Mayor Katie Wilson unveiled her police CCTV camera plan on Thursday, which she immediately acknowledged "will please no one," according to Publicola.

The plan introduces a partial and temporary halt to the expansion of CCTV cameras across the city, allowing for a months-long audit of camera protocols with assistance from New York University's Policing Project. Despite the pause in expansion, the mayor is allowing new cameras to be installed in the stadium district before the World Cup, which she stated will only be activated if there is a credible security threat. Furthermore, Wilson will retain the 62 existing police cameras in areas like downtown, Aurora Avenue, and the Chinatown International District, exempting only a camera near a reproductive health clinic.

This plan immediately raises a number of questions for Seattle Nice: Is this a political “capitulation” by Wilson, as Erica argues, in an attempt to counter the perception that she is too far left? Does it represent an effort to “split the baby,” as Sandeep suggested, a move reminiscent of former Mayor Harrell’s tendency to try to please all sides and ultimately satisfying none? Or is it, as David suggests, a pragmatic effort to allow limited use of CCTV surveillance, balancing legitimate concerns about potential misuse against urgent safety concerns?

Our editor is Quinn Waller.

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This week Jon Scholes, President and CEO of the Downtown Seattle Association (DSA), joined us to discuss the state of downtown. He pointed to positive momentum towards economic recovery and the dream of a “24/7 city,” with so many people moving downtown, but also warned of challenges including the high office vacancy rate. Other topics included:

• Jumpstart payroll tax: Debate over whether the outcome has been more positive or negative for Seattle.
• Residential Conversion: Why converting office buildings to apartments is complicated and expensive, and what can be done.
• Job Market Outlook: Scholes highlighted the fact that downtown Seattle is losing jobs while Bellevue is growing employment.
• Crime: Crime is significantly down in the commercial core but has increased in Belltown and the ID.
• Commuting trends: Scholes said people are still choosing transit, rideshare, or walking over cars, mostly because employers have maintained or increased their investment in employee transit passes.
• Transit: Light rail ridership has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, and train service is improving.
• Homeless Solutions: Scholes spoke about the need to scale up the "gold standard" model for dedicated outreach and enhanced shelters.
• Overdose Rates: Fatal and recorded overdoses in the downtown area are trending downward.
• City Spending: Should success be measured by increased spending or results? Not much debate about this.
• Convention Center: Is it all one big boondoggle?
• Police Cameras: More debate about the use of public safety cameras, only this time it’s Erica v Jon.

Our editor is Quinn Waller.

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Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson’s ambitious 1000-bed temporary shelter plan, which, among other elements, proposes accelerating the construction of up to 250-unit “tiny house” villages across all council districts, is still in the early planning stages but is already generating lots of questions from providers and others.

Including from us.

How will the City handle the management of these super-sized sites? How will they facilitate the transition of residents to permanent housing? And how are they going to handle the inevitable freak out from neighbors when the locations of these villages are announced?

We also discuss the implications of a rising tide of behind-the-scenes complaints from city council members feeling excluded from the planning process and jammed by the mayor’s announcement.

Additionally, the discussion covers:

Erica’s reporting on efforts to ban new I.C.E. detention facilities.

King County Executive Girmay Zahilay’s move to create a new county auditor position and improve spending oversight. This initiative follows recent audits and government accountability reporting by KUOW and others.

Our editor is Quinn Waller.

About Seattle NIce

It’s getting harder and harder to talk about politics, especially if you disagree. Well, screw that. Seattle Nice aims to be the most opinionated and smartest analysis of what’s really happening in Seattle politics available in any medium. Each episode dives into contentious and sometimes ridiculous topics, exploring perspectives from across Seattle's political spectrum, from city council brawls to the ways the national political conversation filters through our unique political process. Even if you’re not from Seattle, you need to listen to Seattle Nice. Because it’s coming for you. Unlike the sun, politics rises in the West and sets in the East.

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CARE team head Amy Barden told council this week that the latest police union contract is preventing effective alternative 911 response from her team. We also get into what’s really happening with the allegations facing Derrick Wheeler-Smith, the Director of the Office of Civil Rights; and the controversy around Mayor Katie Wilson’s removal of City Light CEO Dawn Lindell, revealing behind-the-scenes lobbying by organized labor and the possible recalibration of power at City Hall.

Our editor is Quinn Waller.

About Seattle NIce

It’s getting harder and harder to talk about politics, especially if you disagree. Well, screw that. Seattle Nice aims to be the most opinionated and smartest analysis of what’s really happening in Seattle politics available in any medium. Each episode dives into contentious and sometimes ridiculous topics, exploring perspectives from across Seattle's political spectrum, from city council brawls to the ways the national political conversation filters through our unique political process. Even if you’re not from Seattle, you need to listen to Seattle Nice. Because it’s coming for you. Unlike the sun, politics rises in the West and sets in the East.

Send us a text! Note that we can only respond directly to emails realseattlenice@gmail.com

Support the show

Your support on Patreon helps pay for editing, production, live events and the unique, hard-hitting local journalism and commentary you hear weekly on Seattle Nice.

Following her first State of the City address, Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson joins us to discuss the city’s most pressing issues. We explore why she hasn’t yet changed the city’s policies on encampment clearances, how she’s going to deliver on her big promise to add 1000 units of shelter by year’s end, and her answer to impatience from the left for bold progressive actions.

Our editor is Quinn Waller.

