Though he didn’t get that Texas job he was reported to be seeking, SDOT director Scott Kubly has resigned anyway, Mayor Jenny Durkan‘s office announced this afternoon. The announcement includes word of an interim successor, another high-level city official’s departure, and a list of some who are staying on:

Mayor Jenny A. Durkan announced several officials who will serve in her administration including department leaders focused on housing, homelessness, civil rights, transportation, and economic opportunity.

“From housing to homelessness to transportation, our City faces a number of urgent challenges. Our residents and businesses expect our officials to make progress and deliver results, and this administration will be accountable to the people we serve,” said Mayor Durkan.

Following the resignation of Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) Director Scott Kubly, Mayor Durkan named Goran Sparrman as Interim Director, effective January 5, 2018. Sparrman was previously the Interim Director and Deputy Director of SDOT as well as the former Director of Transportation at the City of Bellevue and at Portland’s Bureau of Traffic Management. Durkan will launch a national search process to find a candidate for the permanent position.

“I want to thank Scott for his service to Seattle and wish him well as he pursues new opportunities. In a time of unprecedented growth, Scott set the stage for a significant increase in multi-modal investments in our city, which will have an impact for decades to come. Goran is well-respected leader and has immense experience as an engineer, manager, and planner in our region – I know he will execute over the months to come on my top transportation priorities,” said Mayor Durkan. “Our region has been trying to catch up to its transportation needs for decades, and the next few years will be critical for creating more safe, efficient, and well-connected transportation choices that make it easier and safer for residents to get around on foot, by bike and via mass transit. With a number of significant projects in the pipeline, the next leader must be well positioned to deliver on investments, improve bus service, effectively implement light rail expansion, and prioritize our maintenance backlog.

With the resignation of Patricia Lally, the Director of the Office for Civil Rights, Mayor Durkan announced Mariko Lockhart will serve as the Interim Director of the Office for Civil Rights effective January 3, 2018. Lockhart currently leads the 100,000 Opportunities Initiative – Demonstration Cities for the Aspen Forum on Community Solutions. She previously served as the Director of the City of Seattle’s Youth Violence Prevention Initiative.

“Patricia has fought for civil rights for decades and know she will continue her work to advance social justice,” said Mayor Durkan. “Our City can and must do better to address institutional and structural racism in our government. I have worked with Mariko and know she is committed to addressing true equity across education, affordability, and the criminal justice system.”

Additionally, Mayor Durkan announced several officials focused on housing, homelessness, and economic opportunity who will continue to serve in their roles including:

Dwane Chappelle, Director of the Department of Education and Early Learning
Fred Podesta, Director of Finance and Administrative Services
Catherine Lester, Director of the Seattle Human Services Department
Rebecca Lovell, Acting Director of the Office of Economic Development
Steve Walker, Director of the Office of Housing
Cuc Vu, Director of the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs

“My administration is committed to tackling the affordability crisis from all angles. As we create more affordable housing, implement the Seattle Promise College Tuition program, and move more people off the streets and into permanent housing, these leaders are committed to working together to find innovative long-term solutions,” concluded Mayor Durkan.

Last week, Mayor Durkan announced a number of public safety and utility officials who would serve in her administration.

Kubly was appointed by then-Mayor Ed Murray three and a half years ago.

The City Council made its decisions today about who’s on which committee – in other words, who’s focused on which types of city business. West Seattle/South Park Councilmember Lisa Herbold will continue chairing the Civil Rights, Utilities, Economic Development, and Arts Committee. Herbold also will be vice chair of the Governance, Equity, and Technology Committee, a member of the Planning, Land Use, and Zoning Committee, and an alternate member of the Housing, Health, Energy, and Workers’ Rights Committee. Here’s the rest of the list of which committee each councilmember is chairing; to see who has membership on which committees, read the resolution text here.

P.S. Councilmember Herbold’s next “district office hours” are this Friday (December 15th), 2-6 pm at South Park Community Center (8319 8th Ave. S.).

12:32 PM: Even before the official announcement event at City Hall last hour, Mayor Jenny Durkan had revealed (as we noted on Twitter) that she would be looking for a new Chief of Police. Now we know she’s also looking for a new CEO/general manager for Seattle City Light.

From the announcement (which you can read in full here):

WHO’S GOING: SPD Chief Kathleen O’Toole‘s last day, after 3 1/2 years, is December 31st. Deputy Chief Carmen Best will be interim chief as of January 1st. (As we reported last week, we spoke with O’Toole at the new mayor’s Youngstown Cultural Arts Center event, and she said she was planning to talk with Durkan this week “about the department’s future.”) … City Light CEO/GM Larry Weis has resigned after less than two years; chief compliance officer Jim Baggs will run the utility in the interim.

