Select Budget Committee Meeting - Public Hearing Session I 11-5-26

I'm Dan Strauss, chair of the committee.

Will the clerk please call the roll?

Council President Hollingsworth.

Present.

Council Member Juarez.

Council Member Kettle.

Here.

Council Member Lynn.

Council Member Rink.

Council Member Rivera.

Council Member Saka.

Here.

Council Member Foster.

Here.

And Chair Strauss.

Here.

That's five present.

Wonderful.

Thank you, colleagues.

Public hearing day.

We'll be here all day until we're done hearing from the public.

And if there is no objection, the agenda will be adopted.

hearing no objection, the agenda is adopted.

How the public hearing will work today, we will begin with remote speakers this afternoon.

We currently have 119 signed up.

So that is about three hours worth of public testimony right now.

We will need to recess around 4 p.m.

and hope to achieve hearing from all remote speakers by then.

That being said, if we do have remote speakers after 4 p.m., we will just bring them to the top at 5 p.m.

So if we somehow don't have any, if we get through all of the public speakers before 3 p.m., we will wait until 3 p.m.

before going on recess, and then at 5 p.m., we will begin again with in-person public comment.

Sign up for the in-person public comment starts at 4.30, and we will continue the public hearing until everyone who has signed up has had a chance to speak.

Again, if there are still remote commenters that we haven't gotten through this afternoon, we'll start them back at five.

Regardless if you are remote or in person, each person will receive one minute, 30 seconds to share comments.

The only exception is that if you are part of a group with three or more people signed up for in-person comment, you can have your time combined.

Groups with three or more registered speakers will receive four minutes, 30 seconds to give their comment.

but then anyone in that group cannot provide separate public comment from there and onward.

Also, if you are providing virtual public comment, we won't be taking your in-person and so just if you are signed up for remote but you'd prefer to do in-person, please just know that going in.

If you want to view this process in detail, the process is listed on the agenda for the meeting and you can find it on the website or at the podium.

With that, let's begin.

Clerk, do we need to read an item into the record for us to begin?

If you could read all of the items into the record at this time.

A public hearing on the 2027 through 2028 proposed budget including the following, the City's 2027 general revenue source including a possible property tax levy increase, the Mayor's 2027 through 2028 proposed budget and the 2027 through 2032 capital improvement program and the proposed revisions to the City's 2027 general revenue sources and the Mayor's proposed budget and CAP.

Fantastic, thank you.

And clerk, can you confirm how many total speakers we have signed up remotely?

Yeah, not a problem, sorry.

We currently have 117.

Fantastic.

Well, with that, let's get right on in.

As I'm looking at this list, though, we have the majority of individuals who have registered for the online public comment are not present at this time.

And so if you are trying to provide public comment, please do check the email that you've received because we are getting ready to go.

I'm seeing some of those not present turn to present, but call in right now.

With that, I'll read the rules.

Speakers will be calling the order in which they registered.

Speakers will hear a chime when 10 seconds are remaining of their time.

Speakers' microphones will be muted if they do not end their comments within the allowed time for us to call on the next speaker.

The public comment period is now open.

We'll begin with the first speakers on the list.

I'll read out the first 10 right now.

We have Lydia Felty, Kate Rubin, Amanda DeFisher, So with that, if there's no further ado, we'll get right on into it.

Up first is Lydia Felty followed by Kate Rubin and then Joaquin Wee.

We also have council members Rink, Rivera and Foster.

Lydia, I see you're present with us now.

Star six to unmute.

Here you are.

Welcome.

Thank you.

I just got the notification to unmute.

I was hitting star six and nothing was happening, so I thank you so much for that notification.

I am Lydia Fieldy.

I'm a resident of D3 and a co-chair of the Seattle Renters Commission, and I'm speaking today on behalf of the Commission.

I'm so grateful for all of you for being here today, for hearing from the public on our budget priorities.

As you know, Seattle is a majority renter city, and renters must be prioritized in the budget because of that, especially in this time of great economic uncertainty.

The Renters' Commission has several priorities around prioritizing renters.

We've written about many of these priorities, and I know that you're about to hear from many other people, so I'm going to keep it pretty straightforward.

We strongly support OH003A1, to add $5 million to the Office of Housing for both multifamily and affordable home ownership as well as SDCI-003A to add $500,000 for tenant services.

We also urge Council to double the annual investment in community-based organizations that support renters.

That funding is sorely needed to ensure that renters can stay housed.

And again, we've written letters on this, so I encourage you to check those out if you're looking for more information on why doubling the investment is critical to ensuring that renters and really the City of Seattle stays safe and healthy.

We also oppose the continued use of jumpstart funds for things outside of the original scope through FG903A and instead ask that the City pursue more progressive revenue sources and as such we oppose CBO002A's progressive property tax.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Lydia.

Up next is Kate Rubin followed by Amanda DeFishan and Joaquin Wee.

Kate, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Welcome.

My name is Kate Rubin.

I'm the co-executive director of B Seattle, one of 11 organizations funded by SDCI to provide tenant services.

We also co-coordinate the Stay House Stay Healthy Coalition.

Addiction filings are reaching new record highs, while the city's investment in tenant services remains below 2023 levels.

Renters need legal assistance, help resolving unsafe housing conditions, and support holding landlords accountable.

We urge you to preserve the full $500,000 increase for tenant services proposed by Council President Hollingsworth and take the necessary steps to secure $5 million annually to meet their growing needs.

On October 15th, the Statehouse to Healthy Coalition sent a letter signed by organizations across Seattle calling for this investment.

We've since added several signatories including MLK Labor, UAW-4121 and FEIU-6.

I'll send the updated letter this afternoon.

New Seattle also supports Council Member Foster's proposal to allocate SPD overspend funding to affordable housing.

We appreciate the $5 million for affordable rental housing and home ownership in the balancing package.

and urge you to increase it to $10 million as Council Member Foster originally proposed.

Addressing homelessness requires investment in tenant services, human services, shelter and housing, not expensive and cruel suites.

We urge you to preserve the mayor's full shelter expansion package and support her decision to veto the RV ban.

Thank you to Council Member Sokka for agreeing to work with her on an alternative.

Thanks.

Thanks, Kate.

Up next is Amanda DeFisher followed by Joaquin Wee and Lars Erickson.

Hey, Amanda, you're here.

Star six to unmute.

There you are.

Welcome.

Hi, council.

My name is Amanda DeFisher and I'm co-chair of the Seattle Women's Commission.

I'm here today to just share our support for the funding included in the chair's budget package for our colleagues at the Seattle Disability Commission, which is for 30,000 annually for 27 and 2028 through the Office of Civil Rights.

I also just wanted to thank Health Member Juarez for supporting this proposal and being a champion of disability rights access and equity.

This funding is about more than accommodations, it's about ensuring that commissioners with disabilities have the support they need to fully participate in public service.

It also helps the city meet its obligations under Title II of the ADA, which guarantees people with disabilities an equal opportunity to participate and benefit from government programs and services, including serving on boards and commissions.

Accessibility should never be a barrier to civic engagement or leadership.

So thank you as always for your time and service.

We appreciate it.

Thank you, Amanda.

Up next is Joaquin Wee, Lars Erickson, then Dennis Sills.

Joaquin, welcome.

Here you are.

Welcome.

There you are, off mute.

Take it away, Joaquin.

Hello?

Hello, welcome.

Thank you.

My name is Joaquin Lee.

Thank you.

Proud resident of District 2 and currently the interim political lead at ProTech 17, the largest public sector union at the City of Seattle.

I also have served for over eight years in the Seattle Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs.

I'm speaking today to urge the council to please pass CBO-005B in the final city budget.

This amendment saves two city jobs and gives laid off city of Seattle public service workers six months to be able to find their next roles.

And thank you to committee chair Strauss and council members Lennon Foster for sponsoring this proposal.

Council members, I don't know if any of you have ever personally experienced the layoff.

I have.

And for my entire career, I've only ever worked at mission-driven nonprofits and government agencies aligned with my values organizations that don't typically offer severance.

So imagine how soul-crushing a layoff feels for someone like me.

That's what 15 city workers will experience at the end of this year if CBO 005B is not included in the budget.

If the least the city can do for these dedicated, passionate workers, please pass CBO 005B and ensure that our public service staff get the dignity they deserve.

And we hope that the council is able to go even further and save all the jobs currently on the chopping block while preserving essential city services.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And I see Lars Erickson is up next.

He's already here, followed by Dennis Sills, then Rose Legionnaires.

Lars, welcome.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, Chair Strauss and Councilmembers.

I'm Lars Erickson with the Seattle Metro Chamber of Commerce.

I'm also a resident of D3.

I'm here today on behalf of our 2,600 members.

We appreciate the work reflected in the chair's balancing package and its focus on several priorities important to Seattle employers and commercial districts.

In particular, we support investments that strengthen public safety and emergency response and sustaining the back to business program to help small businesses.

These are practical investments that can make a difference in neighborhoods across Seattle.

As you consider additional amendments, we encourage you to maintain fiscal discipline protect essential services and avoid new costs on employers.

The economy economic recovery depends on a city that is safe, well run and affordable to businesses of all sizes.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Up next is Dennis Sills followed by Rose Legionnaires then Karina Patel.

Welcome Dennis.

Star six to unmute.

There you are.

Take it away.

Good afternoon, Councilmembers.

Dennis Sills with the Downtown Seattle Association.

Seattle needs a budget that meets the urgency of this moment.

Throughout the year, DSA and our partners have shared our challenges, growing unsheltered homelessness, persistent public safety issues, office vacancy over 30%, and we have lost 18,000 jobs since 2024. These challenges affect people's lives, confidence in our city, and the economic activity that supports city services.

The mayor's budget and the balancing package deliver both, strengthening public safety, expanding shelter and streets to housing citywide, and maintaining fiscal sustainability through 2030 using existing resources.

That is the right direction for Seattle.

But one key shortcoming remains, sustaining our World Cup momentum.

City investments help deliver cleaner sidewalks, safer public spaces, and a vibrant downtown.

These conditions should be our everyday standard.

Getting more people downtown supports the long-term health of the budget and pays back through the general fund.

As you finalize the budget, we urge you to identify existing resources to enhance and expand downtown activation and large-scale public events in the mid in 2027. We have seen what is possible.

Let's build on that progress.

Thank you.

Thank you, Dennis.

Up next is Rose Legionnaires, followed by Karina Patel and then Julie Ziegler.

Hello.

Last week at midnight, I believe it was last Tuesday, SPD went into Cal Anderson, went to everyone in the park, and told them that if they did not leave the park by 4 a.m., that everyone would be trespassed from the park.

This is an egregious use of the police and egregious use of the city's power to make those that had nothing be forced out of where they live.

If any of us were forced out of our homes in the middle of a rainy night without knowing where to go, we would be appalled.

This is not okay.

This cannot be okay.

And there's a lot of things from the city from whether it's the RV bans or throwing people out from their tents that sees homeless people as disposable, as not human, and as individuals that should not be cared about.

We love these people.

These people matter.

We need to treat them as they are people with respect.

Every one of us needs to realize that and actualize that as we're looking at the budget and actualizing how you're interacting with human beings.

I plead with each of you to uphold the mayor's RV veto.

We need this veto to come through as Councilmember Strauss and a lot of other people in the Council very clearly said this is a half-baked legislation and something that has the opportunity and is expected to drastically increase the amount of homeless people in Seattle.

We need to be thinking about this with clear eyes, not just hoping it works later.

Thank you, Rose.

Up next is Karina Patel followed by Julie Ziegler and then Carl Nelson.

Karina, welcome.

I see you there, star six to unmute.

Welcome.

Hello, Budget Chair Strauss and members of Council.

I'm Karina Patel from the Tubman Center for Health and Freedom.

Thank you for including operating support for Tubman Health in your balancing package.

I want to recognize Council Member Juarez for championing this request and thank Council Members Lynn, Foster, Hollingsworth, Rivera, and Rink for your co-sponsorship and leadership.

At a time when the health care, safety, and dignity of marginalized communities are under attack, This investment is a statement about what kind of city we choose to be and who we choose to stand with when it matters most.

You are saying that our communities are worth protecting, that our lives are worth investing in, that access to trustworthy care is worth investing in.

At Tubman Health every day, we see what becomes possible when people have access to care that recognizes their humanity, honors their experiences, and meets them with dignity.

We see community members whose health and quality of life are transformed because they have a place where they are believed, where they belong, and where they are truly cared for.

Our communities deserve more than statements of solidarity.

They deserve a city willing to put its resources behind its values.

We urge you to carry this commitment through the finish line and ensure Tubman Health remains in the final budget.

Thank you.

Thank you, Karina.

Up next is Julie Ziegler followed by Carl Nelson, then Peter Orr.

Julie, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Welcome.

Thank you.

Hello, my name is Julie Ziegler.

I'm Executive Director of Humanities Washington, a cultural organization based in Council District 7, but serving all of Seattle.

I'd like to thank Council Chair Strauss for putting meaningful funding for the arts in his balancing package.

Thank you Councilmember President Hollingsworth for championing arts, culture, and heritage in Seattle.

Your leadership has made this funding possible.

Thank you, Councilmember Foster, for also submitting an amendment to support the cultural sector.

Though that amendment isn't in this balancing package, we really appreciate her effort.

And thank you to the sponsors that signed on to these important amendments, Juarez, Lynn, Kettle, and Rink.

Our sector is facing enormous pressure.

Costs keep rising.

Federal funding is disappearing.

State funds are in serious jeopardy and cultural workers and community programs are increasingly vulnerable.

These are not issues that will be fixed overnight with a positive election result at the federal level.

They need to be addressed immediately or we risk permanent damage to the cultural infrastructure.

Currently an economic bright spot and strength of our city as a whole and particularly to our downtown core.

Organizations like Humanities Washington bring people, specifically their cultures and perspectives, together for shared experiences and learning so we can tackle pressing social issues knowledgeably and together.

There are few sectors in this city that serve people across the age, culture, and racial divides.

Please- Thank you, Julie.

And up next is Carl Nelson.

I see you're already off mute.

Carl, take it away.

Hello, Council.

My name is Carl Nelson.

I'm a 17-year renter in District 4, founding member and co-chair of the Cedar Crossing Tenants Association, and a member of the Seattle Social Housing Developer Board of Directors.

I'm here today in my personal capacity to urge Council to preserve the full $500,000 increase for tenant services included in the Chair's balancing package in the final adopted budget.

I'd like to thank Councilmembers Foster, Lynn, Rink, and Saka for their support of this.

I also want to echo other commenters in saying that this number is the bare minimum and ideally should be doubled.

We also need to increase the appropriation of Office of Housing to $10 million instead of $5 million.

I also support Councilmember Foster's plan to allocate the SPD overspend on affordable housing and I also advocate for the full shelter expansion package in the mayor's budget and the $3.5 million for an RV safe lot.

As a renter and tenants' organizer, I've seen first-hand experience about how getting legal advice, rental assistance, rights, training, and education is for the tenant services, and it's critical that we support these services at a time of economic downturn and all-time high evictions.

So I urge you today to add half a million dollars to tenant services, appropriate the 10 million for increased affordable housing and home ownership, allocate SPD overfunding to affordable housing, and to preserve the mayor's full shelter expansion, also to fund the RV safe lots.

Thank you all for your time.

Bye-bye.

Thank you, Carl.

Up next is Peter Orr followed by Orr Black and then Jen Giomi.

I might've said that name wrong, but Peter, I see you're already off mute.

Take it away.

Good afternoon.

I'm calling it as a resident of D5 and a neighbor of Aurora to support the initiatives that council member Orr has positioned.

OPCD001 supporting the North Aurora initiative, MO002 to partner with NNSC, LAW001 and 002 to clear the backlog of violent cases we've got, HSD055 to create a silent task force along Aurora, and I would add an advocate for including funding for another vice detective.

Something that keeps coming up as an issue we face with the human trafficking and gun violence along Aurora is the lack of vice detectives.

We only have two for the city.

At least one would help tremendously.

And then I would also like to advocate for the Seattle Stands with Survivors Every Step initiative proposed by Counsel Rink last week.

I think that's a beautiful thing that we need for our city and in North Laura in particular.

Thank you.

Thank you, Peter.

Up next is Laura Black followed Jen Giomi.

Nancy Hooser, you are not present.

Graham Press would be the next if Nancy does not become present.

And Laura, you're with us now.

Star six to unmute.

There you are.

Welcome.

Great.

Hello.

My name is Laura Black and I'm speaking today to advocate for funding North and South Seattle College parent education programs.

I live in West Seattle and I'm a third year student in South Seattle College's parent ed program.

My parenting journey began with challenges and without the tools I needed to navigate early childhood development.

Through course seminars and working as an assistant teacher in the preschool lab, I've gained invaluable skills, support, and a community that has transformed my parenting experience.

These programs are so beneficial to Seattle families, many parent ed seminars are free and open to the public and cover central topics to support today's parents, youth, and our next generation of early childhood educators.

Unfortunately, the state board decided to defund these programs, which threatens this vital resource.

When compared to city of Seattle's full-time preschool, our program would comparably cost the city $1,000 to $3,000 per student annually, which is a fraction of the city's $11,000 to $15,000 annual cost per public preschool student.

