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Dear friends and neighbors,
Last week, I announced my 2024 Budget Proposal, doubling down on the priorities that matter for our city and investing in a better tomorrow for our communities.
This budget builds upon the progress we are seeing towards our shared vision of One Seattle, focusing on critical needs like public safety and homelessness, supporting downtown and a healthy climate, and embracing a back-to-basics philosophy needed to advance our economy, quality of life, and the essential City services residents deserve.
This summer’s successful All-Star Game weekend and other large events proved that our city’s center is bouncing back. Our Downtown Activation Plan (DAP) has brought new energy, excitement, and unique experiences to our city’s center, which you can read more about below. We will keep building momentum towards restoring and revitalizing the cultural and economic heart of our city.
Seattle is a different city than when I took office nearly two years ago. We continue to see progress, even while acknowledging the complex challenges still before us. Many of our toughest issues can’t be solved overnight, but with a plan and solid investment strategy like the one laid out in my budget proposal, we can continue building the future we want to see.
Thank you,
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Bruce A. Harrell
Mayor of Seattle
Working Together to Build One Seattle
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Mayor Harrell’s budget proposal is designed to meet the urgent needs of Seattle communities, focusing on getting the basics right, doubling down on approaches that are seeing progress, and making transformational investments in a better city for all. He proposed a budget that reflects his commitment that every resident has an inherent right to safety, continues a compassionate approach to bring people experiencing homelessness indoors with supportive services, funds more affordable housing development to prevent displacement, and increases wages for human service providers supporting our vulnerable neighbors.
Highlights of the proposal include:
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$334 million investment in affordable housing, representing a 32% increase from the 2023 adopted budget.
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$106 million investment to support outreach, shelter, and other critical programs through the King County Regional Homelessness Authority.
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$26.5 million to support the new Community Assisted Response and Engagement (CARE) Department, to diversify emergency response options and meet the unique public safety needs of Seattle communities.
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$23 million investment in human service provider wages and wage equity, representing a 9.5% increase in pay over 2023, along with childcare worker retention bonuses.
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$20.1 million for Green New Deal programs to build community resilience to climate change.
Between the MLB All-Star Game, the return of Bumbershoot and Bite of Seattle, and other large events, it was a record-breaking summer for downtown Seattle. Mayor Harrell’s budget continues to implement new strategies and initiatives through the Downtown Activation Plan (DAP) to revitalize this critical part of our city. Some highlights of events and experiences that added new energy downtown this summer include:
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The Seattle Slam Showdown youth basketball tournament brought out 200 young people for a fun weekend of basketball with Pacific Northwest legends.
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The Pickleball for All tournament brought out pickleball enthusiasts and beginners alike to play matches at downtown’s new permanent pickleball court. The converted plaza serves as a public pickleball court available to all seven days a week on a first-come, first-serve basis.
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A new multi-media art installation by world-renowned artist Craig Walsh was launched at City Hall Park.
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The 2023 Downtown Summer Sounds series brought out 17,000 concertgoers for free concerts in the heart of the city.
Three pieces of legislation to build a bold future for downtown also recently passed in City Council, including:
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An upzone that will encourage investment and residential development along 3rd Avenue.
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Increasing flexibility of lodging in Belltown, which will encourage hotel development.
- A waiver eliminating fees for street use and parking permits for food trucks and carts.
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 To celebrate the start of the new year with Seattle Preschool Program, Mayor Harrell visited Voices of Tomorrow’s dual-language Somali preschool classroom and met with child care workers. Enrollment in the Seattle Preschool Program is still open. Learn more and apply here.
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 Embracing the region’s pickleball fever, Mayor Harrell played a match at the Pickleball for All tournament to celebrate the opening of downtown’s new pickleball court at Taylor Avenue and 5th Avenue Plaza.
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 Mayor Harrell joined local leaders and community members to celebrate the projects that received grants from the King County Parks Levy, including the Garfield Super Block Renovation Project.
 Mayor Harrell rode through the Lake Washington Ship Canal with Western Towboat to learn about their 75 years in the maritime business in Ballard. In July, Mayor Harrell signed legislation to strengthen protections for maritime and industrial lands.
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 Mayor Harrell joined the Small Business Administration to recognize the Pike Place Fish Market as a legacy business in the city, while there, the mayor caught one of the world famous flying fish.
 Mayor Harrell attended the grand opening of Seattle Housing Authority’s Salish Landing Apartments, a new 82-unit affordable housing development in the Delridge neighborhood.
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“Thanks for the recent DAP announcements, there is a lot to like. Particularly the pilot to close the 100 block of Pike St to through traffic. I hope to see more bold leadership to create great spaces and unique places for locals and visitors to enjoy.” – Cory H., 7/1/23
“The Pike Place Market area looks fabulous! Walked my dog down there this morning and there were tourists and visitors everywhere. It would be nice to see Seattle return to the sparkling gem it used to be. From the experience today I think we are on our way.” – Nancy F., 7/8/23
“Thank you for cleaning up downtown. I want to spend my weekends enjoying so many things downtown has to offer, and I want to come back to work here during weekdays! I also feel proud of my city and want to show it off again to everyone who visits Seattle.” – Nishant P., 8/12/23
“I wanted to pass along my thanks to the Illegal Dumping cleanup team at Seattle Public Utilities for their prompt and professional response to an issue I reported. I’m sure you get a lot of complaints about the issues of the day, but I wanted to let you know you have some good people working hard to keep our city clean. This is a very important service and I really appreciated the support.” – Alex B., 8/18/23
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