1) Crime is down in the city, but we’ve seen some horrible incidents with the police in recent years. How do we ensure public safety and not have those sorts of things happen in the future?

I believe the Seattle Police Department is composed of very professional officers who take pride in protecting the well-being of our residents. But recent events have shown that there are indeed some “bad apples” in the bunch. The City Council should send a strong message to the Police Department that these types of incidents will not be tolerated, and that we should continue to support and strengthen the Office of Professional Accountability Review Board’s mission. I am certain with these actions, we will continue to have a police force that our Seattle residents will be proud of, and that unfortunate incidents such as these will become a thing of the past.

2) Now that the Viaduct is coming down, what should the waterfront look like?

I personally believe that the central portion of the Viaduct should not be torn down. As shown with the Highline in New York City, a fortified Viaduct (in conjunction with a rebuilt seawall and the removal of traffic from the structure) will allow the structure to remain in use for pedestrians for many years to come. In its existing state, the structure can connect all of the major attractions that bring visitors to downtown Seattle, including access to Safeco and CenturyLink fields, Pioneer Square, the Central Business District, and a possible connection to Pike Place Market and the Waterfront Sculpture Park.

An added benefit to the Viaduct is its double decking. The top levels could be used as a park, allowing City residents and tourists (both local and others) to enjoy an unparalleled view of Seattle’s downtown core, Puget Sound, and the Olympic Mountains. The bottom level could be used as a place for local merchants, including artisans and food vendors, to sell their merchandise. The top level would act as a covering, allowing the structure to be used year- round, allowing for increased usability and access throughout the year.

The street level beneath the Viaduct could be used as an alternative route to the Waterfront Streetcar, and would allow for a (reduced) number of parking spaces. This would allow the city to take much less of a hit on parking revenues, while allowing a place for cyclists to have an enjoyable trip along their waterfront.

3) As the great recession drags on, the city budget is still hurt. What do we need to cut, what do we need to keep, and do we need to raise more money via taxation?

Due to the Great Recession, many working people and families are struggling to make ends meet, and cannot afford to pay increased taxes. I believe that we should focus our efforts and available funding toward projects that will maintain our present infrastructure, while identifying areas of city government that need improvement and developing a plan to improve them. This way, projects that will be needed in the future will already be identified and can be executed when available funding can be secured.

Services that are vital to the well-being to residents’ livelihood, such as transit, neighborhood infrastructure improvements (like sidewalks and street repairs) should be maintained at their current levels, while additions such as streetcar extensions should be postponed until funding becomes available.

4) With its budget shrunk at least until the end of the recession what should Seattle parks look like?

Despite the shrunken budgets, I believe that there is no excuse for Seattle’s park maintenance to become lax. Although it is desirable to continue to expand the park system, the current economic situation requires that we continue to maintain our parks at the same level of care that Seattle residents have come to expect over the years.

5) What is the Seattle’s role in education and public transportation given how important they are to the city, but that other agencies are tasked with them?

Seattle’s role in education, although limited, should be to provide a safe environment free of crime and intimidation. Over the last couple of years, we have heard about a disturbing trend of violent crimes being committed near some of our schools. This reduces the safety of our students and creates an atmosphere that makes both parents and students reluctant to attend school. The City should work with school administrators and Seattle Police to ensure that crime and intimidation will not be tolerated at any of our schools. By doing this, we can provide a safe, caring environment for those who are working hard to make a bright future for themselves and become productive members of our society.

Seattle’s role in public transportation is also quite pronounced. Even though Metro is not directly funded or operated by the city, it is important that the City provide decent infrastructure. I believe many of our residents are inclined to take transit and reduce vehicle trips, but are reluctant to do so when it is unsafe or inconvenient to access them. We must work to maintain our roads and arterials, which, when properly maintained, provide the foundation for all safe forms of transit, and help Seattle achieve its goal of reducing transportation’s effect on the environment.

Ryan Blethen trying to explain The Seattle Times’ new feature, Just Fix It, doesn’t do a good job making me want to read it. I’m going to ignore the fact that the title implies simple solutions. And I’m going to ignore that the Seattle Times’ vehement opposition to tax increases means that they don’t really want to have the conversation they say they want to have. No, my problem is even more basic.

The intractable, sophomoric politics that has come to define this era is nothing new. Americans have been dealing with such bursts of dysfunction since the beginning of the republic.