We've secured funding for fall quarter, but without emergency support or parent education programs are at risk of closing this winter.

Will a council member please champion a budget amendment for $1.6 million in emergency funding for two quarters of our North and South Seattle College parent ed programs?

Even 800,000 will keep us operating through winter while we pursue long-term funding.

Please help this cost-effective early childhood ed model survive while we continue to pursue long-term state funding solutions.

Thank you so much for your consideration of such an important resource.

Thank you.

Up next is Jen Giomi, followed by Nancy Hooser, but Nancy, you are not present.

Graham Pruss, followed by Beatrix Kelly.

Jen, I see you're here.

You're already off mute.

Welcome, take it away.

Jen Giyomi, Thank you city council for hosting public comment on the budget this morning.

My name is Jen Giyomi, and I am a parent educator and faculty coordinator for the South Seattle College Parent Education Program.

Jen Giyomi, We have submitted packets of information to the city council, to the FEP committee, to deal, and to the mayor's office.

Our students have been sending emails.

There are lots of very important budget amendments and Seattle College parent education programs are asking for a champion pleas to make a budget amendment to provide one-time emergency funding through our programs in the amount of $1.6 million to fund our programs through June 2027. Even half of that, we are working hard to find private funders that could also help support us through the end of the year.

It might not be widely known that these programs support the largest and most affordable system of part-time childcare and preschool in the city, serving 1,500 to 1,800 children per year.

As Laura said, when you account for the fact that students are also students, the cost per student is between $580 and $700 per student per year.

Compare this with the city of Seattle, $11,800 to $15,000 per student.

While the programs are not exactly the same, when you extrapolate out, we can provide full-time service and parent education for less than $3,000 per student.

In times of budget funding austerity, it is fiscally irresponsible to let a program this effective and efficient disappear.

Please make an amendment and champion this program one time.

Thank you, Jen.

Nancy Hooser is not present.

Nancy, do call in if you want to provide comment.

Graham Press followed by Beatrix Kelly.

Eloisa Cardona, you are also not present.

Please call in at this time.

Followed by Sarah Miller who is.

Graham, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute, welcome.

Graham, if you can hit star six.

There you are, welcome.

Can you hear me?

Yes, we can.

Good afternoon, council members.

Good afternoon, council members.

I'm Dr. Graham Press, executive director of the National Vehicle Residency Coalition.

In 2011, I was honored to work with local advocates, many giving comment today to start Seattle's first safe parking program.

I've worked as the city's only outreach provider for around 1,500 vehicle residents from 2013 to 2015. The RV residents that I met were locally displaced families, veterans, low-income laborers, people with disabilities, as well as some folks with behavioral challenges and criminal justice background.

I have seen the value of parking programs for the people they serve, but they have never been funded to scale.

Seattle needs to do something different, and I applaud Councilmember Strauss' proposed new funding for parking programs, infrastructure, and outreach for vehicle residents.

That said, I urge you to uphold Mayor Wilson's veto of Seattle's harmful RV permitting legislation.

This veto offers an important opportunity to move beyond displacement and develop practical solutions that meet the needs of Seattle's communities.

Millions of Americans rely on vehicles as emergency, transitional, and affordable long-term housing.

Restricting where they can park will not resolve our housing crisis.

It will only push away people from their communities, jobs, health care, and services.

Our national coalition brings together vehicle residents, researchers, legal advocates, and parking program operators from across the country.

We stand ready to help Seattle to develop effective models for overnight safe parking, longer-term supportive parking, and stable parking infrastructure, drawing on national research, proven programs, and lived experience.

Seattle needs solutions that address sanitation, safety, and

Thank you, Graham, and thank you for the work that you do.

Beatrix Kelly is next.

Eloisa Cardona is not present.

Sarah Miller is followed.

Kylie Dahat is not present, followed by Alicia Ruiz.

Beatrix, you're already off mute.

Thank you.

Take it away at your convenience.

Welcome.

Good afternoon, council members.

Thank you for being here today.

My name is Beatrix Kelly, and I work for the Low Income Housing Institute, and I'm a resident of District 3. I want to start off by saying thank you to all of you for including funding for a second RV safe lot in the balancing package.

These dollars will directly impact unhoused vehicle residents living across the city.

I also want to highlight the $5 million one-ton funding allocated for the affordable rental and home ownership projects.

These Office of Housing dollars are half of what Councilmember Foster proposed.

I urge you to support a self-balancing amendment when it comes across your desk.

There also needs to be an adjustment to return to 50% jumpstart allocation to affordable housing and EDI since it was left out of the balancing package.

I hope that you will all strongly consider supporting a plan to return to at least 50% of PET for affordable housing and EDI because that's what the jumpstart funds originally promised.

Finally, I want to voice my support for Councilmember Lynn's proposal to fund a 3% wage equity increase for human service contracts.

Many advocates that will speak to you today are representatives from human services agencies.

They deserve to be equitably recognized.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Beatrix.

Eloisa Cardona, you are not present.

Call in now if you would like to provide testimony.

Sarah Miller, followed by Kylie Dahat, who's not present, then Alicia Ruiz and Cindy Hurst.

With that, Sarah Miller, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Welcome.

Great, thank you.

Good afternoon, City Councilmembers.

My name is Sarah Miller.

I live in University District and attend UW, which are both in District 4, and I am an intern working with the Coalition Ending Gender-Based Violence, which is located in District 3. I'm joining many of the other voices that you will hear today to support budget amendment HSC-030-A which adds $8 million of ongoing funds for survivors of gender-based violence.

Approving this additional funding is crucial for the city to meet the ongoing needs of survivors that are being threatened by the federal funding cuts which are being absorbed into our state and local budget.

Survivors require specialized services that cannot be met by adding more funds to generalized social safety net programs.

In my five years as an advocate, I've been the one to hold survivors' hands as evidence is collected in sexual assault forensic exams.

I've been the one to answer crisis calls at two in the morning.

I have safety planned and worked to relocate a single father of four when his abusive partner found stalked him to our shelter.

I am not unique.

Every advocate, every agency does so much with what we are given and that is becoming less and less each year.

This additional funding will ensure survivors get access to advocates like myself, but also specialists like therapists, family law, legal aid, and school age prevention programming.

I urge you to approve the budget with the full funding for HSC-030-A because this additional funding supports survivors' current needs and invest in future prevention efforts.

Thank you for your time and the opportunity to speak with you today.

Thank you, Sarah.

Kylie Dahat, you are not present.

We're going to come back to those not present at the end.

Alicia Ruiz followed by Sydney Hurst and Jake Thonis.

I'm sorry if I said your name wrong.

Alicia, thank you.

You're off mute.

Take it away.

Good afternoon, Chair Strauss and members of the committee.

My name is Alicia Ruiz with Habitat for Humanity, Seattle King and Kittitas County.

Thank you for your efforts to prioritize affordable housing by adding five million dollars back into the Office of Housing.

We ask that you dedicate $3 million of those funds to the production of affordable home ownership.

We also urge you to support the proposal to dedicate the SPD overpayment dollars to affordable housing.

The mayor's proposal cut the city's home ownership program by over $3 million.

That's about 28 families who won't get keys.

Restoring these funds could change the lives of these families and all it takes is your commitment to do so.

Home ownership is how working families stop chasing rent It's how they build equity and stay in the neighborhoods they serve.

Every city dollar we receive brings in about four more through private mortgages, philanthropy, and volunteer labor.

That partnership shows what responsible fiscal investment in community looks like.

Liberty Commons, our recently built 58 permanently affordable homes in Columbia City, shows what this investment creates.

Please protect the $5 million and dedicate $3 million of it for affordable homeownership.

Thank you.

Thank you, Alicia.

Up next is Sydney Hurst, followed by Jake Thonese and Catherine Jordan.

Sydney, you're here.

Apologies, Jake, if I said your name incorrectly.

Star six to unmute Sydney.

There you are.

Welcome.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Sydney Hurst and I have the privilege of overseeing Uplift Northwest graffiti abatement program in partnership with the City of Seattle Parks and Recreation Department.

I'm here today to ask you to reconsider funding for a program that means so much more than removing graffiti.

At Uplift Northwest, we employ approximately 400 individuals annually who face poverty and barriers to traditional employment.

Through our graffiti abatement program alone, 44 participants have transitioned into permanent housing.

What makes that number meaningful is it isn't simply 44 people finding somewhere to live.

It's that having a consistent paycheck helped them rebuild the confidence to believe they could maintain that stability.

It's the difference between finding a place to call home and believing you have the means to keep it.

I've watched participants receive their first paychecks in years, celebrate recovery milestones, and rediscover a sense of purpose they may have thought was lost.

These are moments that can't be measured in square footage or dollars, but make no mistake, the measurable impact is remarkable too.

Since 2023, we've grown from monitoring 78 properties to more than 250 throughout Seattle.

Our crews have removed 1.1 million square feet of graffiti while providing relief to small business owners who might otherwise struggle to afford removal.

When I think about losing this funding, I don't just think about the properties we may no longer serve, I think about the people who are just beginning to believe in their futures.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you, Sydney.

Up next is Jake.

I'm not going to mess your name up a third time.

Jake, I see you're here.

You're off mute.

Take it away.

Welcome.

Hello, my name is Jake Janus, and I organize with Our Seattle, a member of the Community Not Cameras Coalition.

Our coalition is asking all council members to support a revision to the provides output forward last week by Councilmember Rink, Glenn, and Foster.

The adjusted language would move the proviso to beyond the mayor's office as the mayor oversees the Seattle Police Department and as an executive department and appoints the chief of police who reports to the mayor.

Holding the funds in the office of the mayor makes the mayor accountable for STD's implementation of the three OIG recommendations listed in the September report.

In addition, the updated proviso language removes the requirement to be lifted by a council ordinance.

This adjustment is based on Councilmember Salka's recommendation during the discussion last Thursday.

And so, the proviso would restrict $400,000 until OIG certifies in a report sent to Council that SPD has adopted the three recommendations.

This proviso is intended to incentivize the mayor to ensure timely compliance and implementation as the police surveillance system and real-time crime center remain active with vulnerabilities that continue to risk the safety of Seattle lights in every neighborhood.

We ask for your vote on this adjusted proviso next week.

Jake, you've still got a couple seconds left.

Well, thank you, Jake.

Up next is Catherine Jordan, who I see is already off mute.

Followed by Catherine is Chris McCabe and Paul Villanueva.

Catherine, welcome.

Thank you.

Good afternoon.

My name is Catherine Jordan and I am the executive director of South Park Senior Citizens.

We are located in District 1 and I live in District 1 as well.

I'm commenting today in strong support of Council Member Saka's budget amendment of $750,000 in support of Seattle's senior centers.

Thank you Council Member Saka for this important amendment.

Our center is located in the social vulnerable score of 10, which is the highest possible score that you can accumulate.

Resources that we are providing are vital resources for very low-income immigrant and refugee seniors.

54% of our seniors are nutritionally at risk and they rely on the free meal programming that we offer.

In addition, our multilingual team ensures our seniors get the support that they need in the language that they speak to access medical care, housing, transportation, and government benefits.

Senior centers serve as vital hubs for safety, community, and care.

For seniors who often live alone, they're a place where loneliness and isolation falls away and nourishment, movement, and joy is found.

I thank you for your support and investment in these very important and necessary city resources.

Thank you.

Thank you, Catherine.

Chris McKay is already off mute.

Following Chris is Paul, then Paulina Lopez.

Welcome, Chris.

Good afternoon, Councilmembers.

I'm Chris McKay.

I'm the Executive Director of the West Seattle Junction BIA.

I want to thank Councilmember Saka for his $475,000 amendment for cleaner, safer, and more welcoming West Seattle business districts.

Every day, I see how much our small businesses contribute to this community and how stretched they are.

Their assessments fund our cleaning, security, and beautification.

We remove graffiti, pick up litter, and human waste, and work to make the junction welcoming for everybody, but costs keep rising and we're struggling to sustain these essential services.

We need the city as a stronger partner.

This funding would build on the work we're already doing, helping us respond faster and care for the public spaces our businesses, residents, and visitors share.

Please support this amendment and invest in the neighborhoods that keep Seattle thriving.

Thank you, Councilmember Saka and all of you for your hard work.

Thank you, Chris.

Up next is Paul Villanueva followed by Paulina Lopez and Iris Intman.

Paul, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

There you are.

Welcome.

Hello.

Good morning, chair and council members.

I am here to ask for your support.

My name is Paul.

Villanueva and I am the program coordinator for a legacy with quality leadership and organizing re-licensing program.

We help people get their driver's license back if it's suspended or revoked.

We have been partnered with the City of Seattle for the last 20 years under the pre-filing diversion program and priority hire.

Our program has been a success this year after partnering with the Seattle Municipal Court in their resource center We were able to get 15 new clients this year.

Our re-licensing program was able to get that number within just six months into the program, but needed to stop taking clients as we have reached the total amount of clients we can accept for the year because of limited funding that we have.

We are asking for your help to advocate for an increase since we haven't gotten an increase in years for our program and we want the council to continue funding our program.

Without this program, a lot of people we serve will be left behind in the revoke suspended licenses put barriers on a lot of people from getting jobs because most jobs require it and be put in a cycle of death.

So please keep our program in mind.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, Paul.

Up next is Paulina Lopez followed by Iris Antman and then Sean Roberts.

Paulina, welcome.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Paulina Lopez, executive director of the Duwamish River Community Coalition.

And I'm here to thank also member Saka from District 1 for all the suggested budget.

Number 1, thank you for tagging along for the South Park Gateway Public Re-Alban Community Center Activation Package.

Our youth, after celebrating a long-waited 10-year community center need programming, that will be serving having the largest youth of color in the city.

It's important that we provide the programming that they need to the South Park Community Center, and we want to thank you for that.

We are also asking to continue funding the Citywide Senior Center.

South Park has a very diverse senior center that is serving the connections that we need for both social and food access for our seniors.

Council Member Dion Foster for proposing budget for the Georgetown market, and we will continue to bring that asset to the neighborhoods of Georgetown, as well as the EDI, Protect Affordable Housing Pipeline.

We support carrying forward Unspread Jamstar Housing Funds for the housing of housing.

Thank you so much for all these investments also in the neighborhood councils, a council member Hollingsworth, and we hoping that we support that on the Georgetown Community Council for the Neighborhood Center.

Thank you all for all your work.

Thank you, Paulina.

Up next is Iris Antman, followed by Shawn Roberts.

Hi there.

My name is Iris Antman.

I'm a resident of District 2, and thank you for taking my comment.

Thank you for all of your hard work.

Seattle faces many challenges and has for as long as I've lived here, almost 45 years, and almost always there's not enough money to address all of the challenges.

On Tuesday night, when national election returns came in, and even with the blue wave we saw, I heard no mention of the climate crisis as an issue that must be addressed now.

And in the Seattle budget you're working on and the possible amendments, I urge you not to take money from the Jumpstart funds 9% of which were slated to address climate concerns.

Maintain those funds and find other creative ways to address other challenges.

We just passed a levy for transportation so it's possible to find other funds, maybe with the proposed property tax levy.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, Iris.

Up next is Shawn Roberts followed by Amarintha Torres and then Beth Brummel.

Shawn, I see you're already off mute.

Welcome.

Take it away.

Hello, Council Members.

My name is Shawn Roberts, Executive Director of Arts Corps.

We are located in District 1. Thank you, Chair Strauss, for including meaningful arts funding in your balancing package.

Thank you, Council President Hollingsworth, for championing arts, culture, and heritage.

Your leadership made this funding possible.

We also appreciate Council Member Foster's amendment supporting the cultural sector, even though it wasn't included in this package.

Thank you to all the amendment sponsors.

Today you recognize that arts and culture are essential to our city.

You see that our organizations support youth, seniors, immigrants, unhoused residents, and communities across Seattle.

Because you recognize this important work, you've built a budget that invests in these valuable services and protects the cultural workers who provide them.

Thank you for your leadership and your vision.

Have a great day.

Thank you, Sean.

Up next is Amarentha Torres followed by Beth Brummel and then Elizabeth Armball.

Amarentha, you're already off mute.

Welcome.

Hi there.

Thanks so much.

Good afternoon, Council.

My name is Amarentha Torres and I'm the Co-ED of the Coalition Ending Gender-Based Violence.

I'd like to share appreciation to Budget Chair Strauss for including five million in funds for gender-based violence survivors in the balancing package through HSD 030C.

and for including resources to our partners at the City Attorney's Office through LAW-001, so that survivors' access in the criminal legal system aren't waiting years for justice and closure.

In a tough budget year, these are meaningful investments in survivor safety, and we do not take that for granted.

Member programs hearing the news have been just really, like, so surprised and thrilled.

So thank you, and we appreciate all the sponsors and co-sponsors on these amendments.

We ask that you please protect these funds in the final budget and use this investment as a foundation for sustained and ongoing funding for gender-based violence survivor services and the people who make these services possible.

We'd also really like to share support for wage equity for human service workers, shelter expansion, and tenant services.

Survivors depend on a strong human service sector, housing they can afford when they leave an abusive relationship, and guidance on their rights as renters.

This is especially true for black survivors and trans survivors who face increased rates of eviction, housing discrimination, and biased lending practices.