WHO’S NOT GOING: The mayor says Fire Chief Harold Scoggins and Emergency Management director Barb Graff are staying. … Durkan also said she has asked Seattle Public Utilities CEO/general manager Mami Hara to stay.

No other cabinet mentions – staying OR going – so far.

ABOUT THE POLICE CHIEF SEARCH: The mayor announced a committee will search for O’Toole’s successor, with four co-chairs: Former mayor/City Council president Tim Burgess (who also is a former SPD detective), former King County Sheriff Sue Rahr, ACLU executive Jeffery Robinson, and Chief Seattle Club executive director Colleen Echohawk. (See their bios here.) The mayor promises the chief search will include “an extensive community outreach process during early 2018.”

6:12 PM: Here’s the chief’s full statement.

(Photo by Joseph Peha)

Also taking office as soon as the election results were certified today – new City Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda, who was elected to at-large (citywide) Position 8. Like Mayor Jenny Durkan, Mosqueda takes office earlier than would be customary because of a domino effect going back to former Mayor Murray’s resignation. Since the previous P-8 officeholder, Tim Burgess, was appointed to serve as mayor until today – he didn’t run for re-election anyway – interim councilmember Kirsten Harris-Talley‘s term concluded today, and Mosqueda took office. Her final margin of victory over Jon Grant was 60 percent to 40 percent. West Seattle-residing Councilmember Lorena González was re-elected to the other citywide position (9) but there’s no rush for her re-swearing-in.

The biggest story in the week ahead is likely to be the Seattle mayoral transition: Tuesday is the day that Jenny Durkan becomes Mayor. That afternoon, she will head out on a five-stop tour to “take City Hall directly into communities across Seattle … and share her vision for the City,” with the second stop scheduled to be in West Seattle. The advisory from her transition team says she will be at Youngstown Cultural Arts Center (4408 Delridge Way SW) at 4:15 pm Tuesday. Her other stops will be in the Rainier Valley, International District, Phinney Ridge, and Lake City. Tuesday is the day the election will be certified, and with only a handful of votes to be counted, Durkan’s victory over Cary Moon is 56% to 44%.

(P.S. Thanks to Diane for posting about the mayoral tour plan in the WSB Forum!)

(Seattle Channel video of today’s budget signing)

The two-month-long process of changing and finalizing next year’s budget ended today with Mayor Tim Burgess signing what the City Council passed a day earlier. So what’s in it for our area? Here’s how West Seattle/South Park City Councilmember Lisa Herbold – who led the budget process this year – broke it down in her weekly update:

*Funding for public safety coordinator and pedestrian/lighting improvements identified by the South Park Public Safety Task Force

*Statement of Legislative Intent report from SPD by March 16 about solutions to vehicle-noise enforcement and cruising in Alki (which could also affect Fauntleroy and Belltown)

*Expand the Ready to Work project into District 1. There are unique challenges facing immigrants and refugees living in SW Seattle. The Ready to Work model is designed to support Seattle residents who are English learners and hinges on the intensive centralized and neighborhood-based support available to these English learners. The special features of this project include level 1-3 ESL classes, 12 hours a week of classes focused on supporting English learners to succeed in a professional environment, intensive case management, and curriculum focused on digital and financial literacy. The Ready to Work expansion is currently in its planning phase and is slated to open in April of 2018.

*Funding to plan and design walkable, bikeable path uniting the Georgetown and South Park neighborhoods to enhance walkability between Georgetown and South Park’s historic “Main Streets” and connect the heart of the Duwamish Valley

*Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD): expansion of LEAD to North Precinct, and to begin taking referrals from the SW and South Precincts, and a Statement of Legislative Intent to expand LEAD citywide in 2019

*Addition of $1 million for participatory budgeting (done through the Neighborhood Parks and Streets Fund), which, in 2017, funded projects in Delridge, Westwood/Highland Park, High Point, and South Park

*Vacant Building Monitoring Program: While working on legislation earlier this year to modify maintenance and demolition standards related to vacant buildings I worked to add an amendment that would require the department to present the Council with legislation by March 31, 2018. Requiring property owners to register vacant and foreclosed properties allows the City to register properties to ensure they are maintained and secure, and are not a nuisances to the public. The City has experienced a significant increase of complaints about vacant buildings – between 2013 and 2016 we saw an increase of 58%. Of those, District 1 has the second highest amount of complaints at 189 between 2013 and 2016.

