles of new facilities since 2021 alone, and whereas bicycle bicycling is proven to improve physical and mental health, support local businesses, provide low cost transportation options for households without access to a vehicle, and advance Seattle's climate and equity goals, and whereas Cascade Bicycle Club, Washington Bikes, Seattle's Seattle Streets Alliance, uh, I'll need to remember that that re recent rebranding, Seattle Streets Alliance, West Seattle Bike Connections, Bike Works, Transportation Choices Coalition, the major Taylor Project, and dozens of community partners who host rides, community celebrations, and educational events throughout the month of May, including Bike Everywhere Day on May 13, 2026, which is tomorrow, whereas the Seattle City Council calls upon all residents to celebrate by riding their bikes, exploring our growing network of protected routes, and joining the community of people working together to make Seattle a safer, healthier, and more connected city for everyone.

Now, therefore, we do declare today to be, well, this month, to be bike everywhere month in the city of Seattle.

Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Saka.

Are there any further comments on the proclamation today?

Taking quick scan.

Thank you, Councilmember Saka for bringing for bringing this and for crafting a well uh read and delivered proclamation as well.

We love bike everywhere month, and we're looking forward to uh getting this signed.

So uh I will call will the clerk please call the roll uh to find out which council members would like to fix their signature to the proclamation.

Councilmember Rick.

Aye.

Councilmember Rivera.

Aye, Councilmember Saka.

Aye, Councilmember Strauss.

Councilmember Foster.

Yes, Councilmember Juarez.

Councilmember Wars.

Aye.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Councilmember Kettle.

Aye.

Councilmember Lynn.

Aye.

Council President Hogsworth.

Yes.

I signatures will be a fixed proclamation.

Awesome.

So everyone on council is declaring it.

Thank you, Councilmember Asaka, for this.

And I think now what we're going to do, if there's no objection, we're going to suspend the rules so Councilmember Saka can present the proclamation.

And then are there a list of speakers that are going to be joining us today as well?

Yes, thank you, madam council president.

I would now like to uh invite Tyler Vasquez from Cascade Bicycle Club forward to give his remarks.

Welcome.

Good afternoon, Council.

My name is Tyler Vasquez, and I'm the policy and advocacy officer for Cascade Bicycle Club.

When you learn to ride a bike, the first thing you notice isn't the wind in your hair or the freedom everyone talks about.

It's the ground.

You're looking down, watching the pavement, figuring out where it's safe to go.

And in Seattle, more and more that pavement is for people who bike or want to.

May is bike everywhere month.

And because of protected bike lanes, the greenways, the improved crossings, going in across the city, getting on a bike doesn't feel like a dare anymore.

It feels like a choice.

A real choice.

And today, with this bike month proclamation, our elected officials are putting that in writing.

They're saying officially on record, bike belongs, bikes belong in Seattle.

People who ride belong on our streets.

People who ride belong here.

That matters more than I can say, not just for the seasoned cyclists who've been advocating for years for our protective bike network, but to every kid, every newcomer, every person who looked at Seattle streets and wondered if there was a place for them.

Washington State has earned the most bike-friendly state in the United States.

And Seattle is moving, is forward thinking, making sure our streets are safe for people who bike.

This has earned national recognition for its commitment to building a truly bikeable city.

And that recognition belongs to the advocates who showed up month after month, meeting after meeting, and to the leaders in the room who listen and acted.

So thank you.

When you funded and champion, championed what you funded and championed has changed what's possible for people like me.

People who want to bike.

So what's next?

With gas prices skyrocket skyrocketing, more people are ditching their car and moving towards using their bike or choosing to walk or choosing to roll.

This means we need safer streets by adding more protected bike lanes and making sure we slow down our drivers.

Better connections across our city and neighborhoods.

A network that takes someone from their first wobbly ride and takes their training wheels off to become a confident commuter uh through and through the city and makes every mile in between feel safe.

Bike everywhere month is our moment to show the city what's possible when people feel safe enough to try.

I feel like we're getting closer.

Seattle, let's get there together.

Thank you, council.

Let's bike everywhere, especially tomorrow.

Madam, madam council president.

Uh, if it please uh the council here uh would like one other person, uh representative to speak.

Uh Clara Cantor on behalf of Seattle Streets Alliance.

Welcome.

And then we'll take our picture.

Awesome.

Thank you.

Hi everyone.

Is that working?

Hi everyone.

I'm Clara Cantor.

I'm a community organizer with Seattle Streets Alliance.

You all probably know us as our former name Seattle Neighborhood Greenways.

Um, people-powered movement.

We work to make every neighborhood in Seattle a great place to walk, bike, and live.

Um, and this year we're celebrating our 15th anniversary, and I just wanted to kind of look back for a moment on what we've done as a city in the last 15 years.

Um, in that time, biking in Seattle has completely transformed.

Um, back in the day we were celebrating when Seattle was painting Sherrows on the streets.

We celebrated um putting in our first neighborhood greenway up in Wallingford in 2014.

We passed um uh bike master plan that at the time was one of the most uh ambitious in the entire country.

Um, when I first started organizing with Seattle Streets Alliance, my very first campaign was advocating for a downtown basic bike network, which now is built on our streets and used by tens of thousands of people every day.

It's amazing.

Um, I've been a lifelong bike commuter, and biking around my neighborhood in the South End has changed completely just in the last five or ten years.

Um, we have new bike lanes on MLK, Columbian Way, Beacon Avenue, through Soto, the Georgetown South Park Trail.

We now have the ability to bike all the way from the ship canal trail down along the Seattle waterfront and all the way to Al Qae without ever mixing with vehicle traffic, which is incredible.

It's amazing that we're able to do that.

Our city now has 31 miles of protected bike lanes and 55 miles of neighborhood greenways.

And that's thanks to the community members who've spoken up and said this actually isn't safe for me to bike with my kids and pushing for funding allocations for specific projects in their neighborhoods for more bike team staff members at SDOT for passing the transportation levy in the last couple of years with historic investments in bike infrastructure.

And we are so so so grateful for our elected leaders who are willing to stand up and say it's important that we work towards vision zero.

It's important that we end traffic deaths and serious injuries on our streets, who are willing to say our climate goals and the geometry of our streets demand that we provide ways for people to get around safely and efficiently without a private vehicle.

And elected leaders who are excited to be standing here and declaring May to be bike everywhere month.

Um we are very excited to continue this work together to close the gaps in our bike network to make it more usable, more intuitive, more accessible for all.

Every time we complete a new bike project in Seattle, that neighborhood becomes more accessible.

Um the number of people who are riding who are women, who are elders, who are young people, who are kids, who are disabled riders, skyrocket every time we build new protected infrastructure here in Seattle.

Um we can complete those hard gaps.

We can complete the hard routes connecting neighborhoods in the Rainier Valley to ferries in West Seattle to new train stops in the north end, and to make sure that we have that complete connected network so that we can share the joy of getting around by bike with our kids and with our grandkids, and so that we can actually bike everywhere.

Um let's use this momentum and get to work, thank you.

Awesome, thank you.

Thank you.

Are there any other comments uh before uh we ask some of the folks?

I don't know how many people are coming up for us to take our council photo for May.

Is there a couple?

Well, uh yes, madam, council president would like to invite representatives from Cascade, Washington Bike, Seattle Streets Alliance, West Seattle Bike Connection, Bike Works and Transportation Choices Coalition, uh, forward to take our our photo.

Awesome uh together.

And then uh a point of clarification as well.

This is clearly signed by all nine of us, but also it's uh joint proclamation uh that that uh Mayor Wilson has signed as well.

So awesome.

Sounds good, awesome.

All right, so representatives from those groups.

If you come forward, you can come over here to the right and just come up, and we will take our council photo and then Sue will be in the middle, so you'll give us a countdown to tell us when awesome.

Have to walk us through this.

Um council member Saka, you'll be in the middle.

Okay, so he hasn't sent my bar.

Thank you.

Hey, how are you?

Thank you.

We snuck on the line.

All right, we're gonna scrunch.

Is this on?

We're gonna scrunch in.

We're gonna scrunch in as best we can.

So let's scrunch in.

Scrunch, scrunch, scrunch.

Well, yeah, we got a scrunch, scratch, scrunch.

Oh, there's more.

Okay, okay.

That's great to see it.

