City Council 6/2/2026

Is my microphone on?

Yes, awesome.

Good afternoon, everyone.

The June 2nd meeting of the Seattle City Council will come to order.

It is 2.04 p.m.

I'm Joy Hollingsworth, your council president.

Will the clerk please call the roll?

Council member Saka?

Here.

Council member Strauss?

Council member Foster?

Here.

Council member Juarez?

Here.

Council member Kettle?

Here.

Council member Lynn?

Here.

Council member Rink?

Present.

Council Member Rivera?

Present.

Council President Hollingsworth.

I'm present.

Awesome.

So colleagues, first of all, thank you.

Thank you everyone for being with us today.

I know we have a very hefty agenda and usually how we start our meetings is by proclamations.

So we have two proclamations that we will be presenting today.

The first one, we're going to be recognizing Amar Ashawn Murphy Payne Day.

That is the proclamation we're presenting today.

Yes.

and grateful to have his family here today.

I'm honored to join my colleagues.

This is a full council presenting this proclamation today.

I will say a few words and then I'll open it up to my colleagues who will say something as well.

Amar Ashawn Murphy Payne was born December 30th, 2006 in Renton, Washington.

As a toddler, Amar loved his Hot Wheel car collection.

He loved collecting and wearing different baseball hats and cool socks.

He found a love of music as a teenager and expressed his artistic passion through music.

His favorite foods were pancakes and mac and cheese.

Amar played basketball, baseball, boxing, but he was an exceptional football player.

Very passionate.

Very, very talented.

And...

This week is the third year anniversary of his transition to be with our ancestors.

And when I say I put emphasis on his transition to be with our ancestors, I don't say that lightly, because I do believe that Ammar's soul rests today under the care, protection, guidance, and perfect peace with our ancestors.

It's never easy to have to witness some of the pain of someone else, especially with this type of pain.

But as we gather here today to proclaim it to be a Mar Murphy Pain Day, celebrating this young man's life, celebrating his legacy and his impact to the community, let us also make sure that when we are navigating life, and this is the one thing that I'll always hold onto, is the question, how are the children?

That is the question that I will always continue to center when we were focusing our goals, our processes, our procedures, our outcomes based on that simple question, how are the children?

Very honored to be here to honor this young man's life who was an outstanding student, who was someone who was a great teammate, He was a great classmate to people.

And this is our third year anniversary of celebrating his life this month.

So I will open it up to my colleagues before we ask his family.

I know his dad, Aaron, is here.

his wife Lakeisha's here, his mom, and would love to open it up to my colleagues to see if there are any words.

I also want to thank Councilmember Rivera because it is Gun Violence Awareness Month and has proclaimed it to be Gun Violence Awareness Month, all the work that Councilmember Rivera is doing.

So there's two proclamations that we have today for Amara Murphy Payne and then the Gun Violence Awareness Month.

That's why you see some people wearing wearing orange today.

We have some council members wearing orange, council member Strauss has the orange tie, orange tie.

People all are wearing orange today in their hearts too, but it is something that we are bringing awareness to.

So we have two proclamations, one for Mara Murphy Payne, and then one for Gun Violence Awareness Month.

So thank you council member Rivera for that as well.

I will pause here to see if anyone has any comments before I'm gonna ask to suspend the rules to ask for the family to come up and speak.

And please know, a lot of people, we said comments yesterday when we were doing the signing of the proclamation as well.

Okay, so with that, I'm going to, colleagues, if there's no objection, I will ask, can we suspend the rules so we can present the proclamation to the family, which I have here, and I'll read just a little bit of it.

I won't read all of it into the record, but we have on here where, This is the last paragraph.

Whereas in the years following his passing, students, teachers, families, and community members have gathered to honor Amar's memory and to call for healing, peace, accountability, and meaningful action to end gun violence targeting young people in Seattle turning grief into service.

So anytime I'm talking to his family, they're talking about, we need to turn this pain into service.

Whereas, the City of Seattle honors in celebrating Amar's memory through a service, compassion, community unity, and a renewed commitment to ending gun violence now, and therefore, the Mayor and the City Council proclaim June 6th to be Amar Ashawn Murphy Pain Day.

come and present the proclamation and then whoever is here, A-Ron, they can come and speak and say a few words and then we'll escort you all downstairs where we'll have the celebration.

All right, awesome.

All right, so I'm gonna give this to you and then you'll come up to the front.

Thank you.

Thank you.

The floor is yours, Mr. Aeron.

First of all, I want to say thank you for this opportunity to give us something to stand on for the rest of our lives to be able to build what we need to do for Amar's legacy and for saving lives one heartbeat at a time.

You couldn't tell me two years ago that I'd be standing here at this moment of time right now, but I also want to give some credit to everybody who stands behind me.