That is only part of Councilmember Herbold’s budget wrapup (which you can read in full here). She also lists key points under these headings:

-Human Service and Homelessness
-Public Safety
-Civil Rights, Utilities, Economic Development and Arts Committee
-Fiscal responsibility

And finally, she writes about what’s next for the “head tax” proposal – explaining the resolution that the council passed, days after their 5-4 vote against including it in next year’s budget:

Often, we talk about economic prosperity not lifting all boats, but the proposition we are faced with — and the reason the Employee Head Tax was proposed — is because economic prosperity has not only failed to help everybody, but this economic prosperity has hurt some people, as noted in the Mayor’s proposed budget. I believe that the beneficiaries of that economic prosperity must do more to address the impacts of prosperity that has not been shared by all.

In seeking a budget that had, at its core, a principle of fiscal responsibility and sustainability, I proposed a progressive, ongoing revenue source to support a surge in affordable housing production – to more than double the units built with Housing Levy funds – to meet the great need of people living without homes. Instead of passing that ongoing revenue source, the Council passed Resolution 31782. This resolution requires the Council to assemble a task force to be appointed by December 11. This task force will develop recommendations for a dedicated progressive revenue source to support people experiencing or at high-risk for homelessness and to raise no less than $25 million a year. This task force will deliver recommendations by February 26, 2018, and the Council will take legislative action by March 26. 2018. This is a huge win for those who have been waiting for something big and bold to address the city’s civil emergency on homelessness.

The full list of council changes to the mayor-proposed budget is here.

(SCROLL DOWN for afternoon & evening updates)

(Video of today’s committee meeting)

By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor

The City Council’s final budget decisions are getting closer.

In a two-session review today, at 9:30 am and 2 pm, councilmembers will start voting on changes to the budget presented by the mayor last month. As Budget Committee chair, West Seattle/South Park Councilmember Lisa Herbold has come up with the almost-final list of changes, formally known as the “revised balancing package.” The proposals are all linked from the agenda.

One potential showdown is over the “head tax,” a per-employee tax for businesses with a certain level of revenue. In her newest online update, Herbold calls the proposal “exciting” and says it “would provide sustained, ongoing funding for addressing the homelessness emergency and related items” and that “because it is an ongoing revenue source, the City could bond against this new revenue in the future.”

Opponents include a coalition of 90+ businesses, including a half-dozen-plus from West Seattle, that sent a letter (see it here) to the council on Monday, saying, “We need a compassionate and effective approach to solving homelessness. This proposed tax on jobs is not that, and comes on top of significant increases in business taxes, fees and utility rates that the Council has adopted in the last three years.” (Added 10:22 am: In opening remarks at today’s meeting, Herbold explained changes in the proposal, including a doubling of the threshold for the revenue level at which businesses would be affected, now $10 million.)

The items listed for discussion/votes today include an alternative proposal from Councilmember Bruce Harrell proposing that “the Executive work cooperatively with the Council to develop and participate in a community-led stakeholder engagement process around the establishment of an Employee Hours Tax and/or other revenue source.”

Also likely to be a hot topic, the topic of encampment removals. The “proviso” that has made it onto the list for discussion is Herbold’s alternative, which spells out accountability for determine where the city is removing them and why, not others’ proposals to all but shut them down.

And there’s a proposal from Councilmember Mike O’Brien to set aside $750,000 for at least 13 “safe parking” sites for people living in RVs and other vehicles.

The dozens of other potential budget changes that made this list also include two we’ve mentioned recently that specifically relate to West Seattle, including one related to noise/cruising violations on Alki:

By March 16, 2018, the Seattle Police Department (SPD) is requested to submit a report to the Councilmember representing Council District 1, the Chair of the Gender Equity, Safe Communities, and New Americans Committee, and Council Central Staff Director on SPD’s enforcement policies and practices with respect to vehicle noise and cruising in the Alki neighborhood during the warm-weather months.

And then there’s the item related to the forthcoming Delridge RapidRide conversion. Herbold staffer Newell Aldrich clarified for us that this is intended to add a greater level of transparency earlier in the process.

Again, the full list of what will be discussed in 9:30 am and 2 pm sessions today is here – each item in blue links to the document summarizing the proposal. You can watch live via Seattle Channel, online or channel 21. A final budget vote is planned next Monday; any last-minute thoughts, e-mail councilmembers at council@seattle.gov.