Rob, you wanna get in the middle.

Okay, so is this mic on?

Is this a little bit?

All right, you all ready?

Yeah, I'll just say on the front.

I think there's a lot of you.

So everyone's gonna look at Sue.

So, Sue, will you count us down?

We're looking right here in the middle.

Go right ahead.

I like watching.

She's gonna, yep.

There you go.

If you move on.

Awesome.

Thank you.

Good job.

You're awesome.

Thank you, Council Member.

It's my important part.

Yeah, but you're saying something about it.

It doesn't start with it.

Yeah, yeah.

Where do you want?

Mark it in 11?

That's the best box.

Okay.

I was like, I can't get my bike from Rainer Johnson.

Thank you all.

I heard seven.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

All right, so we'll resume.

Oh, yours.

Yeah.

Without the signatures.

Thank you to the public.

When we have these proclamations, it's always fun, and it's a new thing where we're taking group photos.

So I really appreciate you all being patient with us as we do that.

And uh and thank you, Councilman Rosaka.

We are very excited for May to be bike everywhere month.

So if you don't have a chance, you should fly down Madison in the bike lane in a bike, be in a bike, uh, or in the bus lane.

It's the most fun thing going east.

It is from Broadway and just flying down the hill in your bike.

I just wanted to throw that out there.

And yes, you can ride your bike in the bus lane in some bus lanes.

I believe you can in there.

If not, I'm incriminating myself.

Okay.

So colleagues, at this time we're gonna open the hybrid public comment period.

Public comment is limited to uh items on today's agenda or the introduction and referral calendar or within the council's purview.

So our work program.

Uh the council cannot accept comments on quadi quasi judicial items or campaign related matters.

Uh speaker clerk, how many speakers we have signed up?

We have sixteen in person and three remote.

Awesome, 16.

So that's 19.

Everyone will get two minutes.

Will the clerk please read the uh public comment instructions?

The public comment period, we moderate it in the following manner.

Speakers will be called in the order in which they register.

Speakers will hear a time when 10 seconds are left with their time.

Speaker's mics will be muted if they do not end their comments within the allowed time to allow us to call on the next speaker.

Public comment period is now open, and we'll begin with the first speaker on the list.

Awesome.

So if you are online, you know that we'll go to in-person speakers first, and then we'll jump online to you all.

So we do have 16 in person, and then we'll go to our online folks.

Uh the first people up is Ruth, followed by Jan.

So uh Ruth Dyte, followed by Jan Johnson, Nick, Kurt, Paul, Yvonne, Dom, then we have Hampson.

Anitra Freeman, and then Orrin.

Welcome.

Uh, my name is Ruth Dight, here representing Friends of Queen Anne.

Barney Frank, who's in hospice care, observed that overreach by the left with stances that alienate moderates, has set democrats back.

We, the moderates, compromise.

We try to understand the other side and find the reasonable middle ground.

We believe in a big tent.

We recognize the need to upzone for more growth, but realize upzoning alone won't make housing more affordable for those who need it most.

We think we can grow seamlessly, blending the new with the old to take a phrase from our plan without losing our tree canopy or rolling back important development requirements, like the one being considered Thursday that will reduce stormwater runoff requirements.

But we moderates are drowned out by a well-oiled Seattle machine of paid lobbyists and paid citizen organizers whose message is amplified by the urbanist and other biased advocacy journalism.

They are rigid in their views and attack and vilify any attempt at moderation.

Many in our neighborhoods remain unaware of the zoning changes coming.

Many who do know feel too disheartened and distracted by national politics to take on another battle.

But I will tell you these people who have been supporters of affordable and social housing, feel bewildered and angry about what the city is doing.

We moderates are not being listened to, and we've seen as reported in the Seattle Times who gets a seat at the table.

So we ask you, the mayor and OBCD, to give us a seat at the table.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ruth.

Uh, next we have Jan, followed by Nick.

Is Jan here?

Jan Johnson.

Welcome.

And then Nick is next.

My name is Jan Johnson.

I um I've been in business in Seattle since 19, I don't know, 84, the Panama Hotel, National Landmark, National Treasurer, and I just want to speak on behalf of the American Hotel, the use and the CID.

And I think the best use is a youth hostel.

I prefer a lot of people there.

There's a lot of people come to my building, and it's a different type of clientele.

They're backpackers and they want to stay here, but they want to pay less and they are fine with sleeping in bunks and things like that.

I've shown where the American hotel is.

I just think it's a good use, and I'd like to see it stay that way.

And I don't know if um is that enough.

Just saying like thanks, Bob.

That's enough.

I'd like to look into it more.

I don't know if this council is on land use for that building.

Also, a lot of us are floundering, right?

As far as uh taxes, license, if the city would be willing to work with businesses like them, if he's having a hard time, whatever it is, we're getting people in here.

I think the city should work more on the other end as opposed to punishing us for finding us for different things.

If you want to know what that is, I can get back to you.

Thank you very much for your consideration.

Thank you, Jen.

Next we have Nick, and if I was gonna say moving that microphone up, it was bothering me that it was we were off balance with the thank you.

Welcome.

Uh good afternoon, esteemed council members.

I'd like to thank you for the opportunity to speak today.

My name's Nick Sten, and I am a uh I'm here representing the ILWU.

I'm also a lifelong Seattleite.

I went to Laurel Hurst Elementary School, X Dime Middle School, Roosevelt High School, and the University of Washington.

So I come here not just for representing Seattle Longshoremen, but I feel qualified to represent Seattle.

Um, as it's the only home that I've ever known.

The ILWU unequivocally supports union-made construction and development projects all across the city, uh, just not housing in the Soto and Industrial District.

Our love for our union brothers and sisters in all industries run deep, runs deep, and an injury to one is an injury to all is our motto.

We want our union siblings working and upgrading our city, and we are excited when we see the cranes booming up across the Seattle skyline.

But I'm not just here representing the ILWU, I'm here representing Apple farmers in Yakima, potato farmers in Idaho, and steel workers in West Seattle, and thousands of other Washingtonians who depend on Seattle's ports to import and export their goods across the globe.

We as an industry don't believe the industrial district is a place for people to live, and I believe that the growth management hearing board affirms that.

Any future housing development is going to run into these exact same issues that aren't going away.

As a lifelong Seattle resident, my question to our leadership is how much uh do we feel like Seattle's a global city because our foothold to relevance in global trade is right out that window.

Seattle's port is two stoplights away from Miami, New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago.

All those are vibrant global port cities that understand the importance of industrial lands.

And I thank you, our friends on the board who have the insight and mental fortitude to understand the importance of these industrial lands and their relevance to the long-term growth and sustainability.

Thank you.

Thank you, Nick.

Thank you.

Okay, awesome.

Thank you, Nick.

Next, we have Kurt, followed by Paul, and then Yvonne.

I don't see your helmet though, Nick.

Yeah, okay.

President Holland and Council members, thanks for having us today.

As one of the founders of Together for Seattle, a facilitation network that uh is bringing people together and churches together.

Our purpose-following COVID was to bring the church together to meet some needs.

COVID hit the church hard.

I think it hit the community hard.

So what we're trying to do is to build that back by building relationships and having some dire desired outcomes are going to meet the needs of the community and what you're doing here in the city as to how we can work together.

We're beginning to see that realized in the groups that are coming together.

One feature we're doing now is bringing districts in your districts, we're bringing churches together, business people together, and community members, to say, how can we talk together and facilitate various things that are going on within the community?

Recently we had an event in West Seattle, and one of the mayor's admins was there, and it was I think a very productive meeting.

So we're looking to do that.

Uh there'll be upcoming meetings in Ballard, and you know where Ballard is, that's kind of hard to get through in West Seattle and various places.

Sorry, Robert.

Anyway, and we want to invite you to come to these meetings when they come together so that we can have an exchange of questions and answers and talk about what you need and what what we might be helpful and might be joining.

A recent gathering in uh Raynor Valley, the mayor came and spoke to several of us, and we had a wonderful QA time together.

And uh she uh actually said she kind of promoted this idea of neighborhoods, would be helpful to her.

I think you have a new neighborhood czar that you've appointed.

So we're going to invite you to come.

We will uh work with your admins from the standpoint of getting information to them as when we're doing things, and then we would invite you to come because we think QA thing will be good.

