If you’ve driven from Seattle to Mount Rainier this summer, you might’ve had to find a different route from normal – one that misses the town of Wilkeson.

Since April, this Pierce County town of just under 500 people has been cut off from a major source of economic activity: Through traffic, due to the closure of the Fairfax Bridge a few months ago.  

And, to add insult to injury, another key bridge is also closed. The White River Bridge was blocked off following a crash involving a semitruck.

Wilkeson Councilmember Jayme Peloli says her town is suffering due to these closures. 

She’d been calling for Washington’s governor to issue an emergency proclamation in order to seek federal dollars to reimburse state efforts to fix these bridges.

Yesterday, he did just that, in an effort to address the White River Bridge closure. We talk with Peloli about what's been going on in Wilkeson. 

Guest

• Jayme Peloli, Wilkeson councilmember

Editor's note: We received a statement from WSDOT after this episode aired on the radio. It reads, in part:

"The Governor’s emergency proclamation is the first step in WSDOT seeking federal funds for repairs to the White River Bridge. While this does not guarantee that WSDOT will receive funding from the Federal Highway Administration, we believe the bridge strike qualifies as a catastrophic failure from an external cause under the statute, and we will actively pursue emergency reimbursement. Securing this funding will help ensure that state dollars can go further as we balance the many pressing needs across our transportation system."

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

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It’s Thursday, and on Thursdays, we hear from Soundside Producer Jason Megatron Burrows with everything worth doing this weekend... but he's on vacation so here's Producer Shane Mehling instead.

• WA State Fair
• BUMBERSHOOT
• PAX West 2025
• Seattle Indies Expo
• Dave Matthews’ Annual takeover of The Gorge
• Cypress Hill at Marymoore Park
• Blackberry Festival
• Olympia Harbor Days

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Have you been at a party recently and found yourself reaching for sparkling water instead of a glass of wine? Join the club.  

A new Gallup poll found that Americans are drinking less than ever before. Only 54% of U.S. adults are reporting that they consume alcohol. That’s a record low since the survey company started asking about people’s drinking habits back in 1939. 

And young people are drinking less than older Americans, a trend we’re seeing in our region, too: The Seattle Times reports that young people - especially young men - are reporting lower alcohol consumption than other age groups in the area. 

We want to know how local businesses are navigating this -- and what could be behind this shift. 

Guest:

• Emily Ritchie, executive director of the Northwest Cider Association.
• Malcolm Purinton, assistant teaching professor of history at Northeastern University. 

Related stories: 

• U.S. Drinking Rate at New Low as Alcohol Concerns Surge | Gallup 
• How much do adults in Seattle drink? Here’s what new data shows | The Seattle Times

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes.

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The story of Amanda Knox has been told many times, and there have been several versions: there were the sensational allegations laid out by an Italian prosecutor, of a University of Washington exchange student who, in 2007, murdered her British roommate as part of a sex-game-gone wrong. 

That story landed Knox in Italian prison for almost four years; that story was fiction. Then, there were the clickbaity tabloid exploits of “Foxy Knoxy,” a sex-obsessed “luciferina.” This story, which is also wrong, kept Knox confined in another way: branded with a reputation she couldn’t shake. 

There were also Lifetime Movies, documentaries and countless books, including a couple by Knox herself, that told the true story of a young woman wrongly convicted and caught up by legal and media forces larger than herself. 

Now, for the first time, she is using a scripted TV series to tell her story the way she wants. 

She is the Executive Producer of a new series called The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox. By the way, the series is also EP’d by Monica Lewinsky.

The first two episodes are available now on Hulu.

Guest: 

Amanda Knox, Executive Producer of The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

Relevant Links:

New York Times: For a ‘Twisted Tale,’ Amanda Knox and Grace Van Patten Became One

Seattle Times: Amanda Knox reclaims her story in Hulu’s ‘Twisted Tale’ series

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Governor Ferguson continues to defy demands from the Trump Administration to end Washington’s “sanctuary state” policies.