While I don’t like the intractability of today’s politics, it seems that The Seattle Times would oppose the sorts of things that would make our politics more, um, tractable. On the state level, they should eliminate the 2/3 requirement to pass any taxes. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen editorials in favor of that very requirement. Nationally, I’d suggest eliminating the filibuster will tract the hell out of things. In both cases, fundamentally, make our representative democracy more democratic.

But I suspect people like me and the rest of the rest of blogtopia (y!sctp) are part of what he means by “sophomoric” (although he only names cable news). You know, people willing to admit an ideology. People who care more about outcomes than the game. People who say fuck and shit. People who aren’t the right people. People who didn’t have their idealism and ideology sucked out of them at journalism school and then learned the right way to do things with some father figure (sometimes more literally than others) in the business.

No, those of us with our sophomoric notions about how to express ourselves in the absence of our daddy’s newspaper will continue right along.

– I’m not much of a beer person, but the White House homebrew is pretty amazing (h/t).

– Perhaps the oddest thing about the people so eager to cheer the death penalty is that they don’t think the government can do anything right.

– Drug patents.

– The Mariners may be terrible but at least they aren’t going to lose 100 games.

– Boxing is my favorite individual sport, but the standards of sportsmanship escape me.

The Tacoma Teachers strike is still going on, and that’s the perfect excuse for Lynne Varner to act like a jackass:

By defying a judge’s order to return to work, Tacoma teachers are courting danger. This Seattle Times editorial sums up general public impatience: get back into the classroom and continue to hammer out a good contract.

The first link doesn’t say anything about the judge’s order (it may have at some point). But Judge Bryan Chushcoff did in fact issue a temporary restraining order (pdf). But given #9 “The parties are ordered to return as soon as practical to collective bargaining and shall continue to bargain in good faith throughout out the term of this temporary restraining order” perhaps Lynne will demand fines for the school board. After all, the union lays out clearly:

Tacoma teachers came to the bargaining table with a new compromise contract proposal today.

After keeping teachers waiting 2.5 hours past the scheduled 1:30 pm start time, negotiators for the Tacoma School Board did not offer a proposal. They also failed to offer a response to the teachers’ proposal.

Negotiations ended at 5 pm.

I look forward to Lynne’s post demanding a fine for the administration for not showing good faith. Since the district isn’t working to “hammer out a good contract” she should be upset.

– I make fun of The Seattle Times ed page, but this is quite reasonable.

– The American Jobs Act just got a whole lot stupider.

– Olympians support the Longshoremen.

– Michael Moore shouldn’t have said that.

– Tim Ceis’s state map is a hard bargaining position (#3).

– This open thread dated by request in the last one. I don’t know if I’ll keep it up.

When The Seattle Times headlines an editorial “Timing off for Seattle’s mandatory paid-sick-leave law” perhaps they might hint as to when they’d come out in favor of mandatory paid sick leave. Seems like timing is an issue for them on a lot of issues recently. Their opposition to health care reform was because it’s time to put it on the back burner and focus on jobs. Their opposition to tax increases no matter what is because it’s the wrong time to increase taxes.

I can’t wait until the economy improves and The Seattle Times demands more workplace rules. And they demand tax increases. And they demand even more comprehensive health care reform. I mean unless you think they’re being cynical about the whole thing, and just using the bad economy as an excuse not to do things they don’t want to do.

The forecast is out and it’s brutal. Another $1.4 Billion down. Here are some random thoughts:

• We’ve already cut too far. It’s time to increase taxes. In Washington they’re often regressive and not a great idea in a bad economy. But they’re better than the cuts we’ll have to make.
• I can only imagine what this will do to schools and government services.
• We really need an income tax.
• Maybe I’m wrong, but it sure feels like everyone knew the forecast would be bad before it came out. In the last open thread there was some discussion about how we’d want to forecast more accurately.

– War on Cars

– Market forces are incredibly powerful. It’s amazing what can happen when they’re pushed in a certain direction through regulation.

– It’s time to end the Electoral College.

– Hollywood has run out of ideas.

– I was just telling Darryl at Drinking Liberally, that I probably link to too many bug things in the open threads. This post on zombie caterpillars will have to add to the number.

The House Republicans are upset with the National Labor Relations Board is enforcing the law so the House will have a vote this week on restricting its abilities to close plants, even if those plants were open in states to retaliate against workers. Of course Boeing moving to South Carolina is the proximate reason for this, but anything that helps their corporate masters, the Republicans support.