Thank you.

Thank you, Paul.

And I think we skipped skipped over Kurt.

Are you Kurt?

Awesome.

Come on, Kurt, and then followed Kurt is Yvonne and then Dom.

I'll take the shorter one.

Umbers, I appreciate the time to be heard.

Um, my name is Kurt Nicotelli with Spirit Transport Systems.

Uh trucking company was based in Georgetown for the first 14 years, now in Kent.

Uh just speaking here in support of the Senate Bill 121 171, which is repealing 127191.

Um, first and foremost, vision uh zero, that was adopted back in 2015, and building housing in the Soto District is in direct conflict to that uh that movement, and what City of Seattle had um adopted back almost 11 years ago.

So safety, having residents come into the neighborhood, you're you're jeopardizing the safety of all those residents that would be living here.

It's not the place for housing.

And more importantly, is the uh economic impact.

So impeding freight mobility in Seattle not only impacts the economy here in Seattle, but across Washington State.

Tens of thousands of businesses and probably hundreds of thousands of workers.

Um, what the average citizen may not know is that everything that you buy in the store is brought there by a truck.

If you bought it, a truck brought it.

So when you impede and impact the heavy hall corridor, you're actually impacting even the well-being of those residents when they go to the stores.

Uh, my company actually delivers product for quality bicycle products.

So we bring full containers in for bite of bicycles.

So it's vast and comprehensive how the gateway impacts the well-being of the whole state and every citizen that resides here.

And although it may benefit, you know, the carpenters union and some local businesses and maybe residents that might think it might be a good idea to live here in the Soto District, which it's not, um, it would negatively impact even those that that are reaping some of the benefits.

So thank you for letting me talk.

Appreciate your time.

Next we have Yvonne, followed by Dom, Hampson, Anitra, Oren.

Ivan.

Sorry.

I gave I gave you, I was French with it.

Yvonne.

I heard it pronounced worse.

My name's Ivan Gerdis.

I stare stay at Cher's uh brick house.

Share wheel has 36 years experience and now shelters 500 people a day in indoor shelters in 10 cities.

Our shelters are though, unfortunately are having to turn away people because we just don't have the space for it.

More shelters desperately needed.

And Chair can do more.

We have a successful shelter operations template.

We just need the funding of the sites.

Both Tent City 4 and Tent City 3 are moving this month.

In fact, Tent City 4 is moving Friday.

Invitations to anybody who can make it who's willing to help.

Tent City 3 only has three months with their host, and we would love to get in on the city site search efforts.

We really want to move to a year-long stays.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ivan.

Next we have Dom followed by Hamson, Anitra, Orrin.

Hi, my name is Dom.

I'm with Share Wheel at Tent City 3.

As an organization, we have 500 spots indoors and in 10 cities.

And together we've been assisting the homeless for my whole life for 36 years now.

We have a template that is working and can be duplicated to expand the help we're providing in our community.

Unfortunately, we're turning people away because we need more funding and more sites.

Without shelter, people die on the streets alone.

Like the man killed, right near where I'm staying.

We need safety, compassion, funds, and support getting long-term sites.

Thank you.

Thank you, Dom.

Next we have I think it's Hampson.

Hampson followed by Anitra and then Orin.

And then Anitra is next, and then Orin.

Welcome.

I would first like to start off and say thank you for your time today, allowing me to speak before you.

My name is Harrison Hoyt, and I stay at Share and Wheels 10 City 4.

Share and Wheel has 36 years of experience and now shelters 500 people at Dane shelters and 10 cities.

More shelters are desperately needed.

I believe Share Wheel can do more with more funding sites.

We can bring in and help more homeless people off the streets with Share's Wheels' time-proven and successful shelter operations template.

I would like to use my personal experience as an example.

Three weeks ago, I was homeless at the Pier of Seattle.

Share and Wheel has allowed me to sit to sleep safely and eat proper meals with a community of like-minded peers.

Both TC4 and TC3 are moving this month soon.

TC3 has only has a three-month host.

We'd like to get we would love to get in the on city site search efforts and really want to move to year-long stays.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you so much.

Next we have Anitra followed by Orin.

Yeah.

Thank you.

Anitra Freeman with Share and Wheel.

As you've heard, Cher and Wheel have 36 years of experience and currently shelter 500 people.

And it's not enough.

We're turning people away at the share screenings.

We're turning people away at the door of the wheel shelters.

And we all know that without shelter, people die.

I got involved with Share and Wheel in 1995 while I was homeless.

I got into housing in 1996 and I stayed involved because this is my community.

I over 30 years, I've seen people come into this community with what I call the gray pavement look.

They're torn down, torn up, practically sleepwalking.

And they may sit there during meetings, and if somebody asks for their opinion, it's like, what?

And then they slowly come back to life.

Because everybody takes for granted that you do have an opinion.

You do have something that you can contribute.

You are needed here, and you're wanted and you're valued here.

I see people coming back to life every day in the community.

And I contrast that with standing vigil out there for the people who died without the community.

Please help us give that community to many, many more people.

Thank you.

Thank you, Anitra.

Next we have Orin.

And after Orrin, we have uh Missy Vett, we have Ken, we have Aaron, we have Howard Gill, we have Becca, and we have Nathan.

Good afternoon and thank you.

My name is Orin Boone, and I am a participant at 10th City 4.

I found myself to be in a new situation in life about three months ago.

And uh the transition into the 10th city has been something I never expected.

I thought it would be a bit like Lord of the Flies.

And the truth is we have a self-regulated camp that keeps things fairly orderly.

I've been uh assigned roles of Kitchen Master, security, uh currently I'm the move master helping as our encampment move to the next location later this week.

Uh it's challenging, and it's uh very fulfilling to see things like Anita spoke about to see the changes come about in people if they're given the opportunity.

There are people being turned away.

There are not enough tents and not enough room and not enough time.

Uh currently we have a new lease that our other 10 cities going into.

It's only 90 days.

It's difficult to find these places time and time again, but from what I've seen so far, that's one of the biggest hurdles we have.

And I would ask that you give consideration to that when going over this land use motion and taking that into heart that uh there are things that work.

I'm seeing it firsthand, and I'd be happy to go more into detail.

Thank you.

Thank you, Orin.

Next we have Miss Yvette, followed by Ken, Aaron, Howard Gail, Becca, Nathan.

Welcome, Miss Yvette.

Good afternoon.

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

Uh, I watched this morning's public safety meeting, Consul Mingo Kettle, and that was interesting.

Uh after a while, it got kind of raucous.

And once you guys took a break, I had to go do other things.

So I like to say those who were disruptive that if you're not part of the solution, then you're part of the problem.

And also, um, regarding public safety.

There's my notes here.

Due to the recent wave of more violence in the South and particularly the Many Beach area, I want to encourage to keep the cameras up and rolling, and quite frankly, those who live in that neighborhood, we want more of them.

Because if you take the paper and read online news, uh, you know that the security cameras have been invaluable in solving several recent crimes in a timely manner.

And so I'd like to also think concurrent you, because I know you set aside funding for the World Cup.

If you can kind of, you know, pass a little along of that money funding to put up more cameras in my neighborhood.

We we would greatly appreciate it because I've talked to other community members and they agree as well.

And I also want to thank the uh 10th century, 10th city residents who who showed up to advocate for more housing.

Uh they were uh eloquent and to the point, and I like the office solution as well.

Thank you.

Thank you, Missy Vett.

Uh, next we have Ken, followed by Aaron.

Is Ken here?

Ken.

Next we have Aaron.

Missy Vett came with the served us some tie-dye special today.

Uh Aaron.

Good afternoon, Council President Joy Hollinsworth and members of the Seattle City Council.

My name is Aaron Tullock.

I serve as a legislative aide with FMS Global Strategies, and we build back better alliance, representing more than a hundred and ten businesses, nonprofits, and community stakeholders across Washington State.

We are here in today in support of what some may have labeled a black budget, but this is not about exclusion or favoritism, it's about whether Seattle is willing to invest in communities that have been historically historically experienced displacement, disinvestment, housing instability, violence, and systematic barriers to opportunities.

I grew up in Seattle Central District.

I'm one of the many Seattle lights who were pushed out of the city because housing costs skyrocketed and long-time residents and working families could no longer afford to stay.