ADDED 2:32 PM: The first budget meeting of the day ran four hours, to within half an hour of the scheduled start of the second one, so the council decided to reconvene tomorrow morning instead. Among the decisions made: The “head tax” was voted down, with Councilmembers Bruce Harrell, Debora Juarez, Lorena González, Rob Johnson, and Sally Bagshaw voting “no.” There was a general commitment to bring back another version soon.

ADDED 6:14 PM: We’ve replaced the no-longer-needed live video window above with the archived video of today’s meeting. As you’ll hear in the final minutes, the rest of the reason they adjourned this afternoon to regroup for tomorrow is because the rejection of the “head tax” meant some subsequent proposals no longer had funding. Tomorrow’s agenda calls for a public-comment session at 9:30 am, then adjournment until 11 am.

Just after the wind started roaring this afternoon, another round of election results went public. Six days after the election, things are fairly well finalized. Of particular interest here, West Seattleite Mitzi Johanknecht (right) is King County Sheriff-elect; today’s results count widened her lead over incumbent Sheriff John Urquhart to more than 62,000 votes, and he is reported to have conceded. Another incumbent named John also has been ousted – Seattle Port Commissioner John Creighton, almost 22,000 votes behind Ryan Calkins. Only about 14,000 ballots remain to be counted countywide; turnout for last Tuesday’s election is measured at 41 percent. See the full results update here.

Short sum-up of the second round of election results, released this afternoon: No changes in Seattle/King County races.

A few notes:

*West Seattleite Mitzi Johanknecht widened her lead over incumbent Sheriff John Urquhart, now almost 13,000 votes. (Here’s our coverage of her election-night speech.)

*Cary Moon has just formally conceded in the race for mayor, won by Jenny Durkan, who maintained 60 percent of the vote. From Moon’s statement:

I ran for Mayor because I felt an immense duty and responsibility to ensure Seattle — our beautiful, vibrant, diverse city — works for everyone.

While the election results will probably continue to tighten, the outcome is unlikely to be what we hoped. We should not let that discourage us. Despite being outspent 3:1, we ran a strong, transparent, and honest campaign about vision and solutions. We drove the conversation around housing affordability, real estate speculation, municipal broadband, and wealth inequality.

l have offered my congratulations to Jenny Durkan, Seattle’s first woman mayor in 90 years. I urge her to boldly confront the challenges facing our city and to remember that Seattle’s prosperity should provide shared opportunity and success for everyone, not just the wealthy few. …

(added 6:11 pm) *Mayor-elect Durkan has sent a statement too. Excerpt:

… I want to congratulate Cary Moon on the strong race that she’s run and the ideas she brought to the table. In nearly 100 debates and forums, I saw firsthand her love for our city and her commitment to compassionately address the toughest challenges facing Seattle. I have no doubt that Cary will remain active in our city and continue to contribute to its vibrant future.

I am honored that the voters have given me this great opportunity, but with the honor comes a deep responsibility. The hard work of delivering progress starts today. Our city will – and must – come together around the solutions to address the urgent issues facing our city from homelessness to affordability to addressing systemic inequities. …

*The Seattle Port Commission Position 1 race between incumbent John Creighton (51.16%) and Ryan Calkins (48.84%) tightened a bit, with Calkins now 6,500+ votes behind Creighton – the margin was 7,400+ last night.

Next ballot count is due around 4 pm tomorrow. If you want to check to be sure your ballot has been received – follow the “track my ballot” options here.

For three West Seattleites, it’s a big Election Night.

Top of the list is the only one who was having an official party in West Seattle – King County Sheriff’s Office Maj. Mitzi Johanknecht. We arrived at her event at the John L. Scott building in The Junction just after King County released its first and only set of results for the night, showing her with a lead of almost 10,000 votes over incumbent Sheriff John Urquhart. The candidate and her wife Maureen were beaming:

The “for” on Mitzi For Sheriff signs and buttons was covered with stickers reading “is”:

And the candidate spoke, with messages for constituents and colleagues:

With many votes left to be counted, some candidates might not be ready to immediately look forward, but the news for the incumbent has been not so good lately, to say the least, and it’s hard to imagine late voters turning his way, but it’s not over until it’s over …

… unless you have a huge lead already, as is the case for the other West Seattleite on the ballot for countywide office. Dow Constantine has won a third 4-year term as King County Executive, the second consecutive election in which he has had only nominal opposition.

And on the city ballot, Councilmember Lorena González has won her first 4-year term, two years after being elected to citywide Position 9:

West Seattle is also home to City Councilmember Lisa Herbold, who is midway through her first 4-year term serving District 1 (WS and South Park), and County Council Chair Joe McDermott, who is midway through his current 4-year term. He also had cause to celebrate tonight, as he advocated strongly for King County Proposition 1, which was approved by a wide margin.