So we urge your support on all of these interconnected resources that help make up a stronger network of safety for survivors.

Thank you.

Thank you so much for the time today.

Thank you, Amaranthia.

Up next is Beth Brummel followed by Elizabeth Armbault and then Alice Lockhart.

Beth, I see you're here and you're off mute.

Welcome.

Beth Bromel, Hi, thank you for taking my comments and all these other very important comments in the community.

My name is Beth Bromel, I live here in West Seattle and I'm calling as a student in the parent education program at South Seattle College.

And I have two children who have participated in the co-op preschools.

Parent education and my time at the lab as an assistant teacher is important because it teaches us as parents to work shoulder to shoulder building community.

and that's the community we all talk about needing to raise resilient children.

Co-op has supported our family through our gender diverse child coming out and it's supported us through an unexpected pregnancy.

It's offered quality and affordable option for preschool and parent education, allowing our family to work and also be present with our children.

Please help us keep this important program supported as we search for further funding.

We're asking if there's a council member who will champion amendments to the budget for one-time emergency funding, the South Seattle College Parent Education Program.

We need $1.6 million for two quarters.

Even half this amount at $800,000 will keep us going through winter quarter while we continue searching for private funding partners.

Thank you.

Thank you, Beth.

Up next is Elizabeth Arnbalt, followed by Alice Lockhart and then Kristen Grandstand.

Elizabeth, I see you're here, star six to unmute.

Hi, my name is Elizabeth Arshambo and I live in the South Lake Union neighborhood.

I want everyone in my community to have a safe place to sleep at night.

So I request that you please stand with the direct service members, people experiencing homelessness, many community members like me who support expanding safe parking, shelters, community-based outreach and options for people to store their RVs.

And please stand with our Mayor's veto against the proposed changes to parking rules for RVs and permits that are harmful.

Thank you for your time today.

I appreciate it.

Thank you, Elizabeth.

Up next is Alice Lockhart followed by Kristen Grandstand and then Naray Petty.

Alice, welcome.

Star six to unmute.

I see you're off mute.

Take it away.

Welcome.

Good afternoon council.

I'm Alice Lockhart speaking from B5 with multiple people living in RVs and tents within a few blocks of my home.

Housing and staying housed are the most critical problem facing this council in this very tough budget year with thousands living in our streets and more still in danger of eviction and the budget can do better.

I urge funding Office of Housing 3C at the full original $10 million add for affordable housing and please do your best to restore the $23 million that the balancing package reads from JumpStart and thus from affordable housing and EDI and restore the good amendments that require budget sustainability and work to ensure JumpStart money stays in JumpStart.

Please comb the balancing package for non-essential items that can be cut in favor of housing tenant services and wage equity for their providers.

Non-essential items in a tough year include, but are not limited to, $200,000 for sports promotion, half a million for murals and ballads, $150,000 for ballad activations, downtown commercial pendant attractions, a music laureate program, Rockville Park improvements, and over $8 million for a play field in well-off Magnolia.

Even the most equitable of these should follow new progressive revenue.

I also urge cutting the $3 million in funding for implementation of the vetoed RV bin.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Alice.

Up next is Kristin Grandstand, Naray Petty, followed by Marty Comford.

Kristin, you're here, off mute.

Welcome.

Take it away at your convenience.

Hi, good afternoon, Councilmembers.

My name is Kristin Grandstand and I'm the Program Director at Family Works.

I'm here in support of Councilmember Rivera's budget amendment to provide capital funding for Family Works' Sunbreak Family Resource Center.

Family Works is opening a Family Resource Center on the ground floor of the Sunbreak Bellweather Housing's new affordable housing tower in the U District that will break ground next year.

The Family Resource Center will provide resource navigation, parenting support, free diapers and children's clothing, and connections to community resources.

We know families are more likely to seek support when services are located where they already live.

and family resource centers have a proven track record of helping families build stability while reducing reliance on more costly interventions.

At a time when many Seattle families are facing increasing economic pressure, this investment will help ensure affordable housing is paired with the supports families need to thrive.

I urge you all to support this proposal.

Thank you.

Thank you, Kristen.

Up next is Nariah Petty, followed by Marty Comford, then David Miller.

Nariah, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Narai.

There you are.

Welcome.

Maybe you're on mute on your own phone.

You're off mute on our program.

All right.

Welcome.

All right.

Thank you so much.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Mary Petty.

I am the Committee Policy and Engagement Manager for Statewide Poverty Action Network, and I lead advocacy at Solid Ground.

which is a nonprofit organization providing essential services such as housing, food access, domestic violence support, and legal assistance in the greater Seattle area.

Today I am asking you to increase funding for tenant services, domestic violence, and victim advocacy support, wage equity for human services workers, to support Councilmember Foster's medical debt relief amendment, and to refrain from funding essential services like food access with regressive tax sources.

In Salt Lake Grounds community needs assessment, 26% of our participants are at risk of losing their housing or are homeless, and about one in three said someone in their household went hungry.

I understand that there's a significant budget deficit.

However, essential services like housing, food access, and healthcare needs fair, stable funding, not cuts to balance the budget or move to a regressive tax source.

This budget moves food access funding onto the Sweden beverage tax, which is notorious for being a regressive tax source, It has not increased funding for tenant services or wages for human service workers, and it keeps domestic violence services flat, while victim advocacy drops 35%.

At the same time, a significant amount of homelessness funding is moving from KCRHA to the city, and some people have already waited households for months or years without assistance, which can also strain a highly underpaid or overstressed workforce.

For the sake of time, I'll follow up with an organization-wide written comment to the council soon.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you.

And we have Marty Comfort already here, followed by David Miller, Madeline Mohameddin.

You are not present.

Please call in now.

Matthew Deering, you'll be up next if Madeline does not call in.

Marty, I see you're already off mute.

Welcome, take it away.

Yeah, thank you very much for hosting this, Council Chair Strauss.

And I thank the rest of the council for the work that they've done on this.

I live in the Lake City neighborhood, So I'm calling in support of the, it's the OED, Office of Economic Development, 006B, that's to increase one and a half million dollars to stabilize the, activate and invest locally, the SAIL fund for the Chinatown International District in Lake City neighborhood.

I want to call in support of this.

We've had some challenges out here with, you know, people that have drug addiction issues and I think this would really help, especially boosting the area of public safety.

So, yeah, I just wanted to call to let you know I appreciate your efforts and I want you to pass this.

So, put it in the budget.

So, anyway, thank you very much.

Appreciate it and have a great rest of the day.

Thank you.

And up next is David Miller.

Madeline Mohammedin, you're still not present.

Matthew Deering, Edgar Espinoza, you are also not present.

David Miller, I see you're here and off mute.

Welcome.

Take it away at your convenience.

Thank you very much.

Hello, my name is David Miller.

I'm a resident of District 6. I'm a writer, a filmmaker, and a funding consultant, and I am testifying on behalf of Inspire Washington.

I want to thank Chair Strauss for including critical cultural funding in his balancing package and Council President Hollingworth for being such a strong champion for arts, culture and heritage.

Your leadership was essential to making this happen today.

Thank you also to Council Member Foster for her amendment supporting our sector and to the sponsors of these important amendments.

Today's investment is also an investment in Seattle's economy.

Cultural organizations create jobs, attract visitors, support small businesses, and helps make Seattle a vibrant place to live and work.

By supporting our organizations, you're protecting cultural workers and strengthening our city's economic future.

Thank you for recognizing our value and investing in our future.

I yield the rest of my time.

Thank you.

Thank you, David.

Edgar, let's see.

Madeline Mohamedin is next, but not present.

So next is Matthew Deering.

Edgar Espinoza, you are not present.

So we will be followed by Sheldon Chad and then Marcia Wright Sojka.

With that, we will be promoting Matthew in just a second.

Matthew, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Wonderful.

Welcome.

Thanks.

Yeah, thanks, Dan.

My name is Matthew Dearing.

I'm a resident of District 6, living on Stroud Avenue between North 80th and Green Lake.

Our street has become pretty much a major shortcut with some pretty dangerous traffic down our narrow street.

We're looking to have some traffic pattern alterations done.

So we're asking for some support for Councilmember Strauss's budget action to restrict left lane turns on both the north and south side.

That would be like 80th Street and then Green Lake Drive.

We're hoping that'll help restore safety, improve the traffic for all, and make our lives a little bit easier.

So we appreciate that.

That's it.

Thank you.

Thank you, Matthew.

Edgar Espinosa is still not present.

So we are going to go on to Sheldon Chad followed by Marsha Wright Sojka and then Art Rudnicki.

Sheldon, you're here.

Star six to unmute.

And Sheldon, star six to unmute.

All right, we're gonna come back to Sheldon in just one second.

And Marsha, you're already off mute, like a professional here, over to you.

Thank you, Chair Strauss.

Good afternoon, council members.

I'm Marsha White Soika, Executive Director of Family Works.

and I'm here to express my thanks to Chair Strauss for including HSC 26A in the balancing package and urge you all to preserve this capital funding for Family Works.

Thank you Councilmember Rivera for your leadership on this and Councilmembers Hollingsworth, Kettle, Foster, Juarez and Rank for your sponsorship.

To ensure affordable housing is paired with the critical services that keep families safely housed and connected to resources, Family Works will open a new Family Resource Center on the ground floor of the Sunbreak, a new affordable bellwether housing development in the University District that will break ground next year.

We all know that housing in this city is unaffordable and too difficult to access.

In addition to hundreds of homes, this project ensures that the Resource Center, families will access resource navigation of financial and food support, a diaper bank, playgroups, and other essential services for residents and the broader community.

Please keep this investment in a model that we know works for families.

I would also like to urge addition of Councilmember Lynn's amendment to bring 3% critical wage equity investment to human services contracts.

Our staff pour their knowledge, expertise, and compassion into working with our most marginalized neighbors, and may we have to leave this work because we are so far behind.

Thank you.

Thank you, Marsha.

We're gonna check back in with Sheldon Chad.

Mr. Chad, are you able to press star six at this time?

Star six, Sheldon.

Why don't we leave Sheldon where they are and let's keep moving on.

I've got Art Rodnicki here.

Manny Colling is next.

Mahouba Azizi.

You are not present yet.

Laurel Gray is followed.

Following next.

Art, I see you're off mute already.

Welcome.

Take it away.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, budget chair, Strauss and council members.

My name is Art Rodnicki.

I'm an executive board member on the Lake City Community Council.

I'm here today to urge your full support for Amendment OED-006B.

Thank you for sponsoring it, Council Members Lynn, Juarez, Chair Strauss, and all others who have supported it as well.

The amendment maintains and expands critical sale funding for Lake City and Little Saigon.

Last year's funding was a lifeline.

It's helped us jumpstart long-overdue solutions for our community, business corridor, and natural environment.

With it, we've launched new programs to bring neighbors of all age and demographics closer together helped to improve public safety.

It's also helped us lean into help restoring Seattle's largest watershed, and we've begun revitalizing our commercial core.

This has all been done in lockstep with our key city partners, plus the Lake City Business Lines and the Lake City Collective.

Investing in Lake City has delivered proven equitable returns.

Please include amendment OED-006B in the final balancing package.

Thank you for helping us build positive momentum to deliver much needed and long overdue solutions for our community.

Thank you, Art.

Up next is Manny calling.

Sheldon.

Sheldon, and you're off.

Yeah, welcome.

Take it away at your convenience.

Yeah.

Thank you.

My name is Sheldon Chad.

Back in July of 2025, residents from 30 different properties on Stroud Avenue North between East Green Lake Drive North and 80th Street North petitioned the city regarding the severe traffic situation on the street.

We sincerely thank Chairperson Strauss for keeping this current on the agenda.

The Transportation Department did make adjustments at 80th Avenue North, but they are insufficient.

Others will speak on this.

The proposed fix by the Councilman to put a no left turn there now is a good one.

but it misses the primary danger spot on the street.

The missing link here is pedestrian safety.

There are very few pedestrians on North 80th Crossing Stroud, but there are tons of pedestrians below Crossing Stroud on East Green Lake Drive North.

The critical hazard point at the southern entrance where Stroud meets East Green Lake Drive North That's the critical thing.

The intersection is a heavy cut through funnel for drivers dodging arterials on Aurora 80th and Waldenford Avenue.

At all hours drivers accelerate taking wide sweeping turns entirely focused on incoming traffic, ongoing traffic onto Stroud Avenue.

Thank you, Sheldon.

I'm gonna call out the folks that are not present at this time, Mahouba Azizi and Karina.

Oh, we already had Karina Patel.

So Mahouba, if you are nearby, call in now.

Our next three speakers are Manny Colling, Mahouba Azizi, Laurel Gray, Robin Schwartz.

Manny, I see you're already off mute.

Take it away.

Welcome.

Good afternoon Council Members and Honorable Chair.

I'm Manny Kowalin, Executive Director for Inspire Washington.

I wish I could be in person with you today so you could see my big beaming smile.

Thank you Chair Strauss for prioritizing arts funding in your balancing package and thank you Council President Hollingsworth for your unwavering support of arts, culture, and heritage.

All of your leadership has made great things possible today, and imagine all the creative and culturally connecting things that will happen tomorrow.

We also want to thank Councilmember Foster for proposing additional cultural funding.

Even though that amendment wasn't included, we want to thank all of the amendment sponsors.

And we look forward to a conversation more about ad tax next year.

Our sector, as you've heard, is facing enormous pressure.

There are rising costs.

Federal funding is disappearing.

Our cultural workers are worried about jobs, and there is greater need for community programs but less resources.

But today's investment sends a powerful message that Seattle values its cultural sector and the people that make it thrive.

Thank you for building a budget that protects cultural workers, sustains essential programs and community services, and demonstrates real vision for our city.

As a Central Area resident and the former Executive Director for Langston Hughes Performing Art Institute and currently a board member, I am especially grateful for Council President Hollingsworth's investment in our community, our neighborhood's cultural life.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Manny.

Mahouba is still not present.

We'll move forward.

Laurel Gray, Robin Schwartz, Lydia Felty already spoke as well.

So Laurel Gray, welcome.

I see you're here.

Starsick, you're off mute.

Take it away.

Good afternoon, council.

My name is Laurel Gray, D5 resident and deputy director with OSL Serves, a member of the Meals Partnership Coalition.

I'm here today to support permanent funding for meals programs.

I want to thank Mayor Katie Wilson for including this $1 million in permanent funding to support meal programs in the 2027 budget, and I urge the Council to sustain all of this investment in the final budget.

Every day, OSL prepares, delivers, and serves approximately 7,000 meals to our neighbors in need of nutritional assistance.

7,000 meals every single day.

From North Seattle to South Park and every neighborhood in between, our neighbors experiencing hunger are served breakfast, lunch, and dinner by OSL and all the other amazing meal programs doing this necessary work.

Our program currently serves 70 tiny home villages and congregate shelters, as well as our no-barrier open meal site in Pioneer Square.

The need only continues to grow as the resources continue to dwindle.

With skyrocketing cogs and diminishing donations, both in-kind and monetary, OSL is facing some very tough decisions.

This critical $1 million investment is a key factor in our ability to continue our vital work, keeping our ovens hot, our vehicles on the road and full of fuel, and most importantly, nourishing our neighbors with nutritional excellence, dignity and sovereignty.

Food security is public safety.

To quote Pearl S. Buck, a hungry man can't see right or wrong, he just sees food.

Again, my name is Laurel Gray with OSL Serves and I urge you to sustain the full $1 million in permanent funding for hot meal programs included in the mayor's budget.

Thank you so much for your time.

Thank you, Laurel.

Up next is Robin Schwartz followed by Margo Jones and Rohana Lanawala.

Robin, you're already off mute.

Take it away.

Welcome.

Hi, thanks so much.

My name is Robin Schwartz.

I work at the Dualmash River Community Coalition, and I am a Dualmash Valley Community Member.

I am calling today in support of Council Member Foster's budget amendment for funding for the Georgetown Farmers Market.

As you all know, Georgetown is a food desert.

It also lacks adequate community gathering space.

This community-driven project addresses both those issues, and I know that they'll leverage this funding to grow it into something even bigger.

I'm also in support here today of Councilmember SACA's South Park Community Center Programming Amendment.

As you also know, our community, we have many, many kids, some of the highest per capita population of kids.

A lot of them are immigrants, refugees, BIPOC, low income.

We have not been served adequately at our community center for many, many years.

We deserve as much funding, as much support as possible for our youth and the rest of our community.

as well, we're anticipating over 100 units of family-sized affordable housing in the next few years, thanks to CMAR and Office of Housing, and we need programming in place to serve those families and those children.

Thanks to everybody who's been working on this, and I appreciate you giving me the time to talk.

Thank you, Robin.

Up next is Margo Jones, followed by Rohana Lonawala, then Yamila Sterling.

Margo, you're already off mute.

Welcome, take it away.

Good afternoon, council members.

Please excuse the background noise.

I could not mute it.

My name is Margo Jones.

I'm a community leader.

I'm a business owner of 33 years, and I am a legacy homeowner in Central Seattle, District 3. The Central District Justice Park neighborhood is my home for over 30 years and is where I live, work, and where I have spent decades witnessing both the strength and our black community and the displacement in the families and businesses and institutions that have helped shape it.

