Seattle News, Views, and Brews

Seattle City Councilmembers are rolling out budget amendments by the dozens this week, but what will make the cut in a tough economic year with a $175M deficit? Plus, the Council passed--with a split vote--a controversial ban on RV parking. Why are some Councilmembers and homeless advocates pushing back on this proposal? Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for...

With three statewide initiatives on the ballot, 5 out of 9 Supreme Court Justices, a potential supermajority in the state legislature, and a U.S. Congressional race with major national implications, there's no shortage of headlines in this fall's election. Veteran reporter Jerry Cornfield of the Washington State Standard helps break down the big races and their impact on voters like you!...

The Seattle City Attorney's Office has just launched a new "connection court" to help divert people who commit low-level crimes into services to get help, but if they don't complete those services, they'll face criminal prosecution. Plus, there's a new "High Priority Repeat Offense System" focused on repeat misdemeanor offenders that allows for increased jai...

As Seattle city leaders work through a tight budget season to hire more police officers, there are still concerns brewing over the SPD's and the Mayor's communication policies following the deadly Bite of Seattle shooting. Plus, who wants the job of Seattle police chief, after ten permanent and interim leaders in just the past decade? Learn about the latest in local public affairs in abo...

Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson has presented a budget proposal with no new tax increases, but is that enough to retain current employers and attract new ones? Seattle Channel host Brian Callanan connects with Jon Scholes, President and CEO of the Downtown Seattle Association, to discuss the economic realities of business taxation, job losses, public safety concerns and more on the latest episode of Se...

Mayor Wilson has delivered her first budget to the Seattle City Council: a $9.1B package that features some job cuts (mainly to unfilled positions), fund swaps (moving money from revenue sources like the Jumpstart payroll tax into other priorities), and no new taxes. How has she been able to solve a structural budget problem for the City that's had a deficit forecast every year since 2019? Le...

Just days after local big business leaders called upon City of Seattle leadership for a new public safety plan, Mayor Katie Wilson has come out with a new gun violence reduction proposal--but will it be enough to satisfy her critics in the business community and on the City Council? And how will her revised homelessness plan fit into a city budget with a $175M deficit? It's your chance to lea...

After the deadly shootings at the Bite of Seattle in late July and over Labor Day weekend in Belltown, gun violence prevention is once again a top-of-mind concern for Seattle area leaders. So what does this work look like, how is Seattle investing in this effort, and how effective is it? Learn about the top issues in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callana...

In a press conference earlier this week, the group Community Not Cameras called Seattle's use of surveillance technology an insecure system that's a "dangerous" threat to civil liberties. But Councilmember Bob Kettle , chair of the Seattle City Council's Public Safety Committee, says the safeguards the city has constructed around this system rank among the best in the U.S....

The Seattle Police Department faces a growing number of questions after a deadly shooting, a major miscommunication of emergency information, and the forced resignation of Chief Shon Barnes. Plus, the City Council has unveiled a new, stricter approach to RV camping, and primary election results are pointing towards some must-watch November campaigns ahead.  It's Seattle News, Views & Brew...

The Seattle City Council faces a big vote this week to ban so-called "junk fees" for renters--added costs like pet fees or mailbox fees that are tacked on to monthly rent, sometimes without disclosure to the renter. Will the ban help create a more transparent and understandable process for renters, or (as some landlords claim) simply raise rents citywide and make Seattle less affordable?...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and Omari Salisbury, founder of Converge Media, discuss a wild week of Seattle politics, including the forced resignation of SPD Chief Shon Barnes after the Seattle Center shooting, the mounting frustration and pointed questions from City Council members about Mayor Wilso...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman  (formerly of the Seattle Times) discuss concerns over the City's communication policy following a deadly shooting at Seattle Center, a look at Mayor Wilson's accomplishments at the six-month mark of her term, a debate finally settled over Seatt...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman of the Seattle Times discuss the impact of higher police hiring costs on Seattle's supplemental budget, a debate within City Hall over a change to the Families, Education, Preschool and Promise levy, a final vote on the transit measure Seattle voters...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman of the Seattle Times discuss a proposed change to what some Seattle City Councilmembers call a "failed" public drug use law, a lawsuit facing the King County Regional Homelessness Authority, a controversial idea to change the way the City of Sea...

A bonus show this week for Seattle's favorite coffee break political podcast!  It's a super-wonky and super-controversial topic: should Seattle change the way the public is allowed to make environmental appeals on big zoning projects? Here's what's not wonky: based on the massive amounts of public comment coming in on both sides after Councilmember Eddie Lin has proposed this i...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman of the Seattle Times discuss Mayor Katie Wilson's proposed ban on so-called "junk fees" for renters, a deal to eliminate affordable housing fees to spur development that's now stalled out, a battle between the Mayor and the Seattle Cit...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman of the Seattle Times discuss some new, politically risky endorsements from Mayor Katie Wilson, some proposed changes to the way Seattle residents can file environmental appeals on development projects, a plan to fend off "vultures" trying to pur...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman of the Seattle Times discuss how crowds have behaved during World Cup matches in Seattle, Mayor Wilson's new plans for homelessness prevention and cleaning up street disorder at the infamous corner of 12th & Jackson, the Point in Time homeless po...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman of the Seattle Times discuss a novel legal approach from City Attorney Erika Evans to combat gun violence and prostitution on Aurora Avenue North, a budget plan involving the Seattle Fire Department that's apparently been extinguished, a look at what...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman of the Seattle Times discuss the tension between the Seattle City Council and Mayor Wilson over the proper response to gun violence on Aurora Avenue North, the Council's attempt to change a city ordinance that would allow better deployment of its CAR...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman of the Seattle Times discuss the Seattle Council's push for an emergency street closure ordinance to deal with gun violence on Aurora Avenue North, fallout from the recent Sound Transit light rail decision, a shakeup in Mayor Wilson's leadership...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman of the Seattle Times discuss rising concerns over gun violence on Aurora Avenue North, a last-ditch attempt to save the Ballard light rail extension, an in-depth look at why the King County Regional Homelessness Authority has struggled for its six years o...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman of the Seattle Times discuss the Seattle City Council's passage of a new homelessness measure that caused a shakeup within the Mayor's leadership team, the consideration of establishing a fire district to ease pressure on the city's general...

Learn about the latest in local public affairs in about the time it takes for a coffee break! Brian Callanan of Seattle Channel and David Kroman of the Seattle Times discuss a troubling report on the Seattle Police Department's crowd control policies, Seattle's World Cup spending, Sound Transit's failure to reach the Ballard neighborhood, a rift in Seattle City Council/Mayor relatio...