The first count is in, and here’s a quick look at who’s ahead:

SEATTLE MAYOR
Jenny Durkan – 64,174 – 60.62%
Cary Moon – 41,683 – 39.38%

SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL POSITION 8
Teresa Mosqueda – 61,117 – 61.51%
Jon Grant – 38,241 – 38.49%

SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL POSITION 9
M. Lorena González* – 67,409 – 67.68%
Pat Murakami – 32,188 – 32.32%

(Added: At left, West Seattleite Mitzi Johanknecht, after first results showed her winning KC Sheriff race – separate story to come)

KING COUNTY SHERIFF
Mitzi Johanknecht – 139,644 – 51.84%
John Urquhart* – 129,725 – 48.16%

KING COUNTY EXECUTIVE
Dow Constantine* – 204,217 – 75.4%
Bill Hirt – 66,629 – 24.6%

SEATTLE PORT COMMISSION POSITION 1
John Creighton* – 129,039 – 51.48%
Ryan Calkins – 121,621 – 48.52%

SEATTLE PORT COMMISSION POSITION 3
Stephanie Bowman* – 169,277 – 66.79%
Ahmed Abdi – 84,159 – 33.21%

SEATTLE PORT COMMISSION POSITION 4
Peter Steinbrueck – 159,683 – 62.88%
Preeti Shridhar – 94,284 – 37.12%

SEATTLE SCHOOL BOARD DISTRICT 4
Eden Mack – 81,337 – 85.97%
Herbert J. Camet, Jr. – 13,271 – 14.03%

SEATTLE SCHOOL BOARD DISTRICT 5
Zachary Pullin DeWolf – 57,940 – 61.17%
Omar Vasquez – 36,775 – 38.83%

SEATTLE SCHOOL BOARD DISTRICT 7
Betty Patu – 60,869 – 64.11%
Chelsea Byers – 34,074 – 35.89%

KING COUNTY PROPOSITION 1 (Levy Lid Lift for Veterans, Seniors and Vulnerable Populations)
Approved – 185,133 – 66.06%
Rejected – 95,106 – 33.94%

SEATTLE CITY ATTORNEY
Pete Holmes* – 72,003 – 72.81%
Scott Lindsay – 26,895 – 27.19%

Again, full list of first-night resuls here.

We found Patti, Liz, and their canine companions at the White Center Library ballot dropbox late this afternoon. Also there, volunteers from the White Center Community Development Association, cheering for everyone who brought in their ballot. That dropbox at 1409 SW 107th might be closer to you if you’re in south West Seattle; otherwise, the only dropbox in WS is at the High Point Library, 3411 SW Raymond – and note that with the 8 pm deadline approaching, it’s likely to be busy (things were picking up when we passed by around dusk), so don’t rush out of the house at 7:55 pm and think you’ll beat the deadline. Your alternative to the dropboxes is the U.S. Mail, but make sure it’ll be postmarked tonight – look for pickup times on the mailbox, or walk it into a Post Office lobby (Westwood or The Junction). Lost your ballot and/or envelope? You can print out a replacement. Looking for last-minute candidate info? Links are in the reminder we published last night. First results are due by about 8:15 pm – we’ll have an update here on WSB.

The next list of possible city-budget changes is out tonight – in advance of a discussion with the full City Council (meeting as the Select Budget Committee) tomorrow morning – and there are some items of West Seattle interest.

These two are proposed by our area’s Councilmember Lisa Herbold, who is chairing the budget committee this year:

‘SPD ENFORCEMENT OF VEHICLE NOISE AND CRUISING ON ALKI’: That’s the title for the budget proposal spelled out in this document, though it doesn’t actually order or fund enforcement – it would order this:

By February 23, 2018, the Seattle Police Department is requested to submit a report to the Councilmember representing Council District 1, the Chair of the Gender Equity, Safe Communities, and New Americans Committee, and Council Central Staff Director on SPD’s enforcement policies and practices with respect to vehicle noise and cruising in the Alki neighborhood during the warm-weather months.

This was teed up by the recently announced results of this survey. The report would also be required to include “identification of and consideration of emerging technological approaches to vehicle noise
enforcement,” possibly a reference to something proprietary that’s being worked on by an entity including a citizen who made repeat appearances at local community-council meetings over the past year-plus. The proposal also notes that Fauntleroy also deals with vehicle noise issues, and that this report should address “how approaches to noise and cruising enforcement” could be applied there and elsewhere, too.

