This week, the City of Seattle, and our partners announced the launch of our newest high-capacity vaccination hub in downtown Seattle. This fall – we are proud to be re-launching elements of our vaccine infrastructure to ensure easy access for unvaccinated individuals, kids 5-11 once authorized, and vulnerable adults eligible for a booster shot. Following the FDA’s meetings this week, we expect the CDC and Washington Department of Health to soon grant approval to many individuals seeking a Moderna or Johnson & Johnson booster shot.
From the beginning of this crisis - Seattle has made incredible progress on vaccinations, and we continue to be one of the most-vaccinated major American cities surpassing more than 85%. We are heading into the colder months and additional groups have become eligible for a vaccine or booster shot, it’s clear that there’s a need to again provide equitable COVID-19 vaccine opportunities for our residents.
At the start of this year, Seattle Fire became the first EMS agency in the state to administer the COVID-19 vaccine. We initially started by reaching our most vulnerable communities – homebound seniors – where they are, and bringing vaccine to those most at-risk of the virus.
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In total, we administered 260,000 vaccinations in just a few months. And nearly 50 percent – 50 percent – of those we vaccinated were BIPOC community members. We are proud to partner again, to get those who are most vulnerable – their booster shot.
The new downtown vaccination hub, starting October 23, will operate upcoming Saturdays and Sundays, from 9:30 to 3:30, and no appointment is needed. You can walk right up to the Meeting Center, and get your first, second, or booster dose of Pfizer.
We are also re-launching our Seattle Fire Mobile Vaccination Teams, which have been our most successful tool at reaching our most at-risk community members. Beginning this month, Seattle Fire mobile teams will start hosting pop-up clinics for vulnerable communities – particularly BIPOC workers – who are not yet fully vaccinated. We’ll soon expand our mobile efforts to reach seniors eligible for a booster, and historically underserved kids and families.
You do not need proof of insurance OR identification to get vaccinated at the downtown hub or through our mobile teams. Our goal is to keep this effort as low barrier as possible. In the next two weeks, the City will announce its plans for additional community hubs in underserved locations like South and West Seattle.
This week the City of Seattle and Sound Transit will finalize the transfer of ten sites in the Rainier Valley from the transit authority to the Seattle Office of Housing, at no cost to the City, for the development of permanently affordable for-sale homes. The ten sites, originally purchased for Sound Transit construction purposes, are located in an area at high risk of displacement along Martin Luther King Jr. Way South, spanning from the Mount Baker Link light rail station to the Rainier Beach Link light rail station.
This week, Mayor Durkan signed the legislation that will allow construction of an indoor practice facility for our four times, championship winning Seattle Storm. They are the most decorated of all our regional professional sports them. The Seattle Storm is talented on the court as they are off the court. We owe it to them to clear any obstacles for their success – including supporting the construction of a state-of-the-art training facility.
This week, the Seattle Kraken completed their first win in franchise history! In the coming weeks, the newly-renovated Climate Pledge Arena will open, and the Seattle Kraken will play their first home-game on the ice.
Photo: Julia Raasch on Unsplash
We’re excited to announce Trick or Streets is back for 2021! You can apply for a free Trick or Street permit for Halloween! We also encourage the Latin(e/o/a/x) community to apply and celebrate Day of the Dead (Día de Muertos)!
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Calling all ghouls, zombies, and other creatures of fright
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Trick or Streets is an opportunity to close your street to most vehicle traffic for a Halloween-inspired block party – think costumes, snacks, and neighborhood fun!
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You can also host a Día de Muertos ofrenda exhibit and celebration of loved ones who are no longer with us
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Read on to learn how to set up your own Trick or Street with a free and simple permit. (We recommend submitting your free permit application by October 15 for guaranteed review – but we’ll still accept permits after that)
We encourage anyone who is interested to apply and close your street to vehicles during the week of Halloween and Día de Muertos for safer trick-or-treating and community-building festivities!
Trick or Streets was one of our most popular street closure programs from 2020 and we’re excited to bring it back again this year. A special feature for Trick-or-Streets – your street closure can last until 10 p.m.!
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The City of Seattle recognizes that the Indigenous Peoples of the lands that would later become known as the Americas have occupied these lands since time immemorial. Our city is built on the ancestral lands of the Coast Salish people and is named after Chief Si’ahl (also known as Chief Sealth) of the Duwamish and Suquamish tribes. We are committed to honoring the legacy and ongoing contributions of our American Indian and Alaska Native communities, today for Indigenous Peoples’ Day, and every day.
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By: Jade Yamazaki Stewart
Three Seattle restaurants, Archipelago, Communion and Paju, have been selected by The New York Times food staff as part of its 2021 Restaurant List, released Tuesday. It’s a compilation of what the newspaper’s food staff termed the nation’s “most vibrant and delicious restaurants,” and they’ve dubbed the list “the 50 places in America we’re most excited about right now.”
The list, compiled by New York Times critics, reporters and editors, isn’t ranked, but choices “reflect the rich mosaic of American dining,” the Times wrote. It includes long-time favorites and up-and-coming stars in the restaurant world.
Food critic Tejal Rao had high praise for Archipelago, the 12-seat Filipino American tasting-menu restaurant in Hillman City that’s been celebrated for its combination of Filipino flavors and techniques with Pacific Northwest ingredients. Rao lauded it for also being a restaurant that tells important stories.
“You could easily get lost in the deliciousness of the modern Filipino food, but Aaron Verzosa and Amber Manuguid do more than send out excellent food,” Rao wrote. “They tell complicated, expansive stories about the Pacific Northwest and the many ways that Filipino immigrants have shaped it, using words, pictures and even some unexpected dance moves behind the pass.”
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