So when we discuss gentrification, redlining, displacement.

I'm not speaking from theory, I'm speaking from lived experience.

I attend these council meetings regularly, both in person and online.

I see the work happening here, and I also see the pressure that comes from public leadership.

Accountability matters, community voice matters, protest matters, but protesting, but protecting the integrity of public process matters too.

Seattle cannot move forward if every difficult conversation has become political theater instead of thoughtful policymaking.

The Central District is more than a neighborhood.

It is a case study for what happens when culture remains visible while the people who built that culture disappear.

That harm happened through policy, which means policy also carries a responsibility to help prepare it.

I urge the city council to prioritize investments in home ownership, small business sustainability, youth mentorship, violence prevention, workforce development, behavioral health support, and juvenile justice diversion programs.

These are stabilization tools for communities that have carried disproportionate economic and social burdens for decades.

I'm here today because people like me still care deeply about Seattle, and we want to partnership progress and real solutions.

Our office recently sent meetings and invitations to each member of this council, and I look forward to collaborating and toward policies that create more stable, affordable, and an inclusive Seattle for everyone.

Thank you.

Thank you, Erin.

Next we have uh Mr.

Howard Gill, followed by Becca and then Nathan.

Good afternoon.

This morning in public safety, this council gave voice to the people that were victimized at Cal Anderson last year by the SPD and gave voice to the OPA, the OIG, and the CPC, who protected the people that did the victimization, and you denied any voice to the people that were actually the victims, two of whom were in this council chambers.

This is unacceptable.

And I was chastised for doing that, for bringing this to people's attention, and yes, disrupting them the meeting, because it's appropriate for you guys to make decisions that we don't like.

It's not appropriate for you guys to gaslight us and to silence victims.

And yet, Councilmember Juarez decided that I was due a sanction, that I was disruptive.

And so all I would ask Councilmember Juarez is this is those the same words that you would tell the people in 1970 that took over Discovery Park to make the Daybreak Star Center.

Are you the person that would also chastise people in 1972 for taking over the school that became El Centro?

They were disruptive.

Sometimes people have a just cause.

And what happened this morning was actually productive dialogue because there was a disruption.

That disruption was absolutely proper and correct.

Thank you.

Next, we have Becca.

Please.

Not today.

Please.

Next we have Becca and then Nathan, and then we're gonna move online.

We will be respectful in these chambers or else.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, Council.

Uh my name is Becca, and both of my parents are from Seattle.

My mom is fourth generation Seattleite, grew growing up in Queen Anne.

My dad is first generation from Santiago, Chile, who moved here and grew up just west of Green Lake.

Um, so I've been in Seattle.

I have grown up here and lived here for the last 15 years since I've um moved here for college.

First, I just wanted to say thank you for your service.

Thank you for your courage, for your leadership, for the ways that you're tackling the hard issues, for the ways that you're listening, and um, yeah, just being willing to be an open ear for all of the issues and and the ways that we want to come, and and voice what's going on in our communities.

Um, I'm here with the Big C church.

Uh, we represent many churches, many ministries, many people from different ages, um, many of whom I think you've met over the past few weeks, um, different races, different backgrounds, different creeds.

And while I think the church has not always done the best job at partnering with the city and with our local government, I think not just we we're here not to build walls, but we want to build bridges.

So we just want to say we're here, we pray for you weekly.

We pray for you by name.

We pray for your floor the for the flourishing of your families for the work that you do.

We pray that you would find uh wise counsel, that you would find courage that you would be protected from just all the things that you guys walk into.

Um and if there's any way we can support, we can stand with you, we can partner with you, we can do better to show up as the church to help make our communities better, to make them stronger, um, and to make them safer for everyone.

Thank you.

Thank you, Becca.

Next we have Nathan.

Welcome.

Good afternoon.

Um I was also disappointed to see the treatment of victims and advocates who attempted to have their voices heard at today's public safety committee hearing.

Um, I know a lot of these people criticize you guys.

I have not once seen Howard Gale, Castile Hightower, Gabriel Diaz or others other than a certain group attack you personally, right?

They criticize you harshly for your policies, but not other than a certain group, and you know who I'm talking about.

Your job is to listen to the public.

Our job is not to praise you and be your friends.

Our job is to hold you accountable.

Um, if we want to talk about disrespect though, was it disrespectful when Councilmember Rivera characterized people who care criticized her attacks on the equitable development initiative funding as demonizing her and being misinformed?

I think it's disrespectful to call people misinformed.

Was it disrespectful when Kathy Moore and Sarah Nelson and Maritza Rivera scolded Tammy Morales publicly during a council briefing?

How many of you held Sarah Nelson accountable for running this place like a dictatorship?

If we want to talk about respect, it is also important to show respect to the public.

Thank you.

Thank you, Nathan.

Next we have, and we're gonna move online.

Uh, we have Scott followed by Rose and then David.

So we have Scott.

And you're gonna press star six, Scott.

10 mm.

Yes, can you hear me?

Yep, go right ahead.

Thank you.

My name is Scott.

My name is Scott Courtright.

I own a company called Courtright Enterprises in Moses Lake, Washington.

We're a hay and forage processor and exporter from the east side of the state.

I wanted uh thank you for the opportunity to speak.

I would have been there in person today, but we've already started our harvest season um here this last week, so we're busy.

Um I did want to um speak out in uh in favor of the repeal of the redistricting photo.

As it's been characterized many, many times, the port of Seattle is not just the port of Seattle, it's the port of Washington, Port of Eastern Washington, Port of Idaho, Port of Montana, and many other states, as we rely on that port um to ship our goods um overseas.

A little known fact that the hay industry actually is the single largest containerized product that actually ships off of the West Coast in Washington State alone.

It represents more than $600 million in annual revenue just across 20 exporting companies who employ more than 5,000 people just within our own businesses.

That has nothing to do with the number of farmers who depend on access to these ports.

Um, although the the waterfront is a beautiful place, I do feel very strongly that there's no business in rezoning the industrial ground in that area to build a small number of houses, condo, whatever, while limiting access to the rest of Washington State and the port that we rely on so so significantly.

Those are a public asset.

Um, many of us across the state.

Our tax dollars go to improvements there along with federal funding and other state funding.

So we would love to see for the city of Seattle to continue to develop, but leaving that area alone because so many people's livelihoods depend on access to the port of Seattle on a daily basis.

We make large, large investments in our facilities every year.

We cannot do this if we keep running into the same concern that at some point we're not gonna have access to support.

So again, thank you very much for your time.

Thank you.

Thank you, Scott.

Next we have Rose, followed by David Haynes.

You'll press star six on mute yourself, Rose.

Hello.

On Sunday night, there were two tragedies that went into the trans community.

The first of which most people are aware of that a trans woman was murdered inside of her dorm room inside what should have been a locks facility.

The second is a trans woman was left homeless and had no place to go in Cal Anderson Park.

Both of these were avoidable tragedies.

None of these were things that could shouldn't have happened for no reason.

They both happened because of intentional things, decisions that have happened in our community.

The trans woman that was murdered in UW was because there was a locked key card that was split open, it was cut with uh with tools, and instead of Gray Star fixing the building, they let it be broken for months for someone to come in and murder this woman.

Not only this, when it was investigated by SPD, reportedly by students, all of the evidence was thrown away.

This is an there needs to be people held accountable for this, and there needs to be people held criminally accountable for this trans woman being murdered for no reason.

She should have been safe.

There is no reason why this should have happened.

We don't yet her know her name, but we do know that she should have been safe.

She deserved to be safe, as every other student does, as the council and the city and the mayor had have talked about the impending genocide to trans people.

We cannot leave people vulnerable.

We are the people that get targeted first.

We have people all over Seattle that are being targeted by homophobic, transphobic slurs being attacked, and they feel that nobody is standing up for them.

We need the city to be with us.

We need the city to stand by us, and it cannot happen with this going on.

The city needs to take a stand and very publicly come down on those that let this trans woman be murdered.

Thank you, Rose.

Next we have uh David Haynes.

David, Mr.

Haynes, star six to unmute yourself.

Hi, thank you.

We need to invest in transit signal priority.

It's an intelligence strategy that reduces delays for buses and light rail and street cars.

It's signalized intersections by allowing transit vehicles to communicate with the tran the traffic signals.

