This week: A Seattle City Attorney candidate forum with incumbent Ann Davison and challenger Erica Evans. The event was recorded on October 16th and organized by the South Lake Union Community Council and Belltown United. 

Note: City Attorney Ann Davison’s audio sounds heavily processed due to a production error at the venue. We did our best to make it audible. If you have trouble hearing any of her answers Apple Podcasts and other platforms now also include fairly accurate transcripts.  

Our editor is Quinn Waller. 

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This week's special guest, Purpose Dignity Action's Director of Outreach and Special Initiatives Nichole Alexander, spoke with Sandeep and Erica about the work the PDA's CoLEAD program is doing with drug users at a longtime "hot spot" in the Chinatown International District. 

Centered on 12th and Jackson, the area has been a frequent target for police operations, encampment removals, and city-led outreach efforts over the past decade.

The PDA's CoLEAD program, formed during the pandemic to relocate people from encampments on state highway rights-of-way into hotel-based lodging with intensive case management, saw results—according to Alexander, 95 percent of people they worked with moved into hotel-based shelters funded by the state, and 70 percent ended up in permanent housing. That program, known as the Encampment Resolution Program, lost state funding, and now CoLEAD is focusing its much more limited resources helping people around 12th and Jackson by offering them a safe, private place to stay—something Alexander says is a prerequisite for longer-term stability. 

Unlike the city's Unified Care Team, which moves people from place to place while offering shelter referrals to some, CoLEAD spends weeks getting to know people individually and listen to their needs before moving them inside.

"I hear a lot of people say folks don't want to come inside, and that is not what we find," Alexander told us. "We find 95% of folks really do want to come inside. They just want something that's going to be safe for them. They want to be able to close the door, use a toilet safely, have case management that cares—and have that long-term care, not just a quick answer."

We also talked to Alexander about her personal story, the debate over whether jail and involuntary treatment lead to lasting recovery, and the misconception that low-barrier shelter or housing is inherently chaotic and destabilizing. 

David was out this week, but we'll all be back together next week for a special election episode!

Our editor is Quinn Waller

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In this episode, we take a closer look at Mayor Bruce Harrell's proposed ban on anti-competitive covenants in grocery and pharmacy leases—a move aimed at preventing future food deserts. Is this a genuine step toward saving grocery stores and pharmacies, or, as Erica argues, a form of political posturing in the midst of a mayoral election?

We also broaden the discussion to consider alternative solutions, with Sandeep suggesting a re-evaluation of design review processes as a more effective lever for lowering costs and sustaining local businesses. 

David highlights the critical ideological divide here between Harrell and challenger Katie Wilson, whose socialist-sounding stance on publicly backed grocery stores offers a stark contrast to Harrell's market-oriented approach on remedying food deserts. Whereas Wilson wants the government more involved in the private sector, Harrell would reserve public dollars for things like food assistance.    

We also discuss turbulence within the King County Regional Homelessness Authority, based on Erica’s reporting about accusations of mismanagement and racism against its CEO, Kelly Kennison. This segment unpacks the broader debate about the organization's efficacy and future. We come back to a question we’ve discussed before: is it time to pull the plug on the KCRHA? 

Finally, we talk about Mayor Harrell's campaign criticism of Katie Wilson's experience, with Erica challenging the tone and substance of Harrell’s attacks.

Quinn Waller is our editor. 

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This week we take the patented Seattle Nice deep dive into Bruce Harrell's proposed nearly $9 billion budget, examining the Seattle mayor’s priorities as he’s fighting for his political life in what’s turned into a tough election year for him.  

David points out how various local media outlets, from KIRO to our own Erica C. Barnett’s Publicola framed the budget news through their own lenses. The discussion also highlights the budget's strategic rollout, with Sandeep noting the mayor’s reliance on a "slick, produced, 15-minute video" in lieu of a traditional speech.

We then get into criticism of the budget, which assumes both sales and B&O tax increases and prioritizes spending on new police hires and, in the face of Trump threats, immigrant and refugee assistance and other supports. Erica criticizes the mayor for boosting spending for what will be ongoing programs with one time dollars, saying he is avoiding tough choices and leaving substantial  projected out-year deficits. She argues he should have worked harder to cut the police budget in particular. 

Sandeep echoes Erica’s concerns about a lack of fiscal discipline but says his concern extends to potential wasteful spending in all city departments and not just the cops. He also argues the mayor missed a political opportunity by not proposing more bold, innovative ideas. 

We also get into the King County Council's recent ban on rent-setting software like RealPage to try and prevent algorithmic price fixing, which follows on the heels of a similar City ban. Finally, the podcast concludes with some back and forth about political endorsements, and specifically the “odd timing” of Pete Buttigieg's backing of Mayor Harrell.  

Our editor is Quinn Waller.

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We delve into the political maneuvering behind the scenes leading up to Mayor Bruce Harrell’s proposed sales tax hike for non-police public safety initiatives. We also discuss the debate over proposed changes to Seattle's comprehensive plan.