As the producer of Amoja Fest for the past nine years, I have worked, volunteered, and supported the mission and vision of this 80-year legacy annual event.

It's important that we continue to provide this event to sustain not only the history and culture, but to continue to bring its mission and purpose to help vital programming for our youth and economic support to small businesses and bring the community together in unity, peace, and love.

I support the proposed funding for Omoja Fest and appreciate President Joy Hogginsworth's leadership in prioritizing this investment.

Omoja Fest is more than a festival included in the Central District and a historic part of Seattle's black community.

It celebrates generations of black residents, families, businesses, and institutions in our neighborhood.

The continuation of support of Omoja Fest and the opportunity for Seattle to demonstrate its commitment to racial equality and cultural preservation.

I'm asking that $75,000 be allotted to EmojaFest for 2027 and $100,000 per year after that.

Thank you so much for all that you are doing and we appreciate you in unity.

Thank you.

And we appreciate what you do for our city with EmojaFest.

I'm gonna actually before we go on to Rahana if you want to stay right where you are but go back on mute I'm gonna go Well, no.

Let's take Rohana and then we're going to go to Mahuba right after that, just since Rohana is already ready to go.

Welcome, Rohana.

Take it away at your convenience.

Good afternoon, Councilmembers.

My name is Rohana Leymala and I'm from FamilyWorks.

Thank you for including capital funding for the FamilyWorks Sunbreak Family Resource Center in the balancing package.

Thank you to Councilmember Rivera for championing this funding and to Councilmembers Hollingsworth, Kettle, Foster, Juarez and Rink for sponsoring.

Family Works is opening a new Family Resource Center on the ground floor of the Sunbreak, an affordable housing tower in the University District that's breaking ground next year.

At this resource center, families will get connected to benefits like rental assistance, food assistance, they'll get parenting support, free diapers and children's clothing, and access other programs to help them meet their basic needs and build roots in their community, all in the neighborhood they live or work in.

When support is convenient and easy to access, Families are more likely to get help before a crisis occurs.

Family resource centers are proven to strengthen family stability, improve outcomes for children and parents, and create lasting value for our community.

Families in Seattle are grappling with an affordability crisis that is compounded by deep cuts to our federal social safety net.

Building new housing is an important part of the solution, but that alone is not enough.

The families that live in that housing need to be able to access the support that helps them stay housed care for their children and build a stable future.

This investment will help make that possible.

I urge you to keep this funding in the balancing package.

Thank you.

Thank you, Rohana.

And I'm going to go back to Mahouba Azizi now.

Mahouba, I see her here.

Star six to unmute.

Mahouba?

There we are.

Welcome, Mahouba.

Hi, my name is Mahbouba.

I am here to ask for your support of OIRA 001A.

Essential funding to support local refugee and immigration women's economy and empowerment at Refugee Artisan Initiative.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mahuba.

Up next is Yamila Sterling, followed by Gabriel Newman, then Levi Fuller.

Yamila, being promoted now.

Star six to unmute at your convenience.

Yamila Sterling, star six to unmute.

Why don't we leave Yamila promoted?

We'll move on to Gabriel Newman.

Hi.

Great.

Good afternoon.

Hold on just one second.

Gabriel, if you could stay on mute.

We're going to take Yamila now and then we'll come to Gabriel next.

Yamila, at your convenience, take it away.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Yamila Sterling, Director of Food Access and Education at Cellar Ground.

Thank you for your continued support of our Food System Support and Community Food Education Program.

Today we ask you to increase Food System Support funding through the General Fund and provide additional $200,000 for Community Food Education Program and waste equity for the staff who run these programs.

Through the Food System Support, we coordinate the Seattle Food Committee, a coalition of food banks, and working collectively to address hunger.

We also deliver over 7 million pounds of food annually to more than 20 food banks.

This is more than a pre-distribution of essential infrastructure that keeps Seattle's emergency network connected, coordinated, and responsive during crises.

A recent community needs assessment found that one in three participants reported hunger in their household.

A community-filled education program helps families prepare healthy and affordable meals.

The rising cost of the loss of federal SNAP education funding threatens these services.

We urge the council to reinstate the sweetened beverage tax, Nelson Plantation Clause.

These revenues will supplement, not replace general fund investments.

Food access is a human right, not a privilege.

Seattle needs sustainable funding, not shifting dollars to these essential programs.

Thank you.

Thank you, Yamila.

Up next is Gabriel Newman.

You're already here.

You're already off mute.

Take it away at your convenience.

Good afternoon Seattle City Council.

I'm Gabriel Newman, Director of Policy and Advocacy at DSBA, Washington's LGBTQ Plus Business Association, and Capitol Hill's Chamber of Commerce.

I'm here to say thank you for your unanimous support of the SLI to study the rising cost of commercial insurance for Seattle small businesses.

Chair Strauss, thank you for including this in your balancing package.

Councilmember Foster, thank you so much for working with myself and other community advocates to listen to our perspectives and turn our needs into policy.

This is good governance and action.

Many Seattle small businesses are struggling to get by.

One area of concern is the rising cost of commercial insurance.

Rates have increased astronomically over the past few years, and in some areas of the city, it's impossible to get an insurance policy.

I've heard from several members that businesses often don't report break-ins or property damage to their insurance companies out of fear their rates will increase.

Instead, they eat these costs out of pocket.

That tells me the system isn't working.

Your action on this item is an example of the work our city can do to materially improve the conditions of our small businesses.

I also encourage Council to support additional budget pieces that uplift our business and business districts, including ones that support cleanliness, neighborhood activation, small business readiness, and public safety.

Thank you again for the work you're doing.

You're the best.

Thank you, Gabriel.

Right back at you.

Before we move on to Levi Fuller, we're going to go back to Madeline Mohameddin, who is now present.

Madeline, you've been promoted star six to unmute.

Following Madeline is Levi Fuller, Lauren Davis, and then Beth Sulps.

We just had you, Madeline.

We're going to bring you right back in just a second.

Oh, Madeline, you might have hung up.

So if you did hang up, call back.

We're going to just keep right on moving.

We'll get you when you come back.

We have Levi Fuller, Lauren Davis, Beth Silvies up next.

And Levi, you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Hi there.

My name's Levi Fuller.

I live in District 5. I work at Jack Straw Cultural Center, which is in Council District 4. and I'm a parent of an SPS fifth grader as well as an active musician myself.

Thank you Chair Strauss for including meaningful arts funding in your balancing package and thank you Council President Hollingsworth for being a champion of arts, culture and heritage.

Jack Strauss and the arts community here, we also appreciate Councilmember Foster's amendment supporting the cultural sector despite it not being included in the package.

Thank you to Councilmembers Juarez, Lynn, Kettle and Rink for co-sponsoring these amendments With this funding, you're recognizing that arts and culture are essential to our city, that our organizations and the individual artists, performers, and other creators we work with support youth, seniors, immigrants, unhoused residents, public safety, and communities across Seattle, and we really appreciate that you've built a budget that invests in these valuable services and protects the cultural workers who provide them.

Thank you so much for your leadership and vision.

That's all I have to say.

Thank you, Levi.

Up next is Lauren Davis, Beth Silvies, Jasmine Scott.

Lauren, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Welcome.

Hello.

Hi.

Hello.

My name is Lauren Davis, representing ArtX Contemporary, a 30-year-old art gallery small business in Council District 1, Pioneer Square.

I want to thank Chair Strauss for including critical cultural funding in his balancing package and Council President Hollingsworth for being such a strong champion for arts and culture.

Thank you also to Councilmember Foster for her amendment supporting the arts sector and to the sponsors of these amendments.

Today's investment in arts and culture is also an investment in Seattle's economy.

Cultural organizations and arts activations have a positive ripple effect throughout Seattle's business community, attracting the kind of street level activity and cultural tourism that sustains galleries, restaurants, shops, and other small businesses like mine.

Sports-related tourism is not always a benefit for us.

Cultural programming is.

By supporting cultural organizations today, you're investing in the economic health of the small business community and more.

Thank you for your leadership and vision on this.

Thank you.

Thank you, Lauren.

Up next is Beth Silvies, Jasmine Scott, and Celestine Berrysmith.

Beth, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Welcome.

Hi, thank you.

Good afternoon.

Thank you, Chair Strauss.

I'm Beth Silvers, D6, community volunteer and board member of the Seattle Chapter of Women in Sports and Events.

Speaking on behalf of O16A, an increase of $200,000 for sports event promotion.

I moved here in 2001 with an MBA in sports business from Arizona State.

where I studied and witnessed the economic value of attracting large events to a region.

I immediately volunteered for the Seattle Sports Commission's Seattle Bowl, filling our hotels and restaurants with college football fans in December in the early 2000s.

More recently, through public-private partnerships, we've hosted MLB All-Star Game, NHL Winter Classic, countless NCAA events, and of course, this summer's FIFA Men's World Cup with its nearly $900 million impact on our region.

Businesses large and small benefit from the new spending that enters our region from hosting these large events.

Our nonprofits, community organizations, and our youth benefit from the legacy projects that these large events leave behind.

And our city's residents bask in the reflective glow of civic pride when we come together to showcase Seattle on the national and global scale.

Thank you Councilmember Saka as the original sponsor and Councilmembers Hollingsworth, Riviera, Petal and Foster for signing on to sponsor this important investment in our community's healthy future.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Up next we have Jasmine Scott followed by Celestine Berry-Smith and then Stacy Bass Walton.

Jasmine, welcome.

All right, thank you.

Good afternoon.

My name is Jasmine Scott and I am the Executive Director of Art Noir, which is a Black arts and cultural organization rooted in Seattle's historic Central District.

I would like to thank Council President Joy Hollingsworth for including $50,000 for our community feeding program in her 2027 budget priorities and to Budget Chair Dan Strauss and the Council for your consideration.

At Art Noir, we believe community care is an extension of our cultural work and by this Friday, November 6, Art Noir will have served 777 free meals to our community since June.

That's 577 breakfasts served over the summer, operating three days a week and another 200 meals through our first Friday community meal program.

In January of 2027, we plan to resume our free breakfast program in partnership with Langston serving Central District students and families for three days a week with plans to expand to five days a week for the 27-28 school year.

We'll also continue providing meals during community events at Art Noir and Midtown Square and through other partnerships with neighborhood organizations.

This work is more than just about food.

It's about nourishment, connection, and ensuring our neighbors feel seen, supported and cared for.

And so I respectfully ask the council to retain the full $50,000 allocation in the final 2027 budget.

Thank you all so much.

Thank you, Jasmine.

Up next is Celestine Berry-Smith, followed by Stacey Best Walton, then Beth Heritage.

Welcome, Celestine.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Celestine Berry-Smith, and I manage the Tenant Services Program at Solid Ground, which is a nonprofit organization with 50-plus years of legacy of serving communities across King County.

I'm here today to urge you to support the amendment adding $500,000 for tenant services to the mayor's proposed budget because the impact of this program has a profound ramification to the renters of Seattle and beyond.

Every year Solid Ground helps more than 400 Seattle renters stay housed because we provide tenancy-related education, counseling, resources, and referrals.

We support people facing eviction, unsafe housing conditions, discrimination, intimidation, and other landlord-tenant issues.

We receive numerous inquiries every week, often very critical ones, that require immediate tenant counseling and strategic planning so that tenants can stay housed out safely.

We regularly receive positive and inspiring feedback and kudos from tenants that we serve.

So we know the deep negative impact the community will face if this service is subject to budget cuts.

Therefore, in solidarity with the other tenant services programs in the city, I urge the council again to support the amendment by adding at least $500,000 for tenant services in the budget.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Celestine.

Up next is Stacy Bass Walton, followed by Beth Heritage and then Ellen Windus.

Stacy, I've got you here.

Star six to unmute.

Welcome.

I see you're off mute.

Thank you.

Good afternoon, council members.

I'd like to say thank you to Rob Sokka and sponsor Michael Taylor Judd for including the Alki neighborhood, which I've lived in for over three decades.

I want to thank you first for adding the current lighting that's up and down Alki Avenue.

We desperately needed some extra accent lighting, but I would also like to implore you to not leave out the request for the traffic cameras.

specifically on Alki Avenue.

I would request that these cameras be placed on the business side facing the street so that we can capture both east and west cars that do their lovely speeding that they love to do every year.

It doesn't matter what time of day it is, but specifically the summertime, they love to have a good time down here.

We know that that does not to stop them, but that would capture some licenses and maybe make it not a good time for them to come down here and have their little IndyCar racing down here.

It would also help us keep our streets safe.

We have a lot of nighttime elderly folks that like to take their dogs out walking when those cars like to come down and have a good time speeding.

I would also like to Thank the council members for including the possibility of opening up the Alki Community Center back to the window.

And thank you, Stacey.

Up next is Beth Heritage followed by Ellen Windis and then Shema Rasuli.

Beth, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Welcome.

Hi, my name is Thank you.

My name is Beth Heritage, and I'm a resident of D1, and I'm calling to voice my support for Councilmember Saka's proposed amendment, including $750,000 supporting senior sitters.

The results of the midterm elections gave me hope that our federal government will start to course correct towards a more human and supportive treatment of, well, all of us.

but it's going to take time for those corrections to happen and for us to feel their effects on the local level.

That is why the City of Seattle's budget actions now are vitally important.

Please pass Councilmember Saka's amendment and include this funding in the balancing package.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you, Beth.

Up next is Ellen Windus, Shema Rasuli, and then Deborah Brose.

We're promoting you.

Ellen is not present any longer.

We will go on to Shema Rasuli, Deborah Brose, and then Meredith Rawls.

Shema, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Shema Rasuli, we have you present.

If you could press star six to unmute.

Why don't we leave Shema promoted?

We'll move on to Deborah Brose next.

Deborah, we've got you here and you're off mute.

Welcome.

Take it away.

Hi, this is Deborah Brose.

I'm the executive director of the Georgetown Business Association calling in support of the Georgetown Farmers Market.

I just want to say thank you to Councilmember Foster, Saka, Lynn, Paul, and Project Chairperson Strauss for including this important funding in the budget package.

As you know, we lack many services in Georgetown including a grocery store and this amendment will ensure the success of our 2027 market and help continue important steps to food sustainability in the neighborhood and help us continue to create a system of community wealth here.

We're looking forward to seeing it remain in the final budget and I encourage all of you to come down and see us in Georgetown.

Thank you.

Thank you for all you do for our city.

That's wonderful.

I'll take you up on that offer.

Meredith Rawls, you're up next.

Shema Rasuli, we're going to give you one more touch point.

Shema's not unmuting.

So Meredith, you are also promoted and you're off.

Hello.

Can you hear me?

Yes, we can.

Take it away.

Welcome.

Great.

Can you hear me?

Wonderful.

Thank you.

My name is Meredith Rawls.

And I'm a Ballard homeowner who's lived in Seattle for over 10 years.

And I'm calling in today to urge the council to maintain full funding for SDOT's Safe Routes to School program.

I started a new PTO Traffic Safety Committee in 2024 at my child's school when it became clear that the district, the principal and the city did not have a comprehensive plan to keep kids safe when they walk a bike to and from school.

Our committee has been able to partner with SDOT to implement solutions including loading zones, allway stops, marked crosswalks, a school street and more.

The current SDOT budget includes a proposal for over a million dollars in cuts of the Safe Rich to School program, but at the same time, it's expecting there will be increased revenue from automated speed enforcement cameras near schools, and this doesn't add up.

The City Council promised that revenue from schools on speed cameras would be invested into permanent infrastructure to keep kids safe, like improved school streets or speed cushions, not to backfill other SDOT budget holes.

So as one part of addressing this, I support Council Member Strauss' proposed SDOT 012A, that guarantees funding for school safety projects, but I'd also like to emphasize that automated speed enforcement cameras are an important but temporary solution for traffic safety in your schools.

All the revenue they generate must go toward long-term solutions, physical infrastructure that increases street safety so we don't need automated cameras anymore.

Please prioritize the safety of families across Seattle and all road users by guaranteeing funding for a safe route to school and tying school zone camera revenue directly to it.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, Mary.

Up next is Teresa Williams followed by Ren Wheeler and then Carla Lowe.

After Teresa, we'll check back in with Shema again.

Teresa, you're off mute.

Welcome.

Take it away.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Teresa Williams and I am the Supportive Family Programs Manager at FamilyWorks.

I'm here in support of Councilmember Rivera's budget amendment to provide capital funding for the Family Works Sunbreak Family Resource Center.

Family Works has had the opportunity and privilege to support families in North Seattle for over 30 years, and we're thankful for the opportunity to open a Family Resource Center in the ground floor of Sunbreak, a Boa Weather Housing new affordable housing tower in the U District, which will break ground next year.

Family Resource Centers are trusted neighborhood spaces where families can find support, built relationships, access resources, and strengthen their ability to thrive.

The Family Resource Center that we are planning to open would provide resource navigation, parenting support, free diapers, children's clothing, and connection to community resources.

We know that families are more likely to seek support when services are located where they already live, work, and are growing their families.

Family Resource Centers are proven track record of helping families build stability while reducing reliance on more costly interventions.

Beyond having their immediate needs met, families build confidence receiving planting skills and develop lasting relationships with other caregivers.