TSP, transit signal priority, extends the green lights or shortens the red lights, improving schedule reliability.

This could be applied on the Route 8 that's always late, and the Rapid Ride D from downtown to Ballard, and the rapid ride that they spend 140 million dollars going from downtown to West Seattle.

And on Third Avenue, so that you can hop on a bus from the Westlake and haul ass to the Seattle Center with the bus three or four or rapid ride D or I think the 13.

That said, we need to stop sharing the streets with the evil predatory drug pushers.

We need a better leadership at the top of the police chief who seems to have this skewed, scorned lived experience from the Jim Crow law cells that thinks that black and brown drug pushers should be exempted from jail because they're deemed the most vulnerable, as if they don't know any better, and that they're allowed to destroy their fellow man's lives and ruin the pursuits of happiness, and then create all these junkie thieves and be exempted from jail while nonprofits unqualified that are connected to the re-election apparatus are not overseen properly and not breaking the addiction of the conscription of all of these self-destructive individuals who take all the capacity away from innocent houseless residents and citizens who are being subhuman mistreated.

And you know, wherever you do bike, be well on the Burp gentleman between the Ballard Bridge and Seventeenth Ab, all the way up to Leary.

Okay, so we have reached the end of the list of registered speakers.

Public comment period is now closed.

There's not any more people signed up.

Thank you all for coming to council.

Your thoughtful emails and oh, I'm sorry.

I was just going through my apologies.

Council Member Strauss.

Uh, thank you, Council President.

Just putting on the for the record to reflect, this is the second time I've noticed that Howard Gale has personally impugned the motives of Councilmember Juarez as compared to anyone else on this council.

And so I'm just making this direct comment that the record does need to reflect that I am now seeing a pattern of behavior of this public commenter targeting a certain individual on our council.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember.

So now, Mr.

Gale.

So both so both of y'all are being disruptive.

Mr.

Gale, you're being disruptive now.

Okay.

So guess what?

We're going to go into a nice recess for five minutes until we can calm down and you're not disruptive in these chambers and being respectful.

And then if we come back and we're continuing to be disruptive at this council, we're going to move this online because we have a ton of business that we have to get through that people have come and took out of their day that makes sure that we get through this stuff.

So we're going to be on a five minute recess so we can calm down and be respectful to each other.

Awesome.

Welcome back.

Will the clerk please call the roll for the meeting?

Council Member Ring.

Present.

Council Member Rivera.

Present.

Council Member Saka.

Councilmember Strauss.

Councilmember Foster.

Here.

Councilmember Warz.

Council Member Kettle.

Here.

Councilmember Len.

Here.

Council President Holmes.

Here.

Seven present.

Alright, awesome.

We're gonna jump right into our agenda.

If there's no objection, the introduction refer referral calendar will be adopted.

Hearing no objection, the introduction referral calendar is adopted.

There's no objection, the agenda will be adopted.

Hearing none, the agenda is adopted.

We're gonna now consider the proposed consent calendar.

The consent calendar items include minutes of May the 5th, 2026, and Council Bill 121206.

Are there any items council members would like to remove from today's consent calendar?

Hearing none, I move to adopt the consent calendar.

Is there a second?

Thank you.

It's been moved and second to adopt the consent calendar.

Will the clerk please call the role on the adoption of the consent calendar?

Okay.

Council member.

Yes.

Councilmember Rivera?

Aye.

Councilmember Saka?

Aye.

Councilmember Strauss.

Councilmember Foster.

Yes.

Councilmember Warz.

Councilmember Kettle.

Aye.

Councilmember Lynn.

Yes.

Council President Hawksworth.

Yes.

Seven in favor, none opposed.

Awesome.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the minutes and legislation on the consent calendar on my behalf.

Colleagues, we're gonna move right into the agenda.

So we're gonna have uh will the clerk please read item number one into the record.

And for the record, Councilmember War is present.

Thank you.

Agenda item one, Councilville 121 171 relating to land use and zoning repealing ordinance one to seven one eighty-one, which allowed residential use within the CDM transition area overlay district under chapter 23.74.

Councilmember Steady Ready, Eddie Lynn, you are recognized to provide committee report.

Thank you, Council President.

Colleagues.

Um it was brought to the growth management hearings board.

We lost that appeal.

We were ordered to take action, um, and this bill uh ordinance, which would repeal the prior um ordinance one two seven one nine one addresses uh compliance with the growth management hearings board.

The the purpose of this bill is simply procedural and meant to comply with um the growth management hearings board.

It is not intended to revisit prior policy decisions uh about what uh uses should be allowed in this area.

I've had a number of meetings with uh many of the affected parties, uh including the building trades, the stadiums, the port, ILWU.

And um my message uh has been and continues to be um I think we need to find a negotiated uh settlement, a way to uh find a use that everyone can live with.

Um, you know, elected's um come and go, administrations come and go, but um, these partners that uh work in that area, they're gonna be there long term.

And I think you know it's not helpful when the pendulum swings one way or the other, when uh you know something gets uh passed and then appealed and and lawsuits happen.

If we can find a uh long-term solution if the parties can work together, and I'm certainly happy to work with the parties to do everything I can uh to help find that negotiated solution.

I think that's gonna be a better long-term solution.

Um, in the meantime, uh we we do need to comply with the growth management hearings board, and so um the the committee passes uh five to five to nothing, and I would encourage your support.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Lynn for the record, Councilmember Strauss is present.

Uh colleagues, are there any other further comments regarding Council Bill 121 171?

There is uh councilmember Rivera.

Sorry, Council President.

I think I got kicked off the main, um, so I can't raise my hand, but thank you for um uh calling on me.

Colleagues, um, I will vote yes today because the growth management board is requiring us to come into compliance, and that's important.

But I do want to publicly restate my support for the stadium housing, which would provide badly needed housing job and jobs, and um having folks living in the area would be a public safety benefit there as well.

Um, uh I know that there's some appeals growing through the courts, and depending on the results of those appeals, I'd um love to see this proposal um brought back.

Um, and yes, Councilmember Lynn, I think it's important for the partners to all work together um towards something uh that everyone can support, and it's important that when this was originally um negotiated, um there were some labor partners that felt like they were not part of that last, the final conversation, and and I don't think that's fair.

Um, and I would like to see something different because that doesn't always feel good as part of a final negotiation, and jobs are important, and so is housing.

So, anyway, I think these are all opportunities.

But um, thank you for bringing this forward.

Like you said, the growth management board is requiring us to come into compliance, and we need to do that.

So thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Rivera.

Councilmember Saka.

Thank you, Madam Council President.

Uh, first want to thank the committee chair Lynn for ushering this legislation through your committee.

Um that I think we could all agree like this doesn't this type of legislation doesn't make a lot of people feel good, regardless of how you land and where you where you stand on the underlying issue and the merits.

Uh but I do want to clarify up front that my vote today is based solely on the procedural aspects of this legislation, and that's it.

This is solely and exclusively about compliance with the growth management hearing board's requirement that our city address procedural irregularities.

I wish it were were more.

Well, some may wish it were more uh riveting, intriguing, palace intrigue about about reversals and revisiting these substantive issues.

No, this is about being in compliance with nitty-gritty technical procedural details.

To be clear, this is not about revisiting the broader policy debate around whether housing should or should not be allowed in Soto.

Those remain pending issues that our city will need to confront again at some point with the parties that are gonna outlive all of us being front and center and making those decisions, and part of that debate occurred extensively and when we had this original conversation.

Well, not original, but the most latest iteration of this conversation last year.

So my vote today should not be interpreted as a change in my underlying position on the substantive policy question itself.

Instead, it's just compliance with nitty gritty procedural aspects of this legislation.

We also need to be compliant.

And uh that's it.

It's about procedural compliance, not the substantive merits of of this bill or the underlying legislation rather.

So thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Saka.

Are there any other comments on Council Bill 121171 before we take the vote?

I share the same sentiments, uh comments of Councilmember Rivera and Councilmember Saka with my vote.

I said it in committee that this is procedural for my end, does not change my opinion as well.

So uh will the clerk please call the roll.

Council member Ring.

Yes.

Council Member Rivera, aye.

Council Member Saka?

Aye, Councilmember Strauss?

Aye.

Councilmember Foster?

Yes.

Councilmember Juarez.