Our editor is Quinn Waller. 

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Thanks to Uncle Ike's pot shop for sponsoring this week's episode! If you want to advertise please contact us at [email protected]

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This week we discuss the contentious decision by Seattle’s City Council and Mayor Bruce Harrell to expand police surveillance cameras. How should city leaders balance concerns about crime with questions about privacy and the misuse of surveillance? Also, when dozens speak out against a piece of legislation at a council meeting, what does that tell us us about public opinion citywide?

We also take a closer look at Mayor Harrell's proposed $80 million “reparations fund” for homeownership. We discuss the financial details, political implications, and ask whether it’s the right way to address generational wealth loss due to redlining.

Our editor is Quinn Waller. 

City Expands Police Surveillance Despite Overwhelming Opposition, Concerns About Civil Liberties 

Amid vocal opposition, Seattle council expands police surveillance

Mayor Bruce Harrell wants reparations fund to help people buy houses

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This week we bring you a second spin of our widely discussed interview earlier this year with Katie Wilson, who is now running for Seattle mayor. We talked with Katie before she was a candidate about a piece she wrote for the Stranger in January. At the time, Wilson was the head of the Transit Riders Union and a progressive advocate for affordable housing.  

In this interview, Wilson argued the left has failed to acknowledge some critical realities about homelessness, ceding the issue to "Seattle Is Dying" demagogues.   

Our editor is Quinn Waller. 

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.

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Thanks to Uncle Ike's pot shop for sponsoring this week's episode! If you want to advertise please contact us at [email protected]

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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.

In this special preview from the Blue City Blues podcast, Sandeep and David explore the sprawling open-air drug market in Seattle’s Little Saigon neighborhood, which resembles similar drug markets in poor, blue city neighborhoods across the US that have been overrun by the urban fentanyl and methamphetamine crises. Whether it's the Tenderloin in San Francisco, or Kensington in Philadelphia, or Skid Row or MacArthur Park in Los Angeles, the well intentioned, largely permissive policies towards hard drug use that in recent years took root in progressive-dominated bluer cities is coming under increasing challenge, and not just from Trump and the MAGA right.

In the fall of 2024, Oregon rolled back its famous 2020 experiment in full drug decriminalization - as did Vancouver, B.C. earlier last year - after Portland neighborhoods like Old Town were overrun by addicts committing petty crimes to fuel their addictions. Recently installed San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie has embraced more aggressive law enforcement and treatment interventions, as part of a nascent shift heralded by the city’s adoption of “Breaking the Cycle” and “Recovery First” policies.

Our guide in Little Saigon is Andrew Constantino, a former heroin addict and outreach worker, whose recent Seattle Times op-ed, “Here’s what I Learned about Addiction at 12th and Jackson,” has struck a nerve in Seattle’s social services provider community. Constantino walks us through the streets of Seattle’s most notorious open air drug market, where methamphetamine, fentanyl, and stolen goods are openly exchanged at all hours of the day and night, and explains why so many fentanyl users are stuck here on the streets, trapped in a cycle of rising hopelessness and despair – due to the fleeting, highly addictive nature of the drug.

With a searing candor, disarming humor and electric cowboy green hair, Constantino rejects many prevailing progressive orthodoxies to offer his own, deeply compassionate yet sharply questioning perspective on addiction, personal autonomy, and opportunities for productive interventions on the mean streets of blue cities.

Our editor is Quinn Waller. Our producer and editor for this episode was Jennie Cecil Moore. 

About Blue City Blues

Subscribe to the Blue City Blues podcast here. 

Twenty years ago, Dan Savage encouraged progressives to move to blue cities to escape the reactionary politics of red places. And he got his wish. Over the last two decades, rural places have gotten redder and urban areas much bluer.

America’s bluest cities developed their own distinctive culture, politics and governance. They became the leading edge of a cultural transformation that reshaped progressivism, redefined urbanism and remade the Democratic Party.

But as blue cities went their own way, as they thrived as economically and culturally vibrant trend-setters, these urban cosmopolitan islands also de

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This week we discuss the upcoming Christian nationalist rally at Cal Anderson Park, why these events continue to happen, and debate the city's legal challenges in managing them.

We also bring you primary election news and get into Seattle’s aversion to re-electing mayors.

Send us a text! Note that we can only respond directly to emails [email protected]

Thanks to Uncle Ike's pot shop for sponsoring this week's episode! If you want to advertise please contact us at [email protected]

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.

This week on Seattle Nice, we debate the factors that led to a progressive triumph in Seattle's August primary. We dig into what went wrong for centrist incumbents Mayor Bruce Harrell, City Council Member Sara Nelson, and City Attorney Ann Davison. Was it a longing for a kinder, gentler approach to public safety and homelessness? The high price of pizza? The “Trump effect?” Take a listen and let us know what you think at [email protected]. 

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 [email protected]

Thanks to Uncle Ike's pot shop for sponsoring this week's episode! If you want to advertise please contact us at [email protected]

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.