Research consistently shows that social support and a sense of belonging are important protective factors for families.

At a time when many Seattle families are facing increasing economic pressure, this investment will help ensure affordable housing is paired with support families need to not only survive, but to thrive.

I urge you to support this proposal.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you, Teresa.

Up next is Ren Wheeler followed by Carla Lowe and then Mike Bigelow.

Ren, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

There you are.

Welcome.

Thank you.

Thank you, Chair Strauss.

And hello, council members.

My name is Ren Wheeler.

I see her pronouns.

I'm a member of the CID visiting group and the staff person at the Wing Luke Museum.

The CID Visiting Advisory Group formed in 2017 after numerous failed engagement efforts by the city.

The group is comprised of nonprofits, family associations, mutual aid groups, small business owners, and community volunteers.

I am so incredibly proud of this group.

Not everyone agrees on everything, but everyone involved are fierce protectors of the Chinatown International District.

I'm here to strongly encourage City Council to support Councilmember Lin Budget Action OED-006-B, which is co-sponsored by council members Juarez, Strauss, Foster, Hollingsworth, Rivera, Rink, and Saka.

So truth be told, we much preferred the earlier version.

Council Budget Action OED-006-B not only continues support for safety, public activation, and right-of-way improvements, but supports the work of the CID Visioning Group, which is entirely community-led.

Past funding supported businesses through FIFA, but businesses require support post-World Cup.

A new Guinness World Record for dim sum eating was made, but the neighborhood has ongoing food security needs.

The neighborhood is rich in historic architecture, but unreinforced masonry is an ongoing challenge.

The community has a dynamic and vibrant cultural diversity, and our residents are still recovering from post-pandemic isolation.

Thank you, Ren, and thank you for all the work that you do.

I'm gonna check back with Shayma Rasuli.

Shayma, are you with us at this time?

Star six to unmute.

Why don't we remove her for now and we'll come back to Shayma in just a little bit.

Carla Lowe, Mike Bigelow, Shanda Boyette, you're all up next.

Carla, I see you're promoted now, welcome.

Star six to unmute.

There you are.

Welcome.

Hi.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Carla.

I'm a Seattle resident, mother of three young children, and a cooperative preschool parent.

I'm calling today to ask a council member to sponsor a budget amendment providing 1.6 million in one-time emergency funding to preserve Seattle College's cooperative preschool and parent education programs.

As both a parent and board member, I've experienced firsthand how much these programs offer families beyond traditional preschool.

We're not just educating our children, we're educating parents too.

Through required parent education classes, we gain critical parenting skills and build a community of support with other families.

And through board service, parents develop leadership and professional skills that can be invaluable when reentering the workforce.

These programs strengthen entire families and at approximately 585 per student annually, they're remarkably cost effective.

Even 800,000 would sustain us through winter quarter while longer term funding is pursued.

Please don't let a temporary funding gap permanently eliminate these programs.

I'm asking one of you to please sponsor the $1.6 million amendment and the full council to support it.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Carla.

Up next is Mike Bigelow, followed by Shonda Boyette and then Hakmi Akbari.

Mike, you're up next.

And here you are, star six to unmute.

Mike Bigelow.

Mike Bigelow, if you could press star six.

Let's leave.

Mike, welcome.

I see you're off mute.

Thank you so much.

Hello all.

I'm a Ballard homeowner and have called Seattle home for over 10 years.

As a parent, the safety of children walking and biking to school is something I think about daily.

No family should have to worry about whether their child can safely get to school.

In 2024, I helped start a PTO Traffic Safety Committee through our partnership with SDOT.

We've made great progress, including clearly marked loading zones, always stops, marked crosswalks, school street, and a number of other traffic safety improvements.

And I've seen firsthand how much these changes matter to our school community and how important it is to have dedicated city programs supporting this kind of work.

So I'm concerned that the proposed SDOT budget cuts more than a million dollars from the Safe Routes to School program will simultaneously, projecting increased revenue from automated speed enforcement cameras in your schools.

These priorities don't quite add up.

I would encourage folks to think more holistically and note that speed cameras play an important role in slowing drivers, but enforcement alone is not a standalone long-term solution.

The revenue from these cameras should fund permanent infrastructure improvements, such as safer crossings, the school streets programs, speed cushions, and not necessarily be used to backfill unrelated SDOT budget.

The city has made that commitment and I believe we should honor it.

So I support council member Strauss's proposed S.012A.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Mike.

Up next is Shonda Boyette followed by Hakme Akbari and then Lauren Hill.

Shonda, you're already off mute.

Take it away.

Welcome.

Hi, thanks.

Good afternoon, Councilmembers.

I'm Shonda Boyette.

I'm a mom, a Wellingford resident, and a Family Works Board member.

And I'm speaking about a budget amendment championed by Councilmember Rivera.

Thank you, Councilmember Rivera, to provide 300k in capital funding for the Sunbreak Family Resource Center.

Through Family Works and Bellwether Housing, we compare affordable housing at the new Sunbreak Housing Tower with food and essential services for residents where they live.

We've seen this model succeed at Cedar Crossing, and it's been really amazing.

As food and housing costs rise, families need support close to home.

Sunbreak would fill a critical gap for them in an underserved area facing poverty and displacement.

So please, please fund Sunbreak and invest in Seattle's families' ability to thrive.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Shonda.

Up next is Hakme Akbari, followed by Lauren Hill and Monica Hall.

Hakme, we are promoting you now.

Oh, we're seeing you not present, Hakmeh.

So if you call back in, we've got now Lauren Hill, followed by Monica Hong, Juno Danielson.

And once we get after Juno, we'll check back in with Shema Brasuli.

Lauren, you're already off mute.

Welcome.

Hello.

Thank you.

My name is Lauren Hill.

I'm a board member of Friends South Athletic Field.

and I just wanted to support the two amendments SPR 10 or 001A and 009A this is for magnolia play field west and also queen anne west both these projects are lit grass fields and right now we're in the period of no plane on grass from november 1st to march 1st and along with 80 percent of other SPR fields.

So these are critical projects.

They've been identified for over 20 years and in that 20 years the population of Seattle has gone up 200,000 people.

So we're just falling farther in the hole and this is a great thing.

So thank you very much for putting these forward and the sports community supports it wholeheartedly.

Thank you.

Thank you, Lauren.

Up next is Monica Hong and then Juno Danielson and then we'll come back to Shema Rasuli.

Monica, I see you're here.

Star six on mute.

You're off mute.

Welcome.

Hi.

Good afternoon, council members.

Yeah.

Good afternoon.

My name is Monica Hong and I'm a renter in D2.

I'm a neighbor off of Rainier Avenue South.

and I'd like to ask for next year's budget to reflect the needs of residents that I see every day in my neighborhood amidst this housing crisis.

I'd like for council to preserve the $500,000 increase for tenant services in the chair's balancing package.

Keeping folks housed is the best way to prevent homelessness.

I'd also like to thank Councilmember Foster for a proposal to increase funding to the Office of Housing from $10 million from the original five.

as well as her plan to put SPD overspend funds toward affordable housing.

And most importantly, I'm urging Council to get JumpStart money back to affordable housing and EDI programs.

At least 50% of revenue should go toward these crucial programs.

Lastly, I support the mayor's shelter plan and her decision to veto the RV ban.

I'd like to thank Councilmember Saka for agreeing to work with the mayor on an alternative.

As I see too often, literally just a block away from me, sleeping RVs does not solve the problem, those neighbors return, and it does not solve the housing crisis.

So please fund services and help my neighbors in need.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Up next is Juno, and then we'll check up, Shayma is no longer present, so we'll go Juno Danielson, Teresa Buchholz, Brian Ridge.

Juno, you're already off mute.

Welcome.

Good afternoon, y'all.

First, I want to thank the board and also the chair of the board for giving us space to talk about this and also for continuing to give attention to the arts and creative district of Seattle.

I am a resident artist of On The Block Seattle, which has multiple different spaces, 1111, Blue Cone, etc.

And I just want to express that it's been such a privilege to be able to be a resident artist here, not just because of how I'm supported in my creative and personal journey, but also because every time I'm on the block, I can feel people recognize what we have and how special it is.

Just in the past week, I've had multiple interactions where people come in and share that they've had a hard day and say that our space is exactly what they need to end their day, to feel hope in this city again, to feel like they can be fully themselves.

People come in looking for our sober space, our all-ages space, for community, for safety.

It is exactly what the Capitol Hill community needs right now.

This space changed my life and I urge you all to support the $200,000 in funding, emergency funding that would change the amount of people that we can access, the amount of lives we can change to guarantee that we are a fixture in our community.

As one of the only sober all agents venues and spaces, creative space in the top of the hill, for an essential space for our youth, safety, belonging, and care.

And I urge you all to continue funding that.

I appreciate you and I hope you have a great day and you're welcome on the block anytime.

Thank you, Juno.

Up next is Teresa Buchholz, followed by Brian Ridge.

Brittany Kane, you are not present.

Chris Leverson, you are not present.

The next up after that is Elise Fujimoto, Cameron Boyko.

Teresa, you're already off mute.

Welcome.

Take it away.

Hi, thank you.

Good afternoon.

I'm Teresa Buchholz.

I'm a West Seattle mother of two young daughters and a current parent at the Admiral Co-op Preschool.

I'm here to ask the Council to help save our cooperative preschool parent education programs with a one-time emergency funding of $1.6 million.

These programs are so much more than preschool.

We are taught alongside our children.

I've experienced firsthand how helpful and valuable parent education is for families.

And they do it at an amazing value, $585 per student annually for both early childhood education and parent education.

We also stand to lose our dedicated parent educators.

Many of them are mothers supporting their own families.

These women have their careers strengthening Seattle families through parent education.

Once these programs and educators are gone, rebuilding the amazing parent education program we currently have will not be easy.

I'm asking you to sponsor and support 1.6 million for one-time emergency funding to keep these programs operating through the school year while we work to find long-term funding.

When we educate parents, we invest in children.

When we support families, we strengthen communities.

And when we preserve programs that do both, we invest in Seattle's future.

Thank you for your time, your service, and your commitment to Seattle families.

Thank you, Theresa.

We're gonna go on to Brian Ridge.

We are at about speaker 78 and we've had more sign up.

So a total of 148, although not all are present at this time.

So about 148 minus 78 is 70 more to go.

With that, Brian Ridge, you're off mute.

Welcome, my friend.

Yeah, good afternoon, council members.

My name is Brian Ridge.

I live on Stroud Avenue North, a block from Green Lake, and I'm commenting on traffic and pedestrian safety in the proposed 2027-28 city budget.

I support Councilmember Strauss' proposal and my neighbor Shelton Chadd's request to address both ends of our street.

Stroud has become a dangerous commuter shortcut, especially during rush hour and Green Lake events.

Two parked vehicles near our home have been struck by this traffic.

After one apparent hit and run, Seattle police came to our home seeking security footage.

At North 80th Street and Stroud Avenue North, the city recently installed tough curb barriers and flexible posts, yet we have witnessed drivers going directly over them.

Daily, I witness families with strollers facing speeding traffic on our narrow street by North 80th.

I urge the Council to prohibit westbound left turns from North 80th onto Stroud Avenue North and restrict left turns onto Stroud Avenue North from East Green Lake Drive North.

Both entrances must be addressed to reduce shortcut traffic and also put in a critical no left turn restriction and media barriers at both street endpoints.

Pedestrian safety also needs attention.

We need accessible curb ramps a marked crosswalk across Stroud Avenue North by North Adia, and consideration of a pedestrian crosswalk beacon that will make it safer to cross.

Thank you, Brian.

I have Brittany Kane not present, Chris Loverson not present, we're gonna go Elise Fujimoto, Cameron Bucco, and then Caroline Hitt.

Elise, I see you're here, star six to unmute, you're off mute, welcome, take it away.

Hello, good afternoon.

My name is Elise Fujimoto and I work for the Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority, which is a part of the CID Visioning Advisory Group.

I'm speaking in support of Councilmember Lin's Council Budget Action OED-0006-B.

In 2017, the CID Visioning Advisory Group came together after numerous and ongoing failed engagement efforts by the city.

And by 2016, this community-centered coalition was created and made up of various organizations, nonprofits, family associations in the neighborhood.

and we are a self-determined organization focused in three areas.

Building a structure for inclusive community engagement, decision-making in the neighborhood, ensuring community self-determination in projects that impact the CID, and creating a long-term community vision and action plan.

The budget action supports investments in safety through funding the CID Safety Ambassador Program and the crime prevention through environmental design improvements through the neighborhood, as well as park activation and continued cleaning services through our neighborhood.

We are especially excited about the investment in the CID Visioning Advisory Group.

This past year, the advisory group was able to provide over 50 grants to small businesses throughout our neighborhood.

to fund innovative public activations and is making headway on unreinforced masonry education.

I strongly urge you to pass the button.

Thank you, Elise.

And before we go on to Cameron, I'm going to check on Akhmeh Akbari.

and then we're also seeing Cameron Bucco's not present.

So we will present, oh, and we have nine minutes left until registration closes.

So if you want to do remote public testimony, sign up now, otherwise come on down for in-person.

And Achme, I see you're here.

Can you press star six to unmute?

Hachme star six, not pound six.

I hit pound six oftentimes.

And so star six.

We're going to leave Hachme promoted.

Let's move on to Caroline Hitt.

Peter Hasegawa, you're not present.

Drake McKay, you're up next.

Laura H.

is not present.

Ivana Garza will be followed.

So, Caroline, I see you're unmuted.

Take it away.

Welcome.

Thank you, council members.

My name is Carolyn Hitt, a 22-year D3 resident, founder of Blue Cone Studios, co-executive steward of On the Block Seattle, and I want to express my deep appreciation to Council President Hollingsworth for her advocacy and Budget Chair Dan Strauss for including a $200,000 amendment for On the Block Seattle in the 2027 balancing package.

I'm here to ask you to please keep this funding in the budget.

On the Block provides creative sanctuary and reciprocity-based residencies for more than 50 low-income artists, in three fully equipped studios and an event space.

These spaces offer stability, resources, community, and for many of us, critical life support.

We also provide thousands of hours of free community programming and cultural activations every year.

We believe art saves lives.

Creative spaces are essential civic infrastructure.

They contribute to public safety, neighborhood vitality, small business development, and community wellness.

This $200,000 investment would help stabilize our operations protect these spaces and build toward long-term sustainability.

It's an investment not just in on the block, but in the larger creative ecosystem we help sustain.

I spent 11 years holding down creative space in this city.

I know what it takes.

I know what we stand to lose without it.

Please keep this funding in the 2027 budget.

Help us continue to build a Seattle where artists, culture, and community have space to thrive.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Carolyn.

Hachme, are you present?

Star six to unmute.

Star six to unmute, Hachme.

And then it seems like we have Ellen Windis with us again, so we're going to pull up Ellen.

After Ellen, we'll come back to you.

Ellen Windis, we have you up next.

Six minutes until registration closes for the virtual public comment.

Ellen, we see you're here, star six to unmute.

Why don't we leave both of them promoted and then we'll jump back into rotation.

Peter Hasegawa, you are not present.

Drake McKay is next.

Laura H is not present.

Ivana Garza and then Carrie Olson-Finley.

Ellen is off mute.

Do we have you, Ellen?

Yes.

Wonderful.

Yes, yes.

Hi.

Hi.

Hi, my name is Elin Windus.

I am the mother of two boys, Calvin who is seven and a co-op preschool graduate and Kirby who is three and currently enrolled in co-op preschool.

I'm a current student who has been a part of this program for five years.

Parent education in my lab as an assistant teacher, my lab time as an assistant teacher in the co-op lab classroom is important because I get to be an active participant in my child's learning while also honing my own skills as a parent.

When you first become a parent, no one hands you a guide for how to do your job.

And being a parent, raising tiny humans to become independent adults is unequivocally the most important job in our society.

Parent education has provided me with tools and active practice of those tools to guide my parenting.

There are council members who will champion an amendment to the budget for one-time emergency funding in the Seattle College Parent Education Program.

We need $1.6 million for two quarters.

Even half this amount, $800,000, will keep us going through the winter quarter while we continue searching for private funding partners.

These programs provide part-time ECE preschool seats and part-time childcare concurrently with adult education for about $585 a year per student for an entire year.

This compares with City of Seattle full-time childcare preschool, no parent education either community building or skill building that costs $11,000 to $15,800 per student per year.

Accounting for the difference in school hours, our program would comparably run $1,000 to $3,000 per ECE childcare seat per year.

It is fiscally irresponsible for both parents and child education fail while efforts to recover costs at the state level are still in process.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ellen.

We're going to try Hakme again.

Hakme, if you're here, star six to unmute.

We'll move forward.

Also, Peter Hasegawa, you are not present.

Moving on to Drake McKay, Ivana Garza, and then Carrie Olson-Finley.

We've got you, Drake.

Four minutes until registration closes.

Take it away, Drake.

Happy to have you.

Okay.

I'm Drake Mackey.

They, them, I live in district four in the U district.

And I wanted to make a comment against the RB ban because this will, this will destabilize innocent people who already struggling to get by and I also have a neighbour on my street who lives in their RV and they keep to themselves they aren't causing any problems and they just need a safe place to park their RV and we also don't need to place any more of a burden on law enforcement than we already do because there are other issues that aren't being adequately addressed and Desabilizing people will cost this government more in the long term.