Aye.

Councilmember Kettle?

Aye.

Councilmember Lin?

Yes.

Council President Holicros.

Aye.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

The bill passes.

The chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation on my behalf?

We're gonna go jump into item number two.

Will the clerk please read item number two into the record?

They report the finance native communities and travel governments committee agenda item two, Council Bill two zero one, relating to 2026 Federation of the Football Association World Cup authorizing the mayor or the mayor's designee to execute an agreement between Seattle FWC 26 and the City of Seattle.

The committee recommends that the bill passes amended.

Awesome.

Uh Councilmember Strauss, as chair of the committee, you are recognized.

Oh thank you, Council President.

We've got FIFA coming up in is it 35 days?

26 days, 20.

It's coming.

It's right around the corner.

And we are all very excited and to make sure that we are well prepared.

We are receiving funds from the federal and from the state government.

And we are also receiving some funds from our local organizing committee.

And we are entering into an agreement with our local organizing committee.

And so there this one million dollars that we're receiving from the local organizing committee is not being appropriated in this bill.

We will come back and appropriate this one million dollars after FIFA so that we understand what departments have spent how much money on which things, and then we will do our we will do our best to backfill that.

We then also have 15 million dollars, which is accepted grant and appropriated for safety and security, and then we have a third grant, which we are accepting and appropriating for counter drone activity.

We're not buying, there's this is solely for personnel training, planning, uh there's no equipment, so we're not getting any drone catchers.

But that's the those are the three elements, the four elements of this bill.

We have an agreement, we have a million dollars that we are accepting but not appropriating.

We have 15 million dollars that we are accepting and appropriating for safety and security, and then we have 2.1 million dollars that we are accepting and appropriating towards anti-drone activity.

I urge a yes vote because this is right around the corner, and we need to get our city ready to host an international soccer event, football event, excuse me.

And I would be remiss to say Ballard FC and Salmon Bay FC start their season this weekend.

I look forward to seeing you all at Interbay pitch pagliacci pitch.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Strauss.

Are there any comments regarding the bill before us?

Council Bill 121 20201.

Any closing comments, Councilmember Strauss?

No, looking forward to FIFA.

Awesome.

Will the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill?

Council Member Rick?

Yes.

Aye.

Council Member Rivera.

Hi.

Council Member Strauss.

Council Member Foster.

Yes.

Councilmember Juarez.

Aye.

Council Member Kettle.

Aye.

Council Member Lynn?

Yes.

Council President Longsworth.

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

Bill passes, the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please fix my signature on the bill on my behalf?

Uh now will the clerk please read item number three into the record.

The report of the transportation waterfront and Seattle Center Committee agenda demon three.

Council Bill 121, 176 relating to shared streets, adding a new chapter, 11.45 to Seattle Mississippi Code.

The committee recommends the ball passes amended.

Councilmember Saka as chair of the committee, you're recognized.

Thank you, Madam Council President.

I'll say a few words as chair of the council committee overseeing this legislation, and I'll uh at your pleasure would love to pass it on to the legislation sponsor.

But thank you for putting this item on today's agenda.

Um it is my privilege to hear this important piece of legislation in our steps committee last week.

Uh in April 20 to set the foundation for this in April 2025, Washington passed uh Senate Bill 5595 and became the first state in the country to authorize shared streets, a paradigm shift that could reshape how people move in cities across the state and serve as a model nationwide.

This critical designation gives walkers and bikers priority, slows vehicle traffic to 10 miles per hour, and removes jaywalking restrictions.

This is a major step toward safer people centered streets.

I'm excited to uh vote to approve this bill today.

I want to thank uh the bill's sponsor, Councilmember Strauss, for bringing this forward.

And at this moment, Council President, uh yield the floor to Councilmember Strauss at your pleasure.

Councilmember Strauss.

Thank you, thank you.

And thank you, Councilmember Saka.

Just uh I want to highlight and really provide my appreciation for the history that you provided, the stage that you set at your committee last week.

Uh it was I could tell that you cared a lot about that.

You care a lot about this bill, and that and that you were very excited that this was council-generated legislation because we had waited for SDOT for too long, and we're excited to move forward with this.

Um, because SDOT still needs to take the next steps of the implementing either policies or legislation.

This law is wow, five years in the making.

Um, if you look at pictures of old-time Seattle here down in Pioneer Square, you see a mix of people walking across the street with some street cars and some horses, and it looks like somebody left a helmet here.

There were bicycles even in those pictures.

Um, what you saw was actually what looks like what is what Pike Place Market has looked like with just lots of activity all moving very slowly, all in the public realm, which is the street.

But somehow, pike place market became the anomaly instead of the regularity of our city.

And over the course of that time, what we just became very everyone either got in a lane, or if they didn't have a lane, they got in somebody else's lane and took the risks, right?

Um, and so I guess fast forward or rewind uh to 2021.

We were in the pandemic in Ballard.

We were looking at how could we make Ballard Avenue a business street that could continue generating economic activity that could keep our owner-operated restaurants that are on a thin margin still operating, still making money, still giving Seattleites and a vibrant place to engage with each other despite this pandemic.

And so we turned Ballard Avenue from a two-way street into a one way street so that those cafes could have more space to operate.

And we ran a number of design shreds.

Um the council, many different iterations of this council have supported my incremental budget amendments that fund just enough to get us to the next stage.

That's me prepping us that I might have another one of those incremental budget amendments coming up soon with the next step for Ballard Avenue.

And when we were sitting there, we had traffic speeding by us.

And while the lowest speed limits can be put down to 20 miles an hour, I think Ballard Avenue is still 25, but let's play it safe and say it's 20.

When you're sitting there trying to engage with the other people that you're dining with, and you're sitting in public space, and a vehicle moves past you, you know, three to five feet away, if it's moving five, ten miles an hour, everything's fine.

Like, I mean, as long as every as long as the driver maintains their eyes on the road, two hands on the wheel and keeps moving forward, everything's fine.

There, but when a tree when everyone is moving slowly together, we're able to stop bad things from happening or accidents or collisions, etc.

And what we found was that the state had preemption authority on the city to determine our speed limits for streets like Ballard Avenue, like Pike Place.

Um I've heard a number of other council members share streets in their own districts that could benefit from this, and when we heard public comment at Chair Saka at your committee, I heard Heather Peel and Mark Ostro speak really elegantly to why this is important for Seattle today, for now, for the future, and so in that 2021 lunch time design charrette lunchtime break that we were eating out on Ballard Avenue, and these cars were whipping past us.

We realized that the state had preemption, and so we started working to have that state law changed.

It took another four years, so 2025 was when that bill was introduced to the legislature.

It was passed out of the legislature over a year ago, and since that time I've been working with STOT to figure out why are we moving so slowly, why what can't we move faster?

Can we just pass this?

And so that was the genesis of us doing our council generated legislation, which is different than receiving legislation generated by the mayor or by the department itself.

And so, Councilmember Sokka, again, appreciate you having this in your committee and putting it forward and clarifying for the public, there's a two-meeting rule on uh on the department-generated legislation.

Um, and I'm just here to celebrate with Mark with Heather, with everyone else that's advocated for this for so long, because while this is an important step to move forward, it's also not the end because we still need to have these streets designated, and I'm really hoping that the mayor sends down that list soon, or if not, if we just generate our own legislation again.

But this is really, if you look back to the historic pictures of Seattle, people always like to reminisce about this time in the past, reminisce about those pictures where everyone was in the street together because it was a shared public space as compared to the streets that we have today, and that's what this legislation intends to do.

Uh not on every city street, just on a few.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Strauss for all your work in bringing this, and thank you, Councilmember Saka for hearing it in your committee.

And just want to pause here.

Are there any other comments about the bill?

I know there's a there's a an amend or an amendment, but just want to, if there are any further comments, okay.

Councilmember Rivera, you are recognized.

Thank you, Council President.

Um, or council president, I'm requesting that council rules be suspended to allow consideration of an amendment that was circulated after the rule deadline.

Is there oh go ahead?

I was just gonna say, is there any objection?

I object.

Okay, so there is an objection, and that sends us to a vote to vote on the council rules being suspended.

Um so right now, colleagues, I'll explain.

We there's a motion to suspend the rules to bring a walk-on amendment to this legislation.