Correction: During this interview, Erica said the Chamber has supported moving oversight of some parts of the homelessness system to the city's Human Services Department. The Chamber has not taken a position on this issue.

About Seattle NIce

It’s getting harder and harder to talk about politics, especially if you disagree. Well, screw that. Seattle Nice aims to be the most opinionated and smartest analysis of what’s really happening in Seattle politics available in any medium. Each episode dives into contentious and sometimes ridiculous topics, exploring perspectives from across Seattle's political spectrum, from city council brawls to the ways the national political conversation filters through our unique political process. Even if you’re not from Seattle, you need to listen to Seattle Nice. Because it’s coming for you. Unlike the sun, politics rises in the West and sets in the East.

Send us a text! Note that we can only respond directly to emails realseattlenice@gmail.com

Thanks to Uncle Ike's pot shop for sponsoring this week's episode! If you want to advertise please contact us at realseattlenice@gmail.com

Support the show

Your support on Patreon helps pay for editing, production, live events and the unique, hard-hitting local journalism and commentary you hear weekly on Seattle Nice.

Meet Joe Nguyen, a seemingly unusual pick to head the Seattle Chamber of Commerce. A former Bernie Sanders delegate and former progressive state lawmaker who championed policies like the capital gains tax and famously eschewed corporate PAC money, Nguyen is now leading the fiscally conservative Chamber through a period of change as it tries to navigate Seattle's progressive electorate while fostering a thriving business environment.

This is a preview of a members only episode. Sign up to support the podcast and unlock your members only feed at patreon.com/seattlenice.

Our editor is Quinn Waller. Help Quinn rebuild after a fire

Editor’s note: During this interview, Erica said the Chamber has supported moving oversight of some parts of the homelessness system to the city's Human Services Department. The Chamber has not taken a position on this issue.

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Following a decisive win last fall for citywide Position 9, City Councilmember Dionne Foster joins us to talk about how she intends to fulfill her campaign promises amid Seattle’s mounting fiscal challenges.

Councilmember Foster, who chairs the Housing, Arts and Civil Rights Committee, outlines some of her priorities including housing affordability. We also get into her more progressive approach to the homelessness crisis, in which she emphasizs the need for more shelter capacity—such as tiny home villages—over encampment removals.

Foster also tells us why she has "no intent on working on repeal" of the public drug use and possession law championed by her opponent Sara Nelson, and why she believes city surveillance cameras should be "turned off and come down."

Our editor is Quinn Waller.

About Seattle NIce

It’s getting harder and harder to talk about politics, especially if you disagree. Well, screw that. Seattle Nice aims to be the most opinionated and smartest analysis of what’s really happening in Seattle politics available in any medium. Each episode dives into contentious and sometimes ridiculous topics, exploring perspectives from across Seattle's political spectrum, from city council brawls to the ways the national political conversation filters through our unique political process. Even if you’re not from Seattle, you need to listen to Seattle Nice. Because it’s coming for you. Unlike the sun, politics rises in the West and sets in the East.

Send us a text! Note that we can only respond directly to emails realseattlenice@gmail.com

Thanks to Uncle Ike's pot shop for sponsoring this week's episode! If you want to advertise please contact us at realseattlenice@gmail.com

Support the show

Your support on Patreon helps pay for editing, production, live events and the unique, hard-hitting local journalism and commentary you hear weekly on Seattle Nice.

Amy Barden, director of the city's Community Assisted Response and Engagement (CARE) department.

Barden has been on the job for just over two years, running the city's 911 operations while also setting up an unarmed team of social workers who respond to emergency calls that don't require police—the CARE Team.

The CARE Team is expanding to 48 members this year, and their size will no longer be capped under the city's contract with the Seattle Police Officers' Guild (SPOG), which has historically resisted reducing the duties that legally have to be performed by police, like directing traffic and responding to 911 calls.

But the contract also includes new constraints on CARE that limit where the team is allowed to go and when they have to back off and call police. CARE can't help people if there are signs that they've recently used drugs, for instance, and they aren't allowed to go inside most buildings or respond to people inside cars.

We asked Barden about these constraints, along with the requirement that SPD sergeants decide who to send out on crisis calls that come in to 911—police, CARE, or community service officers, civilian SPD staffers who respond to minor issues but lack the mental health and crisis response training of the social workers who make up the CARE team.

We also talked about how CARE has evolved in its first 28 months, what happens when people call 911 for a person in crisis, and Barden's hopes for the team under new mayor Katie Wilson and a more progressive City Council.

Our editor is Quinn Waller.

About Seattle NIce

It’s getting harder and harder to talk about politics, especially if you disagree. Well, screw that. Seattle Nice aims to be the most opinionated and smartest analysis of what’s really happening in Seattle politics available in any medium. Each episode dives into contentious and sometimes ridiculous topics, exploring perspectives from across Seattle's political spectrum, from city council brawls to the ways the national political conversation filters through our unique political process. Even if you’re not from Seattle, you need to listen to Seattle Nice. Because it’s coming for you. Unlike the sun, politics rises in the West and sets in the East.

Send us a text! Note that we can only respond directly to emails realseattlenice@gmail.com

Thanks to Uncle Ike's pot shop for sponsoring this week's episode! If you want to advertise please contact us at realseattlenice@gmail.com

Support the show

Your support on Patreon helps pay for editing, production, live events and the unique, hard-hitting local journalism and commentary you hear weekly on Seattle Nice.