We keep raising taxes every year and we need to be mindful of how much it's going to cost.

We need to focus on solutions and get people on their feet.

And I want to thank Council Member Foster and Council Member Rink for pushing back on this issue and Thanks for letting me speak.

Thanks, Drake.

We'll take Ivana Garza, Carrie Olson-Finley and then Sarita Abshear next.

Ivana, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Welcome.

Hello.

Thank you.

Dear Council President Hollingsworth, Budget Chair Strauss and Seattle City Council members, my name is Ivana Garza and I'm here representing the residency.

I'm writing to urge you to retain the $100,000 for the residency included in the Council President Hollingsworth 2027 budget priorities as you move towards adopting the final budget.

Thank you Council President Hollingsworth for championing this investment, Budget Chair Strauss and Council members for your work to support Seattle's communities.

The residency empowers young artists through hip-hop, providing arts education, mentorship, paid opportunities, and pathways into the creative economy.

Its programs connect Seattle youth with teaching artists and peers, helping them build their skills, confidence, leadership, and a sense of belonging.

To give you an example of the impact it's making, I joined the program 11 years ago when I was only 13. Although the program is intended for King County and I lived in Marysville, I knew the impact of this organization would change my life.

For four years, my mother spent eight hours in a car, two hours each way making it to Seattle five days a week so I could participate in the summer intensive.

That dedication shows the impact.

This program inspired me as a first-generation immigrant daughter to complete five degrees and certifications at Washington State University.

While in college, I received a residency scholarship, then also helped start a survivor scholarship through the residency aimed to help survivors of sexual abuse.

I'm now running the Youth Leadership Council, where we focus on professional development, community engagement, and supporting our youth, most of who are at risk.

This is the type of work, support, and impact we continue to make.

Thank you, Ivana.

Carrie Olson-Finley, you are not present.

We are gonna keep moving on.

Sarada Abshear, Roshika Gupta-Truitt, and then Jennifer Rogers are all next.

And the form is, registration is now closed.

So if you do want to provide public comment, you'll need to come down in person.

Public comment starts at Sign up starts at 4.30, public comments starts at 5. Sarita, you are off mute.

You are awesome.

Welcome.

Hi, thank you.

Good afternoon.

My name is Sarita Apshir and I'm a program manager at Somali Health Board.

I previously led OIRA's Immigrant Safety and Action Network project at our organization, providing direct service funds to community members to be able to get financial support during tragic times in their lives.

and hit with heavy expenses like burial costs, counseling, or medical fees.

I saw how direct support is for families facing sudden loss and gun violence.

Too many families in our communities are losing loved ones, especially young people.

Behind every death is a family whose life has been changed overnight.

And while grieving, they may also be struggling with their medical bills, funeral expenses, lost income, or fear of safety for their children in the household.

I urge the City of Seattle to prioritize funding for both prevention and direct services.

We need programs that build relationships with young people, create opportunities, and help prevent violence before families experience another tragedy.

We also need flexible, accessible funding for families who are already living with its consequences.

As you make these budget decisions, please listen to the families most affected and the people working alongside them.

Invest in keeping our young people alive and making sure families facing sudden loss have somewhere to turn.

Thank you.

Thank you, Sarita.

Next is Rushika followed by Jennifer and then Kaji Bashari.

Rushika, I see you're here.

Welcome.

Hi, everyone.

Thanks so much for taking my comments.

I'm a Capitol Hill resident, a mom, and board member at FamilyWorks.

I'm here to ask your support for Councilmember Rivera's proposal to provide capital funding for the FamilyWorks Sunbreak Family Resource Center.

FamilyWorks is opening a Family Resource Center on the ground floor of the Sunbreak, Bellweather Housing's new affordable housing tower in the U District.

This center will offer resource navigation, parenting support, free diapers and kids' clothing and so much more.

I want to emphasize that this is a proven model that works as Family Works has provided resource centers in other locations paired with affordable housing and as our city is facing such housing crisis, such high levels of housing crisis and affordability, this is a proven ways where we can support our friends and neighbors.

Research shows that for every $1 invested in helping families achieve greater stability in projects like this, we get $4 in public value.

Thank you so much for considering this amendment and please do support the Family Works Family Resource Center at Fun Break.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Up next is Jennifer Rogers, followed by Kaji Bashiri.

Sheila Simpaticos, you're not present.

Humaria Alami, you are not present.

Lady Scribe is the next.

Michael Yee, you are not present.

Waikin Garrett, you'll be followed in that order.

Right now we have Jennifer Rogers.

You're off mute.

Welcome.

Take it away.

Thank you very much.

My name is Jennifer Rogers.

I'm unique on this call so far.

I am actually a Northwest native.

Born and raised in this area here before the Evergreen Point Bridge was actually a bridge.

My parents came here looking for a community in which to raise their family.

And as I grew into adulthood, I started looking for a place where I could support families in the Northwest.

And I found that as a volunteer at Family Works.

and I'm calling in support of the funding for the Sunbreak Family Resource Center at the U District.

This organization does so much for the community in building up families, keeping them housed, giving them parenting lessons, providing relationships and community for these families that not only builds our community, but it builds those families and it builds our future.

So this is an investment for Seattle for the longterm.

And I'm asking you to please keep this in the budget, keep us moving forward and keep Seattle the way we've always liked it to be, a family-focused, safe environment for people.

Thanks so much.

Thank you, Jennifer.

Up next is Khadija Bashiri, Sheila Sampadakos not present, Humaria Alami not present, Khadji, I see you're here.

Sorry, six to unmute.

after Khadijah is Lady Scribe, Michael Yee is not present, Waikin Garrett, and then Saliyah Hashemi.

Khadijah, are you here?

Khadijah, sorry.

Khadijah Basari.

Let's leave Khadijah promoted and we'll move on to Lady Scribe.

Lady Scribe, I have you here.

Oh, we've got both people off mute.

Lady Scribe, if you could hold.

Khadija, I see you're off mute.

Take it away.

Okay.

Thank you.

Hello, Council members.

I'm Khadija Bashiri and I work as the Workforce Development Manager at Refugee Artisan Initiative, RAI, which is located in Lake City, Seattle.

I want to share one important message.

Refugees and immigrant women need our support.

and organizations like RAI are helping make that support possible.

At RAI, we provide skills training, workforce development, and employment opportunities to help women overcome barriers, build confidence, and become financially independent.

I'm here today to ask for your support of amendment OIRA 001A, which would provide essential funding to continue this important work.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

And I want to also mention that Sheymour and Sully and Hakeem Akbadi, they are our artisans.

They tried to unmute themselves, but they couldn't.

So they were trying to share the same messages with you.

Thank you, everyone.

Thank you.

And up next is Lady Scribe.

Lady Scribe, you're already off mute.

Welcome and take it away.

Okay.

Good afternoon, council members.

I'm Lady Scribe, founder of the Seattle Sound Music Awards Family Foundation.

We support Council President Hollingsworth Community Arts and Southeast Seattle Reinvestment Proposals and Councilmember Eddie Lynn's District 2 request for community-led gun violence prevention and youth opportunities.

We're funding must reach organizations already doing the work.

Suicide prevention is gun violence prevention.

Mental wellness is public safety and community connection is essential to both.

Our foundation connects youth, seniors, veterans, artists, licensed therapists and educators through creative expression, mentorship, and prevention.

We request reoccurring operating funds, access to vacant city buildings, three years of start-up, rent relief, and direct contract without the restrictive RFP barriers.

We're also demanding a dedicated reoccurring fund specifically for Seattle's Black American residents and Black-led community organizations, separate from broader BIPOC immigrant and refugee funding categories.

Our communities' distinct history, displacement, and disparities deserve targeted investments, transparent allocations, and immeasurable accountability.

Seattle cannot continue funding crisis response while neglecting prevention.

No more trickle-down tactics.

Fund our organization, repurpose city-owned D2 buildings, remove the barriers, establish a dedicated black community investment fund.

We serve and have been serving Seattle generations for over 80 years collectively.

help us remain here for the next.

Thank you.

Thank you, Lady Scribe.

We're now going to go back up to Carrie Olson-Finley, who is now present, and then we'll come back to White King Garrett and Salia Hashemi.

Carrie, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Carrie Finley, and you're here.

Welcome.

Hi, thank you.

My name is Carrie Olsen-Findley.

I'm seeking to put an urgent ask for one-time emergency funding to the Seattle College of Parent Education program.

I am a student of the Parent Education program and the parent of a co-op preschool alumni as well as a current co-op preschool student.

These programs serve thousands of families who can't feasibly access the cost and schedule of traditional daycare preschools, mine included.

The co-op model with parent education is absolutely unique in the payoff it provides with the resources it needs to flourish.

Co-op parents don't have to turn to TikTok for parenting advice.

We have real-life connections to professional educators and to other parents who know each other and each other's children.

We have research-based training that will last our children's lifetimes and an actual village in which to raise our kids in our own neighborhoods.

Co-op melts the Seattle freeze.

These programs have been serving Seattle families for more than 80 years and are under threat because of a change in funding allocation that took the rug out from under them.

By the time the programs knew they were on the chopping block, it was too late to negotiate or seek other resources.

The preschool seats and part-time childcare, including caregiver education, cost about $585 per student for an entire year.

This compares with City of Seattle full-time childcare preschool, which has no parent education or community building, that costs $11,000 to $15,000 per student per year.

We've worked extremely hard to stay open this fall.

One-time emergency funding of $1.6 million will give security through the current school year to thousands of Seattle families until there is time to seek a permanent solution.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you, Carrie.

Up next, we have Wyking Garrett followed by Salia Hashemi and then Amanda Reynoso Pally.

Wyking, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

KY King.

And you're off mute.

Welcome.

Good afternoon.

Can you hear me?

Yes, we can.

Welcome.

Good to hear your voice.

Good afternoon.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak.

At first, this is KY King Garrett, born and raised in the Central District, a third generation community builder in the neighborhood and would like to emphasize the importance of prioritizing reparative investments in the Black multi-generational descendants of American shadow slavery community that experienced decades of anti-Black policies and practices which has resulted in the almost complete displacement of community, culture, commerce in the community.

I want to support the Central District, South Seattle, Seattle Reinvestment Program, advanced by Council President Hollingsworth to address some of these issues, as well as support the proposed funding for OmojaFest.

We thank Council Member Hollingsworth and then Councilman Donald Strauss for supporting this.

MojaFest is a tradition that's been in Seattle for almost eight decades.

The roots go back to the 1940s and help set up Seafair through the International Festival and today it serves as a positive culture community connectivity strategy for community safety, supports over 150 businesses annually, provides youth development opportunities, cultural preservation, placemaking, continuity, and belonging.

And this year, in the wake of the shootings at the Seattle Center.

Thank you, Y King, and feel free to send in any additional comments.

We do have Salia Hashimi next, followed by Amanda Reynoso Pally and then Ricardo Ortega.

We have about, we have about 29 speakers left, which should take us to just about 4 p.m.

So if we have more speakers who are not present, currently become present, we may have to start with virtual speakers at 5. With that, Celia, I see you are present.

Feel free to press star six to unmute.

Yep, there you are.

Welcome.

Hi, my name is Saliha.

I am here to ask for your support for OIRA 00A.

This is important funding to support local refugee and immigrant women.

In economic empowerment at Refugees, thank you.

We still got you.

Celia, you're still with us and you still have time.

I am done.

Thank you.

Okay.

Thank you.

Thank you for joining us.

Well said.

Amanda Reynoso Pally, Ricardo Ortega, Mike Nguyen, you're not present.

We're going to then go to Gavin Cummins.

Amanda, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Amanda, star six to unmute.

We're going to promote Ricardo just so we can keep things flowing.

Ricardo Ortega is already off mute.

Welcome, my friend.

Floor is yours.

Take it away.

Hi, good afternoon.

Good evening, Council Members.

My name is Ricardo Ortega and I work for a community organization named LILO, A Legacy of Equality Leadership and Organizing.

Through LILO's community organizing partnership with the City of Seattle, the Relicensing Program was created to assist communities impacted by the criminal justice system that disproportionately affect low-income people and communities of color.

Since 1999, LILO has been helping members of our community to regain the driver license.

Have a valid driver license is essential to survive.

For example, when you are looking for a job in many places, it's a requirement to have a driver license.

Our service helps our clients to understand why the driver license is suspended, in which course they have tickets, how many tickets they have, and what we can do to resolve those tickets.

We contact the course and we ask them to remove tickets from collection to reduce the fines and offer up payment plans.

Also, we contact our clients to remind them their monthly payments and also the community service.

This program provides a service-based alternative to the criminal charges for people who have been ticketed by the police.

And also, this program, the main goal is to reduce the racial disparities in the criminal cases held against to the individuals historically categorized as criminal system-like minorities.

Please help to keep funding Lee Law Relicensing Program.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ricardo.

Amanda, star six to unmute.

If not, we're going to keep moving on.

Mike Nguyen, you're not present.

Gavin Cummings, you're up next.

Gavin, I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Gavin Cummins, star six to unmute.

We're gonna leave Gavin promoted and we're gonna add to the phone.

Diane Simernick, Latonya Horst Du Bois, you're also not present.

Latonya Horst Du Bois is not present.

Diane, I see you are here with us, star six to unmute.

Diane Simernick, there you are, welcome.

Hello, can you hear me?

Yes, we can.

Okay, great.

Thank you so much.

Hi, my name is Diane and I was born and raised in Seattle, Washington and a resident of District 5 currently.

In my lifetime, I've really watched the city become a bit less than what I'd like, less affordable, less safe, and fiscally mismanaged.

And that really breaks my heart.

So while there are many issues I could comment on, there's two specifics I wanted to bring up today and bring to the attention of the council.

So, in reviewing the proposed budget for 27 and 28, I firmly urge against increasing property taxes or any taxes for the funding of these services.

We, the citizens of Seattle, already pay exorbitant amounts of taxes and enough is enough.

Property taxes are the highest source of revenue and more revenue is not the answer.

An honest review of funding and return on investment of current initiatives would be a better approach.

Secondly, this budget does not address the drug use problem in Seattle.

In the 735 page document, the word drug is only found six times and none of those are in the context of drug use and abuse.

How can we fight homelessness in the city if the root problem is ignored?

It's just wrong to decouple homelessness from drug abuse and drug abuse is the real issue to battle here.

I want a city where I can take my kid to a park and not have to scan the playground for needles first, where I can walk into a public bathroom and use it as a bathroom and not be scared for my safety.

I want public spaces to be for the public to share.

They're not places for people to inhabit long term.

and I want social services that we pour millions of dollars into to be helpful for those in need, not a place they are scared to do because of the rampant drug use.

In conclusion, please don't raise property taxes and please don't neglect that the city has a drug abuse crisis, not simply homelessness crisis.

Thank you, Diane.

And Gavin, I see you're already here.

Rob Saka, you are off mute just for your awareness.

Gavin, comments?

Councilmember Sokka, you are off mute talking at us.

I'm an idiot, thank you.

Thank you, sir.

Mr. Cummins, back to you.

Thank you.

Hi, thank you.

My name is Gavin Cummins of Seattle Public Project and a member of the arts and culture community.

First, I want to echo all of thanks to Chairman Proust, Council President of Allingsworth and Councilmember Foster for your Strong Championship of the Arts, Culture, and Narratives in the City.

Leadership has been essential for making all of this happen today.

In today's investment in the arts and culture of the Seattle economy, cultural organizations create jobs, practice, various sports, small businesses, and makes Seattle a vibrant place to live and work.

The arts and cultural investments the City of Seattle have made in the past.

It's essential for me, personally, to create a sustainable, non-profit business for new arts and leading learning across the city.

By supporting our organizations, you're protecting cultural workers, and strengthening our city's economic future by providing the resources for artists and cultural workers to meaningfully contribute to the city.

Thank you for recognizing our value and investing in our future.

Your support of our sector has very literally changed my life, and thank you very much.

Thank you, Gavin.

Up next is Hannah Bryant L. Cree Hussein Ugas.

and then the one and only Dawn Mason.

Hannah Bryant, and I realize I did not call Dawn to the front of the line as a former elected.

So we're gonna do Hannah Bryant and then I'll jump straight to Dawn.

Sorry for missing you there, Ms. Mason.

Hannah Bryant, star six to unmute.

Hannah Bryant, star six.

There you are, Hannah.

Hello.

Good afternoon Council Members.

Can you hear me okay?

Yes, we can.

My name is Hannah Bryant and I'm the Executive Director of Mount Baker Housing, a non-profit affordable housing organization serving Southeast Seattle.

And I'm here today to urge you to strengthen Seattle's commitment to affordable housing by supporting Council Member Foster's proposed budget amendments.

First, I want to thank you for including an additional $5 million for the Office of Housing, but we also need you to go further and support the full $10 million investment.

At Mount Baker right now, we're advancing a $40 million preservation initiative to rehabilitate 80 existing affordable homes in Southeast Seattle.

These are homes for families who need deeply affordable housing, including households earning less than 50% of area median income.

Projects just like this one depend on public investment, and when funding is reduced or becomes unpredictable, projects are delayed, cost increase, and families wait longer for safe and stable housing.