There's an objection, so we have to vote.

We're voting on yes to allow the rules to be suspended.

Is that correct?

Yes is to allow the rules to be suspended.

No, no is to wait.

Can you all yes to allow the rules to be suspended?

No, to not allow the rules to be expended.

So, yes, if you want the roles to be suspended to hear the amendment, no, for us not to uh not to hear the amendment uh for the rules to be suspended.

Is everyone clear on that?

Just looking left and right, everyone knows what yes and no means.

Awesome.

Will the clerk please call the role uh for the objection to the rules being suspended?

Council member?

No.

Councilmember Rivera?

Aye.

Council Member Saka.

Aye.

Councilmember Strauss.

No.

Councilmember Foster?

No.

Councilmember Warz?

Yes.

Council Member Kettle?

Aye.

Council Member Lynn.

No.

Council President Alex Ross.

Yes.

It's five in favor, four opposed.

So the rules.

Pardon me.

So no, it had needed a majority.

Two thirds.

Two-thirds.

So motion fails, or that motion is uh success.

Wait.

It fails.

It fails.

That motion fails.

So that means that we can hear the we cannot hear the amendment.

Sorry.

I'm confusing yes or no in which one.

I apologize.

I know that.

So now so we can't hear that.

Uh we will not be able to hear the amendment on the floor.

And uh now.

Does anyone have any is anyone have any comments regarding the bill at hand?

Uh councilmember Rivera followed by Council Member Saka.

Go ahead.

I'll have last if you don't mind.

I'll have last word.

Yeah, okay, absolutely.

Um thank you.

Uh Council President, and to those of you who voted to at least hear the amendment.

Um I will say this is disappointing.

You didn't have to vote for the amendment, but I think it's important for us to extend each other the courtesy to always at least listen.

Um I will say that the amendment, I was trying to bring an amendment, it was last minute.

I apologize for that.

I didn't realize this was coming before full council today.

Um the amendment was really to re uh require SDOT to bring um their plans through council for uh through a public uh council meeting for transparency after learning from central staff that we do not know what shared streets will look like.

This is not a program like healthy streets.

The city of Seattle has healthy streets whereby um we can close streets off.

This is not that.

This is a broader approach and plan.

I understand that the um a big portion of this which I support is toward our vision zero goals.

I just simply wanted STOT to have to bring something back to council so that we knew what they were doing, and then we could share that with our constituents.

Yes, while we're um within our right to reach out to SDOT departments don't always readily share ahead of time, and sometimes we don't find things out till the back end what they're doing, and this would have provided that opportunity to get that transparency on the front end.

Um, so unfortunately this won't go forward, but I did want to state for the record and let the public know what the amendment would have done and really was to provide that transparency, would not have prevented um the shared streets from moving forward.

That's not my goal here.

Um, but it is to provide, like I said, S dot.

I do hear from many constituents frustration around SDOT and the lack of transparency.

So that was what that was about.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Rivera.

We have Councilmember Kettle followed by Councilmember Lynn and then Councilmember Saka.

Last words.

Thank you, Council President.

I just wanted to take the opportunity to thank uh councilmember Sokka for working this as um uh Councilmember Strauss noted it's uh very important um uh piece of legislation.

I also want to thank Councilmember Strauss, who's been advocating for a long time.

In fact, I drove by that area coming back from the Nordic Museum last night.

We had a Sound Transit Three meeting uh Town Hall at the Nordic Museum in Ballard, and uh you know, driving by that area and and just seeing the activity that's that's happening in and in Ballard is important, but it's not just Ballard, it's all across the city to include district seven, and one of the things that we're looking to do is find those opportunities in district seven.

Like we're looking to create a civic campus uh on the uh Queen Anne and uh, you know, in that area, but also you know, really building up the Queen Anne Boulevard Park.

So we have opportunities uh to really create this uh shared street experience uh throughout the city to include uh district seven, and I just wanted to thank uh um on the transportation side uh council member soccer, but also the advocacy because I know it's been working for years of uh councilmember show.

So thank you, Council President.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Kettle.

Councilmember Lynn.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you uh to Councilmember Saka, Councilmember Strauss uh for your leadership with this bill.

Um and just briefly on on the procedures for the designation of chair street.

I certainly hope that there's engagement from SDOT uh with council on that, and uh would love to have uh to get updates through the steps committee uh for that because I do think that's an important uh piece of the next steps.

So thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Lynn.

Councilmember Juarez.

Thank you.

Uh thank you, madam chair or madam president.

Um I just wanted to say first of all to thank Councilmember Strauss, because I understood and I remember how the shared streets grew out of COVID when we we shut down the streets.

I think that's when you also brought some legislation for I was gonna open a fried bread hut, right?

Is that what the same time?

Yeah, yeah.

You still can that law is still on the books.

So I I appreciate that, but I wanted to thank um Councilmember Rivera because I know the point that she was trying to make.

I always try to vote yes, is a courtesy, yes, because I think I I would like to hear more, and I'm sure I'm sorry that it got in too late.

Uh besides the transparency piece, and I the question that it was put to me that I I wanted to examine under the bill itself, and looking at the um fiscal note and the summary and background of the legislation.

I'm guessing, Councilmember Rivera, that you were not um convinced or not satisfied that when they say the the legislation would establish shared streets in the Seattle municipal code and would assign the responsibility for establishing procedures for the designation of shared streets to the city traffic engineer.

So I'm guessing you felt that that was not enough.

And my only concern um if it if this would have if you would if you had if we had the votes to go and vote on this, I would have voted for this amendment, and I'll tell you why it'll just be very brief.

Is because we've had a history of trying to decide who gets a shared street and how um we've had we've had I can't speak for every district, but now specifically for a while there in D5, we had issues where a lot of neighborhoods did not want their street closed, um was the thoroughfare parking, whatever, and wanted to know who who made the decision and how is it made.

Um we've had times where parks um and some properties along Lake Washington streets were closed and it blocked off folks from not getting there.

Um and we looked at other neighborhoods like um Golden Gardens, Carr Keek, Magnuson.

I can rattle all those off that were not closed, and so people start getting angry like why is my street being closed or these three streets, but this neighborhood isn't touched.

And so I guess the question was, and I was hoping we would have more of a discussion with Councilmember Rivera's amendment.

You know, I don't necessarily think we should make SDOT drag them in front of us every time they want to close a street, but at least share with us, and I'm hoping this legislation does this with the city engineer tells us what factors they look at when they make these determinations.

And as of today's date, since I've been on council, I've never seen how that works.

And I've been here for almost 10 years, especially after COVID.

They just would tell us we've we're putting it, we're closing the street.

And we're like, okay.

So that that was my point.

I I'm not trying to make you know make points with any particular voting block or group or base.

I just want to know how you got there.

I just want to know how that what the factors were used and if there's any input from folks like us who are asking, particularly in some of the neighborhoods um where we have small businesses where people couldn't get there or to park, and that was a problem.

So I just want to note that.

And so with that, um, I'm going to put my faith in Councilmember Strauss's legislation and councilmember Sokka's wisdom as well, that the city engineer will make the choices, and if we can have those follow-up questions, that they will be answered in a timely manner.

So thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Warez.

Uh, are there any additional comments?

Yes, y there is, uh Councilmember Rivera.

Sorry, I was looking for your name and I forgot.

No, Councilmember Rivera, you're good.

Here I am here.

Here are my hands up.

Um thank you, Councilmember Horace.

Um you're correct, and I I feel like you, I mean, I've been here this my third year, and I don't always know how STAT makes their decisions, and I often am feeling like I'm getting things post facto, and then our constituents are reaching out to us, and then they, you know, some of them get upset, and I just want more transparency.

I will so I will say, however, that when I was talking to central staff today about the shared streets, I was trying to get the difference between shared streets and healthy streets because we did healthy streets during COVID to give people the opportunity to be outdoors in a safe way.

This is not that.

They're actually not the same thing.

The shared streets is more an of a citywide approach.

Do we um you know uh our non-interials go from 25 miles an hour to 10, that kind of thing.

And that's not a street, that's every street, and that's that's I mean, that's just an example.

I'm not saying that's gonna happen, but it's an example, and so it is this person who will go back.

I suppose with a team of people, I can only assume, and then they will say overall across the city, these are the different things that we will implement.