Still, as long as there are right to work* states and states that respect people’s rights to form a union, there are going to be problems. Companies are going to use the threat, and the fact, of moving to right to work states to extract concessions. So it seems the best solution would be to stop states from becoming so called right to work states. Make sure that there are strong, federal, protections for unions.

[Read more…]

– It’s been discussed in the last thread, but crowds at GOP debates sure do like the idea of people dying.

– Poor Donald Rumsfield.

– For the Children.

– Tacoma teachers vote to strike.

– The beast that kills jobs.

– For some reason.

The condescending anti-worker editorials are coming fast from The Trib. Today’s is about a possible strike by Tacoma teachers (who have already once agreed not to strike, and got nothing for that).

They have starkly different visions of what that is. Teachers want to hold the line on salaries, class sizes, and policies regarding displacements and transfers. School administrators, facing state and federal mandates to improve performance and the prospect of yet more budget cutbacks, want more flexibility from the teachers union so that they can deal with those challenges.

If it’s public or private, “flexibility” means management does whatever the hell it wants without any accountability.

Tacoma’s teachers should vote today not to strike, to keep teaching and to continue negotiating without a contract. If they do vote to strike, the administration should immediately seek a court injunction. Any judge that gets the case should assess daily fines on teachers who do not report to their classrooms.

However Tacoma teachers vote today, I oppose this anti-union strategy. A strike is a big deal, and I think it’s fair to say that they would prefer to be teaching. But the teachers know what’s at stake more than the ed boards, and if 80% of members are willing to strike, it says more about the administration than the union.

– To sum up: a taxpayer-subsidized international conglomerate, which is operating on public property, is suing the public so it can avoid paying the area’s standard wages and undercut its competitors that do. (h/t)

– I keep hearing how McDermott and McGinn never get anything done.

– Obama is responsible for the negative job growth at the end of the Bush administration.

– RIP Brian Fairbrother

– Just one.

– My Kiva team is pretty amazing.

1) Crime is down in the city, but we’ve seen some outrageous incidents involving police in recent years. How do we ensure public safety and not have those sorts of things happen in the future?

I strongly believe that the SPD has many good officers and supervisors – but regret that there have been too many high-profile incidents that have, justifiably, cast a bad light on the department. We need to rebuild mutual trust between citizens and those who work so hard to protect and make our city a safe place to live and work.

I believe that our three-cornered system of police accountability has, for the most part, served us well, but it is clear that we need to work toward improving the system. For one, I support a pilot project to evaluate the use of body cameras for on-duty officers. If the pilot is successful, this may be the wave of the future. Second, we need better police training, most especially in the area of cultural sensitivity. To this end, I support the 11-step proposal of the Public Safety and Education Committee—including enhanced hiring standards and training of officers, expedited review of potential criminal charges against officers, monthly reports of findings of sustained misconduct, and drug-testing for officers involved in the use of deadly force. However, we do need to be cognizant that some of these measures must be negotiated with the Seattle Police Officers’ Guild.

2) Now that the Viaduct is coming down, what should the waterfront look like?

The waterfront should become the city’s front door, comprising a crescent of parks, walkways, bike paths, and a boulevard that stretches from the stadium district to the Sculpture Park. There should be ample sidewalks for outdoor dining, irresistible shops and romantic restaurants, a small boat harbor, trees, shrubs and flowers, and a beach where we can meet the water. I envision a Eurostyle plaza, a children’s spray park, a space for Summer Nights’ on the Pier, perhaps an amphitheater (Shakespeare on the waterfront). New housing opportunities would allow more people to live near where they work. Small businesses would flourish as patrons come from all over to visit our waterfront. The Pike Place Market would tumble down the hill to offer fresh vegetable and flowers, fresh-baked bread and hand-made crafts. Priorities would include a passenger-friendly redevelopment of Colman Dock, an enhanced waiting area for foot ferries, and ample space for Port of Seattle harbor activities.

3) As the great recession drags on, the city budget is still hurting. What do we need to cut, what do we need to keep, and do we need to raise more money via taxation?