‘AMEND THE DELRIDGE MULTIMODAL CORRIDOR PROJECT CIP … AND IMPOSE A PROVISO’: This one is more-bureaucratic, as the title suggests. You can read it here. It would put a spending lid on the Delridge Multimodal Corridor Project, which is currently largely focused on the Metro Route 120 conversion to RapidRide H, until a council committee sees its 10 percent design and then passes an ordinance to lift that lid.

Speaking of Delridge RapidRide:

‘IMPLEMENTATION OF MOVE SEATTLE BRT CORRIDORS’: This one (read it here) would ask SDOT to report by next July on ways to make sure Delridge RapidRide and the six other “bus rapid transit” projects in the works happen, despite “the uncertainty with federal transportation funding under the current administration.” Councilmember Mike O’Brien is proposing it.

Not West Seattle-specific but also of interest:

‘AUTOMATED ENFORCEMENT OF BLOCK-THE-BOX AND TRANSIT-ONLY LANE VIOLATIONS’: The latter comes up often in WSB comment discussion – suggestions for cameras to catch bus-lane violators. This proposal (read it here), also from Councilmember O’Brien, would require SDOT to report by next March on what it might take to implement them, as well as cameras to enforce “block-the-box” intersection violations.

HOMELESSNESS RESPONSE: A variety of proposals are on Tuesday’s list of possible changes, including:
–Add $1.2 million for four more authorized encampments (locations not specified), proposed by Councilmember Kirsten Harris-Talley
–Add $450,000 for two more authorized encampments (“one in each Council District that does not currently contain an authorized encampment”), proposed by Councilmember Kshama Sawant
–Proviso on “unauthorized encampment removals in certain areas,” also from Councilmember Sawant. This would basically prohibit removals “except when the persons or property are on school property, active rights-of-way including sidewalks and stairways, activated park spaces, City utility rights-of way, or controlled-access areas of City-owned property, or unless authorized by future ordinance.”
-“Proviso on unauthorized encampment removals,” from Councilmember Herbold. This includes various provisions to ensure that removals follow the laid-out rules for prioritization, including:

(1) Objective hazards such as moving vehicles;
(2) Criminal activity beyond illegal substance abuse;
(3) Quantities of garbage, debris, or waste;
(4) Other active health hazards to occupants or the surrounding neighborhood;
(5) Difficulty in extending emergency services to the site;
(6) Imminent work scheduled at the site for which the encampment will pose an obstruction;
(7) Damage to the natural environment of environmentally critical areas; and
(8) The proximity of homeless individuals to uses of special concern including schools or facilities for
the elderly.

And there’s much more in the 50+ proposed changes – some of which will likely get big citywide scrutiny – these are just a few of the items that caught our eye. The discussions start at 9:30 am Tuesday, and will continue in a 2 pm session; if you have something to say and can get down to City Hall (600 4th Ave.), there are public-comment periods in both. You can e-mail council@seattle.gov too. And if you just want to watch/listen from wherever you are, it’ll all be live on seattlechannel.org (and cable channel 21).

(WSB photo – High Point ballot dropbox, around 6 pm tonight)

If you haven’t voted yet – you have 24 1/2 hours left. Tomorrow is Election Day, aka “voting deadline day” – you have to get your ballot to a dropbox by 8 pm Tuesday, or if you’re mailing it, be sure it’ll be postmarked Tuesday (or today). More than 80 percent of Seattle voters’ ballots had NOT been turned in as of midday today, according to the county Elections Department. So here’s what you need to know:

WHERE TO VOTE: The full list of ballot dropboxes around King County is here. West Seattle’s dropbox is outside High Point Library, on SW Raymond just east of 35th SW [map]; there’s also one outside the White Center Library, 1409 SW 107th [map]. Other ways to vote are detailed here.

WHAT/WHO’S ON THE BALLOT: Here’s what and who you will find on your ballot (each link below takes you to more information about the measure/candidate).

*One countywide ballot measure – King County Proposition 1, formally titled “Levy Lid Lift for Veterans, Seniors and Vulnerable Populations.”

