(SDOT camera at 35th/Holden, south end of newest corridor proposal) One week after the end of public feedback on his initial $1.35 billion proposal for the new transportation levy, Mayor Harrell has just announced the revised plan. He’s added another $100 million, so it’s now a $1.45 billion, nine-year levy. But the list of potential West Seattle projects in the overview has been scaled back since that previous announcement (here’s our West Seattle-focused report from April). Perhaps the biggest West Seattle change is a reduction for what’s envisioned for a “corridor” project on 35th SW – ins ..read more

By Tracy Record West Seattle Blog editor Almost two months have gone by since the city announced the draft of changes to the 20-year plan for Seattle’s future, officially known as its comprehensive plan, currently going by the name One Seattle Plan. (Here’s our first report on it, from March 9th.) If you have something to say about the draft plan, you have four more days (go here). If you don’t know enough about it to comment, you’re invited to an online informational meeting at 6 pm tonight (here’s the connection information) – and you might be interested in what more than 70 people heard at ..read more

That’s Seattle Channel video of the public-safety forum led by Mayor Harrell and chiefs/department heads last month, at which time it was promised that regional forums around the city would follow, one for each police-precinct area. Today, the dates and locations of those forums have just been announced; the one for our area will be Tuesday, May 14, in South Park. Here’s the city announcement: Today, Mayor Bruce Harrell announced five additional community safety forums that will give the public opportunity to help shape the soon-to-be-released One Seattle Safety Framework. Building on lesson ..read more

Beyond that map, the city won’t get any more specific about which vacant “derelict” properties could get speedier demolition approval if a proposal from Mayor Bruce Harrell gets City Council approval. Its first official discussion is this (Tuesday) morning, when the council’s Public Safety Committee meets. In the announcement of the “emergency” legislation, the mayor’s office said that there’ve been 30 fires in vacant buildings this year as of last Monday, adding: SFD has identified over 40 vacant buildings in the city that are potentially impacted by this legislation and estimates that up t ..read more

If you have something to say about the draft of the Seattle Transportation Levy renewal/expansion, you have one more week for feedback – here’s the official channel for that; you also can share your District 1 priorities with City Councilmember Rob Saka, who chairs the Transportation Committee, which will be reviewing it. Meantime, a rally is planned tomorrow for those who want to advocate for more climate focus in the levy as well as in the Transportation Plan, and you can get there via a bicycle ride from West Seattle to the rally location at Jimi Hendrix Park – here’s the route map shared w ..read more

By Sean Golonka Reporting for West Seattle Blog Two Seattle city councilmembers — District 1’s Rob Saka and citywide Position 8’s Tanya Woo — appeared tonight at the monthly meeting of the area’s largest political group, the 34th District Democrats, talking about ongoing city issues including transportation and the contested minimum wage for gig workers. Saka and Woo’s appearances come as the city, with a council dominated by first-year members, is in the midst of a major year for long-term planning, with an update to its 20-year comprehensive plan in the works and an eight-year $1.35 billion ..read more

This Wednesday (April 10), two city councilmembers – District 1’s Ron Saka and citywide Position 8’s Tanya Woo – will speak at the monthly meeting of our area’s largest political group, the 34th District Democrats. All are welcome at the online meeting. After each councilmember speaks, they’re scheduled to answer questions. Also on the agenda (see it here) for the group’s meeting, members will vote on several proposed endorsements. The meeting is set to start at 7:30 pm (after a 6:30 pm pre-meeting program) and you can get the link by registering here. Share This ..read more

(WSB photos. Above, One Seattle Plan project manager Michael Hubner addresses attendees) By Sean Golonka Reporting for West Seattle Blog About 80 West Seattle residents and others came together at Chief Sealth International High School tonight for an open house on the draft One Seattle Plan — a wide-ranging update to the city’s Comprehensive Plan for growth and development that several attendees expressed concerns over as insufficient to address the city’s dire housing needs. “I feel like it’s been underwhelming,” said John Doherty, a 28-year-old software engineer who lives in West Seattle. “W ..read more

The question is often asked: What are city leaders actually doing to improve public safety? Mayor Bruce Harrell has announced a series of community forums to try to answer that question. The first is tomorrow night (Thursday, March 14), 6-7:30 pm. In-person attendance at the downtown library is already maxed out but it’ll be streamed live via Seattle Channel (with a recording available afterward). The mayor will talk with moderator Enrique Cerna, and a panel discussion featuring other leaders including the city’s three public-safety chiefs – CARE Chief Amy Smith, Fire Chief Harold Scoggins, Po ..read more

By Tracy Record West Seattle Blog editor A wide-ranging Admiral Neighborhood Association agenda drew about 30 people to Admiral Church last night; the meeting was facilitated by ANA president Joanie Jacobs. Here’s how it unfolded, in the order in which this all happened: SEATTLE POLICE: The Southwest-area Community Liaison Officer German Barreto spoke first. Trends from the past month in the Admiral area: Burglaries are up, thefts are up “but not that much,” motor-vehicle thefts have gone down. Eight so far this year. The seven other types of thefts included mail and packages. Assaults include ..read more