Second, we urge you to adopt a clear plan to restore at least 50% of JumpStart revenues to affordable housing and the Equitable Development Initiative.

JumpStart was designed to make meaningful, sustained investments in housing affordability and equitable balance need to honor that commitment.

This isn't simply about balancing a budget, it's about whether Seattle will make the long-term investments necessary to remain a city where working families, seniors, and low-income residents can afford to live.

Thank you so much for your investments.

Thank you, Hannah.

And Elle, we're going to check in.

We had two electeds that we missed.

So, Elle, my apologies.

But if you could hang on just one second, we're going to check in with Don Mason.

And then we also have Tanya Wu on the line.

So former Representative Don Mason, I see you're off mute.

Take it away.

Then we'll take former Councilmember Tanya Wu.

And then we'll go right to Elle Cree.

Ms. Mason, I see you're off mute.

Thank you.

Thank you.

I'm Dawn Mason, wearing many hats.

I'm recipient of Seattle Kids to the City, former state representative, convener of Creative Black Brilliance Brain Trust, and founder of Parents with Team Success.

All of what it takes to bring regrowth of the village children need.

I'm here to support the $200,000 for Red Barn Ranch, youth learning programming, and Council President Hollingworth's budget priorities, and ask this committee to carry it into the final budget, along with all of our budget priorities.

I'm asking you to protect these youth and culture focused on through the rest of this process, so the outdoor hands on activities of the Red Barn Ranch reaches children and parents enjoying its varied outdoor activities, pre-vocational learning, and equine education.

We thank Councilmember Rings for making a site visit to the ranch and even getting on a horse.

Councilmembers Lynn and Hollingsworth for coming to Rainier Beach Community Center to meet Buffalo Soldiers, Youth, Ranchers, and Horses.

If you think it's costly to feed children, know it's more so for the horses, a growing number of children and parents show us they are enjoying and benefiting from.

In addition, as parents, children, and community, we support funding that can return Seattle to a children's place, a city that invests in social, emotional, environmental, and academic learning.

I thank President Hollingsworth and all council members for being willing recipients of my many communications on behalf of children and descendants of the shadow and slaves and the cultural enrichment we bring to all Seattle children.

Thank you much.

Thank you, Ms. Mason.

Tanya, former council member Tanya Wu is already off mute.

Take it away and then we'll go to El Cree.

Tanya, you might be muted on your phone because we can't hear you.

There we go.

Good afternoon.

This is Tanya.

I work in the Chinatown International District and I live at Rainier Beach.

On Tuesday, Mayor Wilson told our community that 12th and Jackson is a priority.

When we look at the proposed budget, I'm sorry, we don't fully see that commitment reflected in that funding.

For years, I'm sure you know Chinatown International District and Little Saigon has asked for the same basic investments, public safety treatment to go from surviving to thriving.

So please continue and protect the CID sale funding to continue that funding for 2027, allowing us to keep the safety ambassadors on the streets.

I'm sure you know that we also need mobile medication treatment, outreach, sanitation, and enforcement against illegal vending and stolen goods.

So many things community has been asking for.

So today's budget asks are small compared to the enormous need at 12th and Jackson.

The cost of doing nothing is even greater.

and I know you know that 12 and Jackson is a priority, so please fund the CID sale program.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you for all the work you do there.

And up next is Elle Cree.

Thank you for your patience with us, Elle, and then Hussein Ugas.

Kate Howard, you're not present, so we'll move on to Everett Freeman afterwards.

And Elle, you're already off mute.

Welcome, friend.

Thank you very much Councilmember Strauss and I wanted to thank you personally and I hope you got my email expressing my feelings about you in the past.

I wanted to speak on behalf of Stone Soup Crew and HSD-014-A and I wanted to thank Council President Hollingsworth for putting this forward.

I would also like to thank all the other Councilmembers that have supported this initiative.

You all know us and we truly love you.

For the two that didn't support this initiative, I encourage you both to get to know us.

Council Member Saka, Council Member Kettle, please come and understand what Stone Soup Crew is all about.

And Council Member Strauss, I ask that you keep this in the balanced budget and that I look forward to going forward through this process with y'all.

And I also look forward to what's to come, especially with Stone Soup Crew.

The amount of money that we are being given if we are giving this money is going to create such a great return on investment.

We vow to do more for this city than any other organization.

And again, thank you very much for your time.

Amen.

And thank you, Elle, for what you do for our city.

Up next is Hussein Ugas.

Kate Howard is not present.

Everett Freeman, then Lauren Harrison.

Hussein, I see you're here and you're off mute.

Welcome, friend.

Thank you council members and everyone who invited us.

My name is Hussein Ugas.

I am the founder and executive director of Rama Recovery Center.

We are the first culturally responsive recovery organization providing a level two accredited sober living homes in South King County.

The reason why I'm calling today is not because I'm a Seattle resident, but because I serve a large majority of the East African community members who live in Seattle, whether it's West Seattle, South Seattle.

I'm constantly sitting down with families who otherwise don't have any other resources or any other outlet to help them, guide them through the recovery steps, anywhere between getting someone into detox, getting them into inpatient treatment, and hopefully eventually getting them into our culturally responsive recovery residences.

Reason why I'm contacting you guys today and speaking passionately about this is because we need more culturally responsive investment in the budget in the Seattle area.

We are already dealing with the stigma and the shame culture that comes from our communities that don't know how to help somebody who's dealing with substance use disorder or mental health.

I know this personally.

I'm someone in long-term recovery, 12 years, and I've seen from both sides a traditional services that don't know how to accommodate someone like me and a

And thank you, Hussein.

Up next is Everett Freeman, followed by Lauren Harrison and then Bayonne Coleman.

And as soon as Everett gets promoted, we will ask them to press star six.

There you are, Everett.

Press star six to unmute.

Welcome.

Thank you.

My name is Everett Freeman.

I'm here on behalf of the residency to urge that the council retain the $100,000 for the residency included in Council President Hollingsworth's 2027 budget priorities as you move towards adopting the final budget.

I wanted to also issue a thank you to Council President Hollingsworth for championing this investment and Budget Chairman Strauss.

and council members for your continued support of Seattle's communities.

The residency empowers at-risk youth through hip-hop, providing arts education, mentorship, paid opportunities, and pathways into the creative economy.

As someone who's found purpose through the program as a poverty-stricken, injustice-impacted youth to now nearly attending my associate's degree in computer science, the residency never gave up on me. and advocating for me and that's just a testament to finding your rhyme and reason in life.

This $100,000 investment will strengthen the residency's capacity to serve young people in Seattle and help reduce financial barriers to participation.

When we invest in young artists and we invest in the cultural life and future of our city, please keep this funding in the final 2027 budget.

Thank you for listening and I appreciate the opportunity.

to speak to you guys.

Thank you, Everett.

Up next is Lauren Harrison followed by Bayonne Coleman.

Erica Gersten, you're not present.

Susan Sanders, you're not present.

David Toledo, you're not present.

Kimberly Coleman, you're not present.

Lisa Olmsted-Thompson is at the end of the short list.

We've got about 30 more people.

So Lauren Harrison, we are promoting you at this moment.

and Amanda Rayosa, you've also been promoted, so if you ever jump on, press star six.

Lauren, we have you.

And you're off mute.

Take it away, my friend.

Welcome.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Lauren Harrison.

I'm a licensed mental health counselor, a board member of our cooperative preschool, and the mom of a preschooler, my daughter, Athena.

I'm here to speak about the South Seattle College Cooperative Preschools, which have recently lost funding for parent education through the Seattle colleges.

This morning I asked Athena, who is three and a half, why are co-op preschools important to our family?

And she said, because it belongs to everybody.

She's right.

Over the last three years, this community has become our village.

When I've struggled with potty training, feeding, discipline, I've had parent educators to guide me and other parents who say, me too.

That belonging, connection, and support helps families grow strong and strong families make strong communities.

And this is also a public health issue.

When a new mom has no one to turn to, or a young family can't afford to support, children feel it.

It shapes how their brains develop, which impacts their mental health, and the ripple effects reach our schools and our city.

Affordable support for preschool families is prevention.

We reach them early before they reach crisis.

For less than six cents on the dollar, we offer preschool part-time child care and parent education, about $585 per child per year, compared to $11,000 to $15,800 for the city's full-time program.

We aren't asking for ongoing funding, just a one-time bridge while we pursue state funding and private partners.

So I'm asking a council member to champion this program and sponsor a budget amendment, $1.6 million in one-time emergency funding to keep North and South

Thank you, Lauren.

And up next is Bayonne Coleman, followed by Erica Gersten, you're not present.

Susan Sanders, you're not present.

David Toledo is now present.

Kimberly Coleman is not present.

And so we're going to promote Bayonne Coleman up next.

There you are, Bayonne.

Hello, can you hear me?

Yes, we can.

Welcome.

And you can hear me okay, correct?

Okay, thank you.

Good afternoon, Councilmembers.

I'm Bayonne Coleman, Chief Operating Officer at Solid Brown.

I'm also here today as a sister, a mother, and a native Seattle lad of almost 50 years.

I grew up here as one of 12 kids raised by a single parent, and there were times my family needed help to stay housed.

I've spent 24 years in education and nonprofits, and I've seen what happens when a family loses its home.

I watched it happen in my own family and too many times to count in community.

Kids miss school or leave it to work and help keep the family afloat.

Some get pushed in survival choices that land them in the justice system.

Mental and physical health slide and everything gets harder at once.

So I'm asking you to invest in tenant services and human service workers and to keep the move of KCRH dollars in the city smooth.

Tenant services keep people housed before a crisis starts.

In our community needs assessment, 92% of the participants used a housing resource in the past year.

The human services contracts get a 3.8% inflation increase and nothing more.

That makes it hard to recruit and keep the people doing this work.

Six of our KCRHA contracts are moving to the city.

In past transitions, delays have strained programs financially.

Families cannot afford a gap and neither can our staff.

Please invest in tenant services and human service workers and keep this transition smooth.

Thank you.

Thank you, Bayonne.

Erica Gersten, you are not present.

Susan Sanders, you are not present.

David Toledo, you'll be up next.

Kimberly Coleman, you are not present.

Lisa Olmsted-Thompson, you are next.

Hind Ansley, you are not present.

Jerrell Davis, you are on deck.

David Toledo, I see you are here and off mute.

Welcome, my friend.

Take it away at your convenience.

Thank you, Councilmember Strauss.

Can I just say, You have a great demeanor, the way that you're just so cool and casual about reminding people to hit the star six.

Very cool, just wanted to say that.

I want to say I'm here to support Councilmember Saka's amendment to put $55,000 towards arts enrichment programming in West Seattle for unified outreach.

We've had many speakers say how important arts and culture is and it's true.

There's nothing that builds bridges, you know, despite race, economic status.

There's just nothing like arts that can build bridges and save lives.

And Unified Outreach has been around for 25 years.

We've served and done programming in just about every district across Seattle.

So, again, we just want to say thank you to Rob Saka for putting this amendment in.

Thank you to Councilmember Strauss for keeping it in the budget.

And we would just like to ask the rest of the council to please just consider the difference that ARTS makes and unified outreach, ARTS-infused behavioral health programs, gang intervention, after-school enrichment.

It's a wonderful program, Unified Outreach.

Please support it.

Thank you.

Thank you, David, and appreciate the compliment.

Luckily, there's no cameras on in chambers to see my bad dancing, because it's just me and Deborah Juarez out here, so we're just having a little Fun over here.

Lisa Olmsted-Thompson, you're next, because Kimberly Coleman's not present, followed by Hind Oddsley, who's not present, and then Jarrell Davis, who is present.

Pamela Seamonster, you are not present.

Mira Craft, and then Robin Briggs.

Lisa, I see you're off mute.

Welcome.

Hi, thank you.

My name is Lisa Olmsted-Thompson.

I'm a resident of West Seattle and a member of For Seattle.

I'm here to comment on the budget and ask for your support of the shelter expansion dollars as well as firefighter overtime funding.

The majority of fires calls are health related.

They are truly the front line to a growing crisis in our city.

We need to be sure that there is sufficient staffing to continue to meet that need as well as allow safe work conditions for them and rest and ensuring that all stations remain open.

They deserve this over time.

Also, 4 Seattle is proud to be part of the coalition coordinating the approach to unsheltered homelessness.

That approach depends on high support shelters and outreach, healthcare, and housing providers actually working off the same list, and that takes funding.

We're asking the council to fund it, so this time the city follows through instead of letting another plan fade.

On a personal note, I've been very moved by callers earlier on this, and I'd also like to ask the council for a council advocate and emergency budget to support the cooperative preschool.

I'm also currently enrolled as a student and have my toddler in the class now.

And it is truly a lifeline for parents, especially those of us with kids under 18 months.

There's not that much out there for that age group.

And it's just an amazing resource.

And I'd just like to also echo what the other callers have said.

Thank you so much for your time.

I really appreciate the opportunity to speak.

Thank you, Lisa.

Hind Oddsley, you are not present.

Jerrell Davis, you are next.

Pamela Seamonster, not present.

Miracraft, followed by Robin Briggs.

Betty Williamson Watson, you are not present.

Dorihana Dinnish, you are not present.

as we are promoting Jarrell Davis.

I'm just gonna read off the other not present names.

Laura Lowe, Jessie Simpson, Hind Oddsley again, Adam Ecker, John Gwynn, Sean Rahami, you are all not present.

And we are working to promote Jarrell Davis at this moment.

and I'm the senior community organizer at the Tubman Center for Health and Freedom.

For the record, I've been listening to these public comments since 1 p.m.

The majority of my interactions with the Seattle City Council over the last decade have been primarily antagonistic.

I believe it's community who generates the best solutions and who are the ones to hold this council accountable.

My organizing experience has taught me that historically city council can be irascible, fickle, and unreliable.

And while that may be true in ways that y'all know even better than I do, today I'm kicking a slightly different energy.

Today I'm urging you to keep Tubman's request for $300,090 towards operating support in the budget.

Y'all know we're living in precarious times and while our health care is under attack regionally and nationally, people all over the world are even more dire straits and our country's government directly contributes to that calamity.

My question to you is what role do you want to play in the municipalities you're responsible for supporting?

What values do you stand on and what decisions do you want to be remembered for making at this critical juncture?

At Tubman, we're committed to addressing both the health of our patients and the factors that determine their health.

With your support, You're resourcing our ability to continue and expand this mission.

We actually see this commitment all the way through and ensure that Tubman Health remains in the final budget.

Thank you.

Thank you, Jarrell.

Pamela Seamonster, you are not present.

Mira Craft is next, followed by Robin Briggs as we bring Mira up.

Mike Owsley, you are not present.

Eric Calligraphy, you are third on deck.

But before Mira you go, I see Amanda Reynoso is off mute.

Amanda, is that you?

Yes, I'm so sorry.

I just stepped out of a meeting, but thank you.

Thank you for giving me a chance.

No, no problem.

Take it away at your convenience.

We're glad to hear your voice.

Thank you so much, City Council.

My name is Amanda Reynoso-Pauli, and I am a parent of a child who attends the the Admiral Co-op Preschool, and I am calling also to request that the city provide some emergency funding for our wonderful parent educators.

I can't say enough about how much I have learned as a parent through the parent education that we get.

I think it has helped me be a better mother, it's helped my spouse be a better father, it has also created so much better opportunities for children in our community.

So I am asking that if there is a city council member who will champion an amendment to the budget for one-time emergency funding to the Seattle College Parent Education Program.

Again, we do need 1.6 million for two quarters but even half that amount would keep us going through the winter quarter and we are actively searching for private funding and other state funding.

Thank you so much for allowing me to speak.

Thank you.

Thank you, Amanda.

And we have Mira Craft with us.

Mira, star six to unmute.

You're off mute.

Welcome.

Take it away.

Hi, thank you so much.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Mira Craft, founder of NKPR and co-producer of Fremont Fridays.

I'm here to support having Seattle having its first music laureate and the arts grant proposed by council president Collinsworth.

Music is part of Seattle's identity.

A music laureate would give us someone who champions our artists, connects the new schools and neighborhoods, and keeps Seattle's music scene visible as a civic asset.

Art keeps people safe.

We saw record-breaking summers during the FIFA events, and I see how much talent is here and how much room for support there is.

A music laureate and the arts grant proposed by Council President Holland's work would help close that gap, and they would do so at a modest cost compared to the cultural and economic return.

They would also protect something we can't afford to lose.

human creativity and real connection.

At a time when the arts are under pressure and so much of life is mediated through screens, a laureate in arts lending keeps Seattle's music rooted and people making something together in the same room.

I urge you to move this forward.

Seattle has always been the city that makes music the world ends up listening to.

Let's make sure it's a city that invests in the people who actually make it.

Thank you for your time.

Thank you, Mira.

We're going to go with Robin Briggs next.

Mike Owsley, you're not present.

Eric Calligraphy, you are next.

Betty Williams and Watson and Dorihana Dennis, you are not present.

Salma Q would be up next.

Robin, I see you're here and you're off mute.

Take it away.

Hi.

Thanks for hanging out in a long meeting to listen to us.

My name is Robin Briggs.

I live on Capitol Hill.

I'm concerned about the climate and worried about our future.