*King County Executive – Dow Constantine*, Bill Hirt

*King County Sheriff – Mitzi Johanknecht, John Urquhart*

*Seattle Mayor – Jenny Durkan, Cary Moon
(Undecided? Our coverage of their two recent West Seattle forums, with video, is here and here)

*Seattle City Council Position 8 (citywide) – Jon Grant, Teresa Mosqueda

*Seattle City Council Position 9 (citywide) – M. Lorena González*, Pat Murakami

*Seattle City Attorney – Pete Holmes*, Scott Lindsay

*Seattle Port Commission Position 1 – Ryan Calkins, John Creighton*

*Seattle Port Commission Position 3 – Ahmed Abdi, Stephanie Bowman*

*Seattle Port Commission Position 4 – Preeti Shridhar, Peter Steinbrueck

*Seattle Public Schools director, District 4 (citywide vote) – Herbert J. Camet, Jr., Eden Mack

*Seattle Public Schools director, District 5 (citywide vote) – Zachary Pullin DeWolf, Omar Vasquez

*Seattle Public Schools director, District 7 (citywide vote) – Chelsea Byers, Betty Patu*

*Court of Appeals, Division 1, District 1, Judge Position 2 – Michael S. Spearman*, Nathan W.S. Choi

*State Advisory Vote 16

*State Advisory Vote 17

*State Advisory Vote 18

Once you’ve voted – track your ballot here. And tomorrow, watch for the first round of results around 8:15 pm.

P.S. As noted in a comment, we forgot to include this link – if you need a replacement ballot and/or envelope – yours got lost, or damaged, or didn’t arrive – here’s what to do.

(WSB photo: March cleanup under the West Seattle Brige)

As the City Council’s budget review/change process approaches its crescendo, the biggest battles are over items related to homelessness – especially whether to restrict how and whether unauthorized encampments can be removed. An overnight camp-out outside City Hall downtown right now is urging city leaders to “stop the sweeps.” But Mayor Tim Burgess has sent the council a memo – embedded below (we requested and obtained it after seeing citywide outlets’ reports earlier tonight) – saying that would be dangerous.

Some key points in the memo (which you also can read here, in PDF) – first, he begins:

After consulting with Fire Chief Scoggins, Police Chief O’Toole, and Public Health Director Hayes, I want to warn the City Council that adoption of proposed budget proviso GS 240-1-A-1-2018 blocking unauthorized encampment removals will create an elevated public health and safety risk to the people of Seattle. Many of the estimated 400 unauthorized encampments inside the city presently pose health and safety risks to the residents of these encampments and adjacent neighbors. The city government cannot ignore or tolerate these risks.

Advocates say that the removals are inhumane. The mayor counters: “The removal practices being implemented by city workers are humane, well planned, and effective.” His document also contains memos from department heads that further argue the case for removals:

As of Oct. 18, 2017, the Customer Service Bureau has received 4,389 complaints related to unauthorized encampments this year. The current average of 462 complaints a month is on pace to nearly double the total amount of complaints from 2016 (2,719) and quadruple the amount of complaints (1,245) the City received in 2015.

It says the city is having more success moving people to better circumstances:

As of mid-October of this year, the City has removed 143 unauthorized encampments. Through the Navigation Team’s intensive one-on-one engagement, 1,484 individuals have been engaged, with 581 individuals living in encampments accepting referrals to safer living spaces, including people who were required to leave when an encampment was cleaned up, and those who took advantage of City outreach-only efforts.

This 2017 acceptance rate is significantly improved from 2016, when outreach workers made 4,548 contacts and only 213 people accepted offers to move to a safer location.

The department heads’ memo points out that allowing people to live in unsanitary conditions raises the risk of an epidemic like the one with which San Diego is currently grappling:

As recently advised by Public Health – Seattle & King County, an ongoing hepatitis A outbreak in San Diego highlights the sanitation and hygiene concerns. As of mid-October, San Diego reported 18 individuals dead, 386 hospitalized and at least 578 individuals infected. The conditions in San Diego’s unmanaged encampments encouraged the spread of this entirely preventable disease

The document goes into extra detail related to city parks, contending that “prohibiting the removal of unauthorized encampments would open City parks and green space to unauthorized camping.” Listing the potential risks of that, this section mentions the recent peat fire at Roxhill Park and for the first time reveals its cause:

(WSB photo from last month’s Roxhill Park peat fire)

Fire is another hazard for park environs linked to homeless encampments. Residents of homeless encampments often use wood stoves or camp fires for heat and cooking. If left unattended, these fires can burn out of control and burn down camp structures, destroy vegetation and wildlife habitat and endanger people. Additionally, on Oct. 12, 2017, a fire started at the peat bog at Roxhill Park; it was caused by people using sterno cans. An area of 30×40 feet, 7-feet deep, was dug up as the Fire Department sprayed hundreds of gallons of water over a three-hour period to put out the hotspot that reached 150 degrees. Parks staff had to remove several trees to clear a path for SFD.