As Budget Chair, my top priority has been ensuring that vital human services — such as community health clinics and domestic violence programs— are prioritized. When the Mayor tried to reduce human services, neighborhood programs, and libraries I said “No way.” In addition, I worked to restore funding for community centers and long overdue improvements to our city’s roads and sidewalks. My budget priorities—public safety and human services— have remained the same during both surpluses and shortfalls. These core services need to be our top priorities as we head into the 2012 budget process.

In addition, I recently co-sponsored a resolution to increase efforts to move homeless men and women into permanent housing. We must not forget that, even during these tough economic times, securing a warm bed for those without is a top priority. For example, as chair of the Council’s Budget Committee, I worked to ensure funding for a severe winter shelter at City Hall.

Regarding raising revenue—yes, we do need to raise revenue to pay for critical public services. Unfortunately, state law severely limits the city’s ability to impose taxes to raise revenue. As discussed below, I support two ballot measures (the Families and Education Levy and the Transportation Benefit District) that, if passed, will generate needed revenue to support our education and transportation systems.

4) With its budget shrunk at least until the end of the recession what should Seattle parks look like?

Parks are of great importance to our City, especially during this lingering recession as they are a “zero cost” place for people to relax and recreate. Unfortunately, the Seattle Parks and Recreation Department has taken a large share of the budget cuts. It is to the Department’s credit that, even in these lean times, parks’ grounds are for the most part still looking good and, although somewhat reduced, parks are still offering a variety of recreational activities. I will continue stretch every dollar of revenue so that we can provide our citizens with best parks possible, while also maintaining other critical services.

5) What is the Seattle’s role in education and public transportation given how important they are to the city, but that other agencies are tasked with them?

Although other government levels administer these services– the School Board (responsible for education) and King County and Sound Transit (public transportation), Seattle must continue to play a key role in providing the support necessary to ensure that citizens are being served in these critical areas.

Regarding education, one key role of the City is passing the Families and Education Levy this November. This levy, which the City Council doubled in size, will fund programs to improve children’s readiness for school, student’s academic achievement and reduction of the academic achievement gap, and student’s graduation from high school and preparation for college or a career.

I voted to put this levy on the ballot because of my strong belief that, especially in tough economic times, we must support our most at-risk kids (disproportionally children of color). The

Levy will support academic programs at schools with a high proportion of low-income students, as well as early-learning programs that improve academic success. To this end, even though I am in the midst of a reelection campaign, I have made sure to get out and campaign on behalf of this crucial measure. We must graduate all our students ready either for college or a career.

Regarding public transportation, I backed the Regional Transportation Committee’s move away from the rigid 40/40/20 formula for allocating Metro bus hours (under which 80% of new bus service hours were sent to the suburbs). The 40/40/20 allocation inhibited our ability to provide busses in Seattle, where demand is the highest and service is the most cost effective. I also lobbied on behalf of King County’s passage of a $20 car-tab fee in order to prevent a 17% reduction in Metro service in Seattle over the next two years.

At the same time, I voted to place on the ballot an annual Vehicle License Fee of $60 that, if approved by voters, will allow the City to make major improvements to our transit system while also providing safer roads for drivers and bicyclists, as well as safer crosswalks and sidewalks for pedestrians. It is the City’s duty to preserve and maintain the infrastructure that allows goods and services to move safely and quickly through our streets.

Plan ahead for the closure of the Viaduct starting October 21 (h/t).

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) will close the majority of the Alaskan Way Viaduct at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, October 21 until 5 a.m. Monday, October 31.

During the closure, crews will tear down large sections of the southern mile of the viaduct, and complete temporary connections to a new SR 99 bridge currently under construction on the west side of the viaduct in SODO. Also, the northbound viaduct between the South Royal Brougham Way on-ramp and the Battery Street Tunnel will open from 5 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, and for special events at CenturyLink Field, but closed other times.

Drivers are encouraged to consider alternatives to their normal commute. WSDOT suggests the following options: carpooling, vanpooling riding the bus, water taxi, train or light rail; working from home or adjusting work schedules; checking traffic conditions before hitting the roads; using alternate routes where possible; delaying or combining trips.

Personally, I encourage carpooling, vanpooling riding the bus, water taxi, train or light rail even on days when the Viaduct is working fine.

My prediction: Most news outlets won’t cover it much until a week ahead and then will be like OHMYGOD!!!!!!!!!!! for a solid week. Then traffic is a little worse downtown but not much. But like I-5 a few years ago, or I-405 in LA, people will adjust and be fine.

I’ve got errands to run, but here’s the link to watch it live.