Mayor Bruce Harrell's One Seattle Newsletter

Dear friends and neighbors,

Downtown Seattle is the heart of our city and is powered by people ? workers, families, small business owners, neighbors, visitors, and tourists alike.

Last month I announced the first steps of our Downtown Activation Plan, an innovative plan to draw people to the heart of Seattle with new activities and experiences and design a downtown of the future that works for everyone.

My administration is taking action to promote a downtown that is safe and welcoming for all; reinvigorate the neighborhood as the commercial heartbeat of the city and hub for arts, culture, and entertainment; and create a vibrant and diversified economy that combines creativity and commerce.

This is not about recreating a downtown of the past, but rather boldly reimagining what is possible as we redefine what a downtown of the future can be.

There are ways you can be a part of our efforts to build a vibrant, thriving One Seattle. This Saturday, May 20^th, thousands of volunteers will join with community partners to give back to our city for the One Seattle Day of Service.

We are still looking for volunteers to roll up their sleeves to help improve the city we love and call home at over 140 volunteer events, and I hope you?ll join in this effort.

Thank you,

Bruce A. Harrell

Mayor of Seattle

Working Together to Build One Seattle

Sign up for the Day of Service

A Safe, Welcoming, and Active Downtown

Downtown is the economic engine and cultural hub of our region, and Mayor Harrell is committed to making downtown neighborhoods safe, welcoming, and active for all. In April, Mayor Harrell announced the first steps of his comprehensive Downtown Activation Plan with additional actions to be announced in the coming weeks. The first components of the plan include:

An Executive Order to disrupt the distribution, sale, and use of synthetic drugs that combines an evidence-based public health approach to support people struggling with substance abuse disorder and a law enforcement approach to arrest and hold accountable narcotics traffickers.
Filling 20 vacant storefronts with new art installations and small businesses through?Seattle Restored.
Reopening City Hall Park this spring with new programming, safety enhancements, and activities to draw people to the park.
Updating land use policies to create upwards of 30,000 jobs and more housing units in neighborhoods near downtown and activate the stadium area south of Pioneer Square by allowing more hotels, restaurants, bars, and entertainment centers. ?
Increase opportunities for food truck operators and pop-up food vendors to establish a presence downtown by waiving street-use permit fees.?
Encouraging more frequent closings of downtown streets for special events like art walks, festivals, and concerts.

Downtown revitalization reached a critical milestone last month with the opening of Elliott Way, a new multimodal street that will strengthen connections to downtown neighborhoods and the waterfront. The street was given the honorary name Dzidzilalich to preserve and elevate the rich history of the waterfront to the Coast Salish people.

Housing Levy

In March, Mayor Harrell announced his bold proposal for a $970 million Housing Levy to replace the current one expiring at the end of 2023 and address Seattle?s growing affordable housing needs. Informed by 11 months of community and stakeholder engagement, the levy will fund critical investments toward new units of affordable housing, workforce stabilization, and other tools to address the housing and homelessness crisis.

The proposal will:

Create over 3,000 new rental and for-sale homes affordable to low-income residents, including seniors, low-wage workers, families with children, and people experiencing homelessness.
Create a new wage stabilization fund to support those working to provide vital services to residents in permanent supportive housing.
Invests in the operations and maintenance of our affordable housing portfolio, ensuring these homes are serving the community for the next 40+ years.
Create new permanently affordable for-sale homes, provide down-payment assistance for low-income homebuyers, and stabilize low-income homeowners through emergency home repair grants and foreclosure prevention assistance.
Provide short-term rent assistance and housing stability services to help low-income households avoid eviction or homelessness.

Building One Seattle Together

Mayor Harrell invited Garfield High School?s girls and boys basketball teams to City Hall to celebrate both teams winning state championships this year and representing Seattle and the Central District with excellence.

Alongside City and County leaders, Mayor Harrell visited the Cedar River to tour the completed restoration of a mile-long segment back to its natural state. The project improved salmon habitat and reduced flood risks for nearby homes.

In partnership with Seattle Parks and Recreation, Mayor Harrell helped launch a new drowning-prevention and youth aquatics initiative, Swim Seattle. The initiative will remove the barriers that have prevented many youths from accessing swim lessons so that everyone can enjoy the water safely.

Mayor Harrell joined the Washington State Department of Natural Resources and American Forests to launch the Washington Tree Equity Collaborative and sign onto a pledge to support and grow tree canopy cover.

Mayor Harrell and other city leaders met with tribal leaders at the Tribal Nations Summit. Mayor Harrell committed to continuing to work with tribal partners to ensure their voices are heard in decisions that impact them and that tribal sovereignty and treaty rights are recognized and respected.

Joined by labor partners, Mayor Harrell signed into law new permanent paid sick and safe time benefits for app-based workers in March, making Seattle the first jurisdiction in the county to create these benefits on a permanent basis for gig workers.

What We?re Hearing from Constituents

?Boy did this city ever need you! THANK YOU for cleaning up the area by our beautiful stadiums. I worked in Seattle teaching in the CD, and I know you have the HARDEST job by any standard. I want you to know that I hear all kinds of people singing your praises. I don't know all the answers, but I appreciate you... immensely.?- Patricia J., 3/24/23

?I'd like to compliment you and your staff's determination to get folks off the streets, into safe locations, and other emergency housing options. I also wish to compliment you and your staff for your collaboration with Just Care, the King County Regional Homelessness Authority, and other organizations to find solutions to the humanitarian crisis the region's been dealing with for far too long.? - Deborah D., 4/11/23

?I want to thank you for your extraordinary dedication and effort in making Seattle function and look beautiful again. I applaud your efforts over the last year to clean up the city and make it safe again. There is still much work to do, but as a city resident since 2016, I can tangibly see the progress you've made, and are continuing to make every day. Keep up the hard work.? Georg S., 4/17/23

?I'm not sure there's ever enough good recognition from those you represent and work with. That said, my family and I are pleased with your insight, openness, and obvious passion for Seattle. We are there for support.? ? Dennis P., 4/25/23


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