Also mentioned, “Had it been worse, the 2017 fire at an encampment at the west end of the Spokane
Street viaduct could have resulted in a long-term closure of the West Seattle high bridge.” Back to Parks:

The impact of encampments on parks and SPR park maintenance staff has been significant, and encampments or encampment-related issues have been the primary complaint we receive from the public. SPR crews this year have hauled away tons of trash. Even so, garbage, needles and feces continue to pile up in our natural areas and greenbelts across the city.

Preventing SPR from removing unauthorized encampments from City parks would undermine both the authority of the Superintendent to fulfill his role as steward of public lands and his responsibility to make policy decisions for the park system

The document also says that state grant funding received for many parks might have to be refunded if parks are allowed to be used as encampments, in effect converting them to a “non-park use.” The list of such grant-funded projects includes West Seattle locations such as Don Armeni Boat Ramp, Emma Schmitz Memorial Overlook, Fauntleroy Park, Longfellow Creek, Puget Creek, Roxhill Park, E.C. Hughes, Ercolini Park, and the Alki Trail. Restricting removal, the memo says, could also mean “SPR would need to establish dedicated camping zones in a significant portion of City parks and greenspaces.”

The exact document to which the mayor refers at the start of his memo was presented last week – see it here – then amended before Councilmember Lisa Herbold presented her “initial balancing package” earlier this week as budget chair. The new version focuses on accountability rather than defunding. But nothing’s final for a few more weeks.

Next steps in the budget process, if councilmembers want changes in what was presented this week, they have to get them in by tomorrow afternoon. Changes will then be discussed next week. If you have feedback, council@seattle.gov is the address.

(Click “play” to watch budget meeting live this morning)

Before we get to what’s happening in West Seattle today/tonight, a two-part note for everyone following the City Council‘s budget process, chaired this year by West Seattle/South Park Councilmember Lisa Herbold: The next phase of reviewing potential changes starts at 9:30 am today, when Herbold officially presents what’s called the “initial balancing package” – the draft list of changes that have made it through the process so far. You can review them (with links to individual explanations) by going here. You can watch live at seattlechannel.org (or cable 21). Then tomorrow (Wednesday) night brings the second and final evening public hearing before the budget gets finalized pre-Thanksgiving – 5:30 pm at City Hall (600 4th Ave.). The day after that, Thursday, is the deadline for councilmembers to propose changes to what’s being presented today.

P.S. If you can’t make it to the hearing but have a case to make for or against something, council@seattle.gov is the e-mail address.

(WSB photos and video by Patrick Sand)

One week after their first general-election-campaign forum in West Seattle, the women running for mayor, Cary Moon and Jenny Durkan, returned this afternoon. This time, they answered questions during the West Seattle Democratic Women‘s monthly meeting. Chair Rachel Glass described the race as “compelling and intriguing” in her introduction.

Above is our full unedited video of the forum; the text below represents highlights, not full transcriptions – to see/hear the candidates’ full answers, you’ll have to watch the video. The ground rules, set out by Glass – “this forum is not about anything negative … I want you to see the best of these candidates.” They had two minutes each for an opening statement, for each of four prepared questions, then time for each candidate to ask her opponent a question, then a few audience questions, and two-minute closing statements.

Moon won the coin-flip to give her opening statement first. She says she believes she started as the least-known candidate. She says she came to the campaign with a “list of solutions” for problems including the “heartbreaking” homelessness crisis. “In the past mayoral administration, I don’t think anyone knew where we were headed.”

Durkan opens by saying her staff told her she and Moon have done 85 forums, 50 since the primary. She says three things put her on track to run for mayor, something that a year ago she couldn’t have envisioned herself doing. First thing she mentions – election of President Trump. She says we’re not getting “anything good” out of “the other Washington” right now.

(Both made a point of mentioning they’re moms – Moon with two teenagers and two grown stepkids, Durkan with children 21 and 16.)

Then, the questions:

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Minutes from now – at 9:30 am – the City Council‘s second day of the second round of budget-change reviews will start with a variety of proposals related to homelessness and other human-services issues.

You can see the list on the agenda – each item has a link to the “green sheet” briefly discussing what’s being proposed. The council’s just discussing at this point, not voting, so you have time to let them know what you think.

Last night, homelessness-related issues were a big topic as West Seattle/South Park City Councilmember Lisa Herbold, who is chairing the council’s Budget Committee this year, spoke with the WS Block Watch Captains Network at the Southwest Precinct.

Many wondered about proposals that would in effect allow camping in parts of city parks – the areas that are not “activated.”

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