I just want to know ahead of time what they're coming up with.

So people aren't blindsided on the back end, really, at the end of the day.

And this would not have prevented them from implementing anything or moving forward.

This was just tell us as a full council and in the public, it could have been during a council briefing.

This is what we're doing.

Um, in the absence of that, we don't always get that, like I said earlier, ahead of time from the department, and it is that one person that gets to dictate how all of this goes, and because there was that lack of clarity on what the share streets were that central staff who've been tracking this the whole time, it wasn't actually defined in the legislation at the state level what this would look like.

It's up to every city to determine what this looks like.

And so Estat will have to determine what this looks like.

We have no idea today what this looks like, and because of that, I thought it was prudent for us to require the department to come, you know, at some full council venue to let us know.

So thank you.

I wanted to explain that.

I wanted to explain the distinction between healthy streets, which we still have, and the shared streets approach.

Um, and also again, I want to state again for the record, I very much support the vision zero.

We have um a lot of kids in our in my district and and many schools, and we want to make sure people are safe, crossing, biking, etc.

Uh rolling.

Um, and so this had that.

My um our vision zero um and our and our I think collective desires to have our vis our vision zero goals met had nothing to do with asking the department to come and bring us a plan and have that transparency.

I don't think one uh is in c uh in conflict with the other.

Thank you.

Thank you, CP.

Awesome, thank you.

Uh Councilmember Sokka.

Thank you, madam, council president.

Uh first I want to just comment on the uh the unsuccessful amendment here.

Um first off, want to want to thank Council Member Rivera for bringing this forward.

Uh I was like Councilmember Warez, well, kind of.

I I was gonna be in a position where I at least supported the uh I certainly supported the the notion that we should at least this amendment idea should be uh considered, heard, debated, and then voted upon.

Um, and I thought we were we're rocking together, Councilmember Juarez, until you said you were gonna vote for for it.

Uh I I I for folks who have been paying close attention, you'll know that I've been clear and consistent and principled in my position that we all deserve to have our ideas voted and debated and and decided.

And and that's why I supported that sort of procedural uh motion to to do that exactly that with this amendment.

I I did land the other way with the um with how I would have voted on this amendment on the on the merits.

I I appreciate Councilmember Rivera for bringing it forward because in my mind at a high level, this is a good governance amendment, and this is a transparency uh piece intended to promote good governance, drive transparency.

Those are those are laudable, commendable, worthwhile public policy goals and aims that this council has consistently sought to uh to address and and it's various public policy discussions, public policy decisions over the years, and we should continue to do that.

Um where I diverge on this one though is the uh the have to the reporting piece before these decisions are are made and implemented.

Um we're confronting a traffic safety crisis right now.

We we know too many people are dying on our on our roads and suffering serious bodily injuries and our rights away.

And I'm as one of the the lawmakers on this body, I'm I am personally trying to to find ways to expedite project delivery.

I'm trying to find ways to uh to drive project velocity of these critical set traffic safety projects um and accelerate the the planning, design, and construction of these traffic safety projects across our city.

And and so if if there was a a minor tweak but important tweak in language that said the department should report on this uh kind of on a looking back basis as opposed to before the projects are implemented.

I I I could probably get comfortable with that.

Um it's really the distinction between looking back on projects that are already delivered versus kind of forward-looking in perspective and and and you know that kind of reporting.

One in my mind imposes a higher hurdle, uh a bigger burden, and that could potentially um, you know, I worry about the potential unintended consequences of of you know slowing down when we're in a point when our city where we need to ideally try and expedite some of these projects, but I but I do strongly support and stand by the underlying goal, and I appreciate Councilmember Rivera for bringing forward uh and and doing our best to center that underlying goal of promoting good governance, improving transparency.

Um I just would have preferred uh kind of looking back reporting.

In any event, the main bill, as amended or not, the main bill is terrific.

Um, excited to be able to support it today.

Uh wanna thank Councilmember Strauss again for for bringing bringing this forward and partnering so closely with me uh in my office uh to get to this point.

Uh and shout out to State Senator Emily, I think Elvarado, right?

Who was the state legislative prime sponsor of this bill, so she's also my uh state senator um and the 34th and and sort of vice versa from a city perspective.

But thank you.

Pass unanimously, accourage, unanimous support here today.

Thank you.

Thank you, Council Member Saka.

Councilmember Strauss.

Thank you.

I will even though I I guess let me re-confirm Calvin Chow on our central staff wrote this bill.

We could not have done that without SDOTS assistance.

So I made it sound like they were not helpful.

They were very helpful.

So just want to clear that up.

I realized what I said and how it came across.

Just wanted to thank SDOT for all of your support on this, and then also agree with Council uh President Emeritus Juarez here, where you know the sometimes the traffic engineer does things that I don't understand.

And for instance, I recently requested a bike lane in my district, and the res what we received were speed humps.

I didn't realize that a speed hump is a bike lane, but maybe I'm new here.

All that to say is I think it would be good if they SDOC came back to your committee, Chair Saka, to present their program at whatever discretion that you want to have with them, you know, whatever time frame and however that works.

I do think that more information is better.

And that we do need to be able to reduce speeds down to 10 miles an hour on certain streets, and we shouldn't wait any longer.

So I want to thank SDOP for all your work.

Thank you, Calvin Chow, for all your work.

Uh, thank you to Senator Alvarado and every and Mark Ostro and everyone who championed this from 2021 through the legislature and to today.

Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Strauss.

As long as I can still go 20 on my bike, I'm good.

There is nothing in here.

Okay, so are we gonna vote?

Councilmember Rivera.

Well, Council President, I really don't want to leave it on the table that's gonna change our streets to 10 miles an hour.

That was just an example.

That was just not this is gonna happen.

So I wanna be really clear.

Um, I don't want people to be confused about that.

Um, but I do know that this is about vision zero, and I very much support that.

Awesome, thank you so much.

All right, so are we ready to vote, colleagues?

Yes, yes, all right.

Praise God.

Can we vote for Council Bill 121 17?

Council.

Oh, okay.

We're just kidding.

Okay, I'm gonna say this left side down here, hot mess.

Okay.

Call the roll one-two-one-one seven-six.

Council member Rink, yes, Councilmember Rivera.

I, Councilmember Saka.

Aye.

Council Member Strauss.

Councilmember Foster.

Yes.

Councilmember Juarez?

Hi.

Councilmember Strauss.

Sorry, that wasn't a joke.

Um, colleagues, uh, want to give you update on sound transit.

Councilmember Kettle joined myself in the 36th legislative district and Councilmember Jorge Barone yesterday at the National Nordic Museum to discuss the current status of the Sound Transit approaches.

Uh, since the last time I saw you all, uh, we had the three approaches that Sound Transit staff presented, none of which prioritized ridership.

From there, Chair Summers of the entire 18 member board uh presented the chair's package on how to move forward.

This package does many different things.

I'm not gonna get into those details right now.

I just sent you all an email and how you can testify at either the executive meeting this week or the executive meeting uh the full board meeting next week.

Those are the only two opportunities to provide public comment between now and final passage of the chair's package, unless the process slows down.

That we do have 100% design for Graham Street in there.

We are getting all the way to the West Seattle Junction.

We are stopping short at Seattle Center in what they are still calling the Ballard segment, even though Seattle Center, as Council Member Kettle put it, is not even adjacent to Ballard.

Um, North King Caucus is gonna be putting forward some amendments.

I'm gonna be putting forward some of my own amendments, and it would be really great to have your voice heard at Sound Transit.

If you are planning to attend, please just let my office know so that we can make sure that all the small details are taken care of.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you, Councilmember Strauss.

Are there any additional comments?

It's great to get update from you and thank you for all your hard work.

I know you've been out here putting on uh forums and town halls and been very active uh in in making sure that we can build the dam trains.

So thank you for that, Councilmember Strauss.

Really appreciate all your work on that, and representing the city of Seattle on the Sound Transit Board.

Colleagues, are there any more items to come before the council?

I'm looking to the right.

Councilmember Kettle has his stuff, he's ready to go.

I'm looking to the left.

All right.

This meeting is adjourned.

The next meeting will be May 19th at 2 p.m.

Hearing no further business, we're adjourned.

Thank you.

That one has been like pushing the rock of things.

Councilmember Kettle was ready to go.