But lawmakers say there’s one place here where protections for immigrants are falling short: state prisons.

That, says Tacoma state Representative Sharlett Mena, means the state isn’t doing everything it could to keep Washingtonians safe.

According to reporting from the Washington State Standard, dozens of lawmakers are calling for the state Department of Corrections to change the way it interacts with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. 

That effort may see some headwinds, however. Governor Bob Ferguson and Attorney General Nick Brown both say they don’t see any need to alter state policy.

Guests:

• Washington State Standard reporter Jake Goldstein-Street

Related stories:

• Washington governor and AG stand by state prison notifications to ICE - Washington State Standard
• As DOJ threatens WA over sanctuary laws, state officials double down on protections - KUOW

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes.

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

President Trump has threatened to sign an Executive Order that would end mail-in voting in America. 

His comments last week come at a time when the President is suggesting multiple ways to help Republicans hold onto Congress in the 2026 midterms. Nearly a third of national ballots came through the mail in the 2024 election. And the Washington State legislature required vote-by-mail starting in 2011. 

Secretary of State Steve Hobbs talks to us about what President Trump can do and defends Washington State voting security. 

Guest: Secretary of State Steve Hobbs

Related links:

Does Trump have the power to end mail-in voting? Legal scholar weighs in

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes.

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The future of Seattle City Light might run through Oregon. 

The city has contracted two solar fields in central Oregon in an effort to meet surging demand for electricity in the city. It’s estimated that by 2033, the utility will need to about double its current production in order to keep up.

But where all of that new power will come from is still unclear.

Guest

• David Kroman, Seattle Times reporter

Links

• Seattle hopes to build its future in Oregon’s desert — or blackouts may follow - The Seattle Times

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes.

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Recent tech company protests are highlighting the connection between worker power and free speech here in Seattle.

On Sunday, protestors, including current and former Microsoft employees, kayaked across Lake Washington to the homes of Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, and President Brad Smith. From the water they unfurled banners reading “Microsoft kills kids” and “Satya + Brad = War Criminals”.

This was the latest in a week of action calling for the company to cut ties with the Israeli government and military. 

On Tuesday, protestors briefly occupied a plaza in Microsoft’s Redmond headquarters, declaring it a “Liberated Zone” encampment. 

On Wednesday, another protest at the campus led to several arrests.

KUOW labor and economy reporter Monica Nickelsburg was at Wednesday’s protest, and is here with us to discuss the specific demands of Microsoft, and how the state of the tech industry is changing employee power.

Guest:

• Monica Nickelsburg is KUOW’s labor and economy reporter. She’s also the cohost of Booming: A weekly podcast about the economic forces shaping our lives here in the Pacific Northwest

Related stories:

• Protesters occupy Microsoft HQ, demand it cut ties with Israeli military - KUOW

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes.

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Recently on Soundside, we took a ride into the world of micromobility. Specifically, we wanted to know as more e-bikes and scooters crowd the streets and sidewalks, how are cities like Seattle adapting?

And after that segment, we got an interesting listener question about helmets, inspired by this Slate article. So we decided to investigate.

"I think it's very wise to wear a helmet," our expert guest told us. "But they're not the whole story.. there are so many other public health interventions that are also crucial."

Guest

• Kathleen Bachynski, a professor of public health at Muhlenberg College in Pennsylvania

Links

• Shared bikes and scooters are getting more popular. How should cities adapt?  - Soundside
• The Cult of Bike Helmets - Marion Renault, Slate 

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes.

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A brand new contemporary art space opened up this week in downtown Seattle.

It's called Cannonball Arts, and Soundside recently got a sneak preview.

GUESTS:

• Brent Watanabe, a Seattle based artist who specializes in computer-controlled installations
• Greg Lundgren, Creative Director of New Rising Sun

RELATED LINKS:

• Cannonball Arts
• Downtown Seattle’s Bed Bath & Beyond building to become an arts center
• Real-Deal Out-There Art - The Stranger

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.