As you debate the budget, I urge you to keep climate foremost in mind.

We need to improve transit, improve walkability and bikeability.

We need to figure out ways to transition off natural gas.

We need to get more housing in the city where jobs and services are nearby.

Following the JumpStart protocol would do all of those things.

Let's invest more in those things, release a solid budget and not backtrack.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, Robin.

Always good to hear your voice.

Mike Owsley, not present.

Eric Calligraphy, up next.

Betty Watson, not present.

Dorihana Denish, not present.

Salma Q, up after that.

And then Julie Shulman.

Eric Calligraphy, we see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Welcome.

All right.

Good afternoon, council members.

I'm Eric Calligraphy, a longtime Seattle resident artist and a Capitol Hill neighbor.

Thank you, council members and budget chair Dan Strauss for including $200,000 on the on the block proposed 2027 budget.

I've personally seen a lot of people of all ages find safety, purpose, and community here.

People who might otherwise be on the street with nowhere to go.

These spaces give people somewhere to belong and support that can help them stay out of trouble.

To me, that is public safety through prevention and connection.

Across four creative spaces, On The Block supports over 60 resident artists.

Last year, its residents provided over 3,000 hours of free community program.

This funding was stabilized, work already serving our neighborhood.

Please keep that in the final budget and protect the places that help Capitol Hill care for its people.

Thank you.

Thank you, Eric.

And before we move on, we're going to go actually back to Hind Oddsley, who is now present.

Hind, you're here and you're off mute.

Welcome.

Take it away.

Hi, thank you so much.

Sorry, I was trying a few times.

Good afternoon, Councilmembers.

My name is Hind Osley, Executive Director of the Refugee Artisan Initiative, located in Lake City, District 5. I'm here to urge you to support Budget Amendment ORIA-001, which will provide $600,000 for economic empowerment through workforce development programs for refugee and immigrant women in Seattle.

Thank you to Budget Chair Strauss and Council Member Rink for co-sponsoring this amendment.

Refugee and immigrant women are often the ones holding families together.

They're raising children, working essential jobs, caring for elders, and learning a new language and new systems all at once.

Many have survived war, displacement, or violence, yet they face some of the steepest barriers to services, such as language, isolation, childcare, and fear of seeking help.

This amendment pays for the kind of support that works for them.

That means culturally and linguistically appropriate programs run by trusted community organizations such as ours, which connect women to job training, language skills, legal help, and a safe space to come together.

Measured against the full city budget, this is a modest investment and its benefits reach far beyond the women it serves.

They extend to their children, their families, and the whole city.

These women start businesses, fill jobs, and strengthen our neighborhood.

Seattle calls itself a welcoming city.

This amendment puts that into practice for the women who need it most.

I urge you all to join Chair Strauss and Council Members

Thank you Hind, appreciate your comments there.

I do have Salma Q up next and then we also have Mike Owsley present all of a sudden, so that's good.

If you are waiting, call in now because we're gonna run through everyone we've got and then we're gonna close this part of the public hearing.

Salma, you're with us, you're off mute.

Welcome, take it away.

Hi, my name is Salma.

I'm here today to ask for your support of OIRA-001, which provides important funding for the Refugee Artisan Initiative.

This initiative supports refugee and immigrant women by helping them develop their skills, gain valuable experience, find employment, and earn income through their communities and amen to that.

It gives women an opportunity to share their talents, learn new skills, and become more confident and independent.

With this support, those women can create better opportunities for themselves and their families.

They can build financial stability, contribute to their communities, and work towards a brighter future.

Your support has made these opportunities possible and allows the initiatives to continue, making a positive difference in women's life.

and thanks so much for taking the time to listen and for support OIR8001 and the Refugee Artisan Initiative.

Thank you.

Thank you, Salma.

And we're going to go back to Mike Owsley, then back to Julie Schulman and then Scott Carlton.

Mike, you're here, star six to unmute.

Mike Owsley, star six to unmute.

Why don't we pull up Julie Schulman, you're here too.

Star six to unmute.

Julie, you're with us.

Take it away.

Welcome.

Hi, thank you so much.

Peace.

I'm Julie C. I led the open letter initiative for art and culture as public safety.

I'm a local artist and cultural worker and I really love my city.

I'm also a resident artist on the block and So myself and the data continue to disagree with Police Guild and some of y'all on council on the efficacy of police and surveillance-based safety strategies.

I'm also here today to say thank you.

Thank you to city council, the budget, to you, Strauss, to ring special shouts to our District 3 rep, Hollingsworth, the champ, all of you wards and SACA and those perhaps that have yet to sponsor, thank you for hearing us.

And thank you for really listening to all of us cultural workers really out here on the front line of crisis prevention of intervention and recovery and care in ways that are often very invisible.

So thank you for your witnessing and for championing new investments for our community-led solution making.

Through the inclusion of the $3 million for arts and culture, public safety, and also for the $200,000 Amendment for Art and Culture Activation to On the Block Seattle, our work has really been shaped entirely by and in response to hundreds in our direct community since 2020, and we serve thousands more through our free programs.

This investment will really stabilize in an impactful way in a dire time.

So thank you for your care and your stewardship of the relational fiber of the city through your investment in community-rooted art and culture, because this is where the public safety, the wellness, the healing, and that infrastructure lies.

So we are grateful.

We look forward to building on this foundation and sharing the impact we know will be tangible.

So thanks so much.

Thank you, Julie.

Mike, I see you're already off mute.

Take it away.

Welcome.

Thank you, esteemed council members and community.

I am calling to voice support for Councilmember SACA's amendment to provide funding for Unified Outreach to continue to offer art enrichment classes in West Seattle.

I would also like to thank Councilmember Strauss and SACA for recognizing and supporting the important work and services which Unified Outreach has provided to the City of Seattle for over 25 years.

And I implore the Council to preserve the amendment through final adoption.

Thank you for your time.

Have a great day.

Thanks, Mike.

Up next is Scott Carlton.

I see you're here.

Star six to unmute.

Laura Lowe, you are not present.

We will be turning off cabin lights for departure.

We got you loud and clear, but we can hear whatever's going on in the background.

Scott, do you want us to come back to-

Now we got, we're gonna come back to Scott.

Laura Lowe not present.

Hannah Kenney up next.

Jesse Simpson not present.

Scott Carlton will be, we'll come back to.

Hannah, you're here and you're off mute.

Take it away, welcome.

Hi, good afternoon.

My name is Hannah Kenney.

I'm a long time listener, first time caller.

I am born and raised in the neighborhood of Seattle, and I'm commenting today to ask you about the support of the amendment SCR009B sponsored by council members Charles Kettle, Saka, Flores, and council president Allen-Sworth in the church and with the package.

This amendment is critical for keeping the rest of the way to play field South Athletic Field conversion product on track.

I know our city is facing significant challenges, and in the grand scheme of the municipal budget, upgrading the local ball fields might seem secondary, but to our micro-neighborhood, it is essential.

Every week, thousands of local kids and families rely on these ball fields for baseball, softball, soccer, and its host to our largest community gathering, Magnolia Summerfest.

Right now, forest surface conditions may play dangerous and force frequent cancellations.

Our community was promised a trip conversion to solve this with the mayor's proposed budget delays at progress.

Voting yes and amendment FCR009B ensures the city keeps commitment to our neighborhoods so our kids have a safe, reliable place to play.

I'd also like to add the echo of other commenters to please not raise our property taxes anymore.

It's becoming a little crazy.

Thank you.

Thank you, Hannah.

We have Jessa Simpson, not present.

Scott Carlton, not present.

We have Siobhan Robinson.

Oh, I missed Cesar Garcia, who's with us.

Cesar, star six to unmute.

And then we'll do Siobhan Robinson, Chris Maycutt, Adam Ecker, you're not present.

Cesar, star six to unmute.

Cesar, Garcia.

Let's bring up Siobhan Robinson.

Siobhan, star six to unmute.

There you are, welcome.

Hello.

Hi.

Thank you.

Good afternoon.

My name is Siobhan Robinson.

I'm calling in in support of continuing and maintaining funding for the Central District Panthers youth football and cheer organization in the 2027 budget priority proposed by Council President Joy Hollingsworth.

For over 30 years, our program has provided services to approximately 145 youth each season between the ages of 5 and 15. Our program builds character, confidence, discipline, and leadership through positive mentorship and accountability.

By participating with agencies such as Seattle Police Department, Africatown, Emoja Festival, as well as elementary, middle, and high schools, we strengthen our community relationships not only with just us and the children, but with the parents and with other people within our community.

Our program creates a safe, supported environment where they can learn life lessons to become positive future leaders, I encourage you to improve the proposal so that we can continue to offer our services as volunteers.

Thank you to City Council members and Budget Chair.

That's it.

And thank you, Siobhan, for all you do for our city.

We're going to go Chris Maykut, Najma Osman, Tanya Hino, LB, Hannah Powers, Irene Buford, and then I'm going to go back to the top.

So if you have called in, we will come back to you in the order on which you were registered with Chris.

But Chris, hang on, Chris Maykut.

Cesar Garcia has come off mute.

Cesar, you are up next, and then we'll go to Chris.

Thank you for waiting, Chris.

Cesar?

Good afternoon.

Can you hear me?

Yes, welcome.

You went back on mute, Cesar.

There you are.

Now you're off mute.

Welcome.

Okay.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Cesar Garcia and I am part of Lake City Collective in the North End District 5. I submitted a written letter, but I will just highlight the two main points.

First of all, thank you for keeping the mayor's proposed budget for keeping Little Brook Park redevelopment in the capital fund for Seattle Parks and Recreation.

This project has been delayed for two times already, two years, and the funds that are being allocated will help complete the project next year.

And with that, a lot of kids, a lot of families will have the benefit of a clean, healthy park in a decade.

So thank you for that.

The second part of the letter, it's about calling in support of the sales fund that will provide a necessary improvement in high priority areas, especially Lake City and also Little Saigon.

So we encourage you to please adopt or accept the sales fund in your proposed package.

And that's it.

Thank you so much and have a great evening.

Thank you, Cesar.

Chris Maycott, you're already off mute.

Welcome, my friend.

Thank you, Chair Strauss.

Good late afternoon, President Collinsworth and fellow council members.

My name's Chris Maycott.

I'm a small business advocate for the Finney Neighborhood Association's business program.

Shout out to Cesar and the Lake City Collective and all the work they do there.

I'm here to support the full slate of District 6 community investment proposals made for our neighborhood and our district.

and ask that you, in particular, keep the $345,000 for fire safety upgrades at the Phinney Center in the final budget.

On any given day at the Phinney Center, kids are learning in our preschool co-ops.

Neighbors are borrowing tools they'd otherwise have to buy.

Local groups are gathering for classes, meetings, and events.

And right outside my door right now, there's a folk bluegrass ramble going on, so you can't hear it.

Through my work with local businesses, I see how much it matters to have a place where people can come together and get to know their neighbors, and we do that every day here at the Finney Center.

That's why this is a good use of public dollars.

Upgrading the fire panels and sprinklers protects a place that Seattle families, volunteers, and community groups already count on, so please keep this investment in the budget.

I also urge you to support the HSB 26A Capital Funding for Family Works.

We partner annually with Family Works on neighborhood food drives, I've seen how readily our neighbors show up to help keep local families fed.

In a time where federal funding is shaky at best, though maybe getting better, Sydney funding helps Family Works provide the food and support these families count on.

Thank you.

Thank you, Chris.

We have about six more speakers present.

It's 401 colleagues.

I'm gonna keep us going until we're done, just so we can complete.

I am going to at this, Tanya Hino, LB, Hannah Powers, Irene Buford, Peter Hasegawa and Jesse Simpson, you are all present.

So I am now going to read the names of everyone who is not present to give you one last opportunity to call in.

Nancy Husser, Luisa Cardona, Kylie Dahat, Madeline Mohamedin, Edgar Espino, Karina Patel did speak, Shayma Rasouli, Hakima Akbari, Chris Leverson, Cameron Bucco, Laura H, Sheila Sempaticos, Humaria Alami, Michael Yee, Mike Nguyen, Latanya Horace Du Bois, Brittany Kane, Masuma Elizada, Kate Howard, Eric Gerstein, Susan Sanders, Kimberly Coleman, Pamela Seamonster, Betty Williamson Watson, Dorihana Dinnish, Scott Carlton, Laura Lowe, Adam Ecker, Najma Ausman, John Gwynn, Shaheen Rahimi, If you just heard your name, you need to call in right now because we have about 10 minutes worth of public testimony left and then we will close the virtual testimony.

With that, Tanya Hino, thank you for waiting with me as I called through all those names.

Over to you.

No problem.

Thank you so much for having us and your patience to hear our testimony of all of us.

and I know that all the testimonies are important and valuable, so thank you so much for the time.

Now, I am calling in for two important programs and they have helped me as an immigrant, Mexican immigrant.

The parent education program with the Seattle Colleges I know that one of your representatives met with one of our parent educators and you're aware of this already.

I really, I don't think I will feel a sense of belonging in this country raising children if it was not for the parent education program.

It's very affordable for families, it's accessible and it gives you a different way of raising children with other parents and professionals that can help you feel a sense of belonging and give you tools.

We need 1,600,000 to keep these programs from going belly up.

If these programs go belly up, there's no way they'll come back.

Now, we have seen the power of kindness and compassion with our voters and they went out there and voted so that we can change systems.

I urge you and urge our council to find emergency money so we can help the parent education program.

Not only that, family...

Thank you, Tanya.

Up next is LB followed by Hannah Powers, Irene Buford.

L, you're off mute, take it away, welcome.

Hi, my name is LB in district four.

I'm calling today about council member Lynn's budget amendment SPD 108B to dedicate 100,000 of SBD overtime for specifically Council and Public Safety Committee security and urge you to reallocate those funds to victims of police violence instead.

In 2024, Seattle City Council called the cops on people there for public comment at least nine times, resulting in at least one arrest while you were passing hugely unpopular surveillance expansions like RTCC, ALPRs, and CCTVs.

The Council called SBD on your own constituents plenty of times without that proviso and now you're formalizing that as a policy with this amendment.

How are people supposed to interpret this absurd security budget any other way than you further fortifying yourself against the public you ostensibly represent but continually ignore in the name of police expansion?

This Council has simultaneously ignored community requests to support victims of SBD's violence who are asking for only half that amount, $50,000, to cover legal funds and funeral costs for individuals and families whose lives have been changed forever because of SBD's violence that you refuse to hold them accountable for.

Since the consent decree was lifted a year ago, your so-called accountability partners have not named a single cop behind the murders of Keenan Pearson, Christopher Bowman, Christian Nelson, and Jack Pillayley.

or which cops shot and wounded a woman in crisis on Beacon Hill recently.

Families have had to wait months and years for any crumbs of information about what happened to their loved ones.

Well, they have to pay out of pocket for legal support and funeral costs navigating all of that while in mourning.

So please reallocate those overtime funds.

SPD's victims deserve all of that.

Thank you, LB.

Up next is Hannah Powers, followed by Irene Buford, Peter Hasegawa, and then Jesse Simpson will be our last speaker.

Hannah, you're welcome.

You are here and we are excited to have you.

Star six to unmute.

Hannah Powers, star six to unmute.

You are off mute.

Welcome.

Hi there.

Thank you.

My name is Hannah Powers.

I'm a mom of three children under five years old and an FTS teacher taking small breaks to raise those children.

I'm also incredibly honored to serve as board president for the Admiral Co-op Preschool this year.

I'm asking for a council member to please champion parent education programs in Seattle Community Colleges.

Our survival as an affordable preschool program depends on an emergency bridge funding of $1.6 million.

A diverse group of families but the diverse set of needs are served high quality early childhood and parent education through our program.

We serve working families in Seattle and they rely on this.

The children of Seattle depend heavily on this program.

Please, please support us so that we can continue the good work that Seattle City has already done for children.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Irene Buford followed by Peter Hasegawa and then Jesse Simpson.

If you are not present, you must call in now because these are our final three speakers.

Irene Buford, you're here, star six to unmute.

It is 4.07 p.m.

If we were in British Columbia, only two and a half hours north, it would be 5.07 p.m.

Irene, you're here.

You're off mute.

Take it away.

Welcome.

Hello, Dan Strauss.

How are you doing?

And hello to all the Policy Council members as well.

And I'm very pleased to be here.

So I'm here on the behalf of the Skills to Live program that's led by Angel Wilson or Angelique Wilson.

So I'm calling in support of that program.

I've been a King County resident along with being enmeshed as a Seattle resident for decades and decades here.

since I was about 17 years old.

I'm also a prior Seattle School District Policy Council representative myself, so I feel very blessed to be here.

So I'm calling to support requested or any appropriate funding that's needed for the Skills to Live program on the behalf of Angel Wilson, and it's because of this.

She's very consistent.

I see that she has an ongoing passion for the program and I've witnessed the change that other people have experienced just even going through the program without funding.

So imagine what it would be with funding.

So with that passion, the growth and the progression of the Skills to Live program would definitely be able to reach more people and more individuals if the program was to receive funding.

Does that mean my time is up?

No, you got five seconds left.

Okay.

So, um, so I also experienced homelessness as well.

And so, um, um, I just think it would be the greatest human.