My family was here with me.

They all have had their own moment of time where they reminded me the mission at hand, even if they know they didn't.

and this is just a piece of the mission and a start to it.

And I'm just so honored and welcome to be here.

And I'm not here to talk about nothing negative.

I'm not here to down the energy of the room, but it kind of fits that you guys are doing a proclamation on both gun violence or, you know, awareness and Amar on the same day because he died on gun violence awareness day, 2024. So I see the bigger picture.

This is a glorious moment for our family, for Ammar's name, for me, Lakeisha, Sharika, as parents of this young gray soul, his brothers, Jazir, Ja'Kai, Jalil, his uncles that are here, everybody that's here and everybody that's lifted them, the Garfield community that decided to turn something that could have been so tragic and negative, decided to work with us and make things positive.

So we just want to thank everybody.

as we go forward, but I will say this, there's still a murderer walking free.

If you guys know, I don't miss the opportunity to tell anybody that justice doesn't equivalent for me, but I gotta speak for my mom.

I gotta speak for everybody else, but for me personally, justice doesn't mean handcuffs and bars.

what we're doing right now today, that's justice for me.

But as far as the job that you guys have to do, the city has to do, they owe everybody else that's walking out here supposed to feel safe, there's a murderer still walking.

So, and there's a lot of murderers still walking around here and they're committing multiple murderers and there's a lot of families that are sitting without the closure of just that part of their life without that door shut.

I don't think about the life, I don't think about that young man and Amar's life he took.

I think about him possibly taking more.

And I'll always make sure that when I'm in these rooms, I just try to take and make sure that everybody knows that as long as we don't imagine it happening to us, we'll never meet with the people that it's happening to.

So, if I will, I challenge people to close their eyes and think about anything that you love.

Not only your kids, but if it's your kid, think about dropping them off at school and never seeing them alive again.

I didn't drop them off on East Union Street.

I didn't drop them off on Henderson.

I didn't drop them off with his gang member friends.

I dropped them off at school.

and he was dead at school before school ended.

Imagine that.

And I don't try to challenge people to imagine it to bring you down.

I want people to imagine it to lift you up, to say, hold on, wait, that could have happened to one of mine.

I'm gonna speak from, that could have happened to his uncles over there.

If you're uncles, that could have happened to your nephew.

If you're aunties, that could have happened to your auntie, to your nephew.

If you're a grandmother, that could have happened to your grandchild.

If you're a grandfather, that could have happened to your grandchild.

If you're a father, that could have happened to your child.

And if you're a mother, that could happen to your child.

But most of all, if you're a brother or sister, that could have happened to your brother or sister.

Let's start thinking about the kids.

Let's stop thinking about ourselves because it's not happening to you.

Stop thinking about ourselves in that selfish manner because it's not happening to you.

Let's start thinking about who it's happening to and really let's make the changes and get those murderers off the street.

They didn't have no remorse when they pulled the trigger.

Let's have no remorse when we put them in handcuffs.

How about that?

And some of them ain't gonna have no remorse when they're in the handcuffs.

Some of them ain't gonna have no remorse when they're behind those bars.

That's why those handcuffs and bars don't mean nothing to me personally.

This does.

Thank you guys and you guys have a wonderful day.

I definitely, I'm a segue the next one for my mom.

My mom been waiting to say something to you guys and her name is Veronica Murphy and I want her to be able to speak her heart and let it pour out in this chamber today.

Thank you guys.

Good afternoon.

I'm Amar's grandma.

I wrote this to tell you guys how I feel.

Make sure you pull the mic close.

There we go.

Just pull it as close as you can.

Thank you, ma'am.

About how grandma lost a child.

I am Amar's grandma, and I'm here to speak on behalf of my grandson.

who was killed at Garfield High School.

I am mad, really mad, because there was no justice for our black children.

And I'm mad about my grandson was being shot.

People had, or I call them kids, I had him killed, showing him getting killed on Facebook.

Who does that mess?

Who does that?

They need to be investigated.

They do.

Because they had my grandson on Facebook showing them how he got shot four times.

I just feel that a grandma had to see that on Facebook.

I'm mad because the police does not care.

I'm mad because I call Detective Simmons.

He tells me he's on a vacation and he's gonna call me back.

Never call me back.

I call the Captain Barnes, the new one, for the Seattle Police.

left, what, four messages.

Guess what?

I got a call yesterday because I was going to come here.

What is that?

And then my grandson, my baby, was killed.

He was at the school.

The school had no protection for him, for none of the kids.

What kind of justice it is for black children?

Tell me.

Tell me.

Tell me.

What kind of justice is it for black children?

My big grandson is dead just at a school.

What can you do?

What are you going to do?

That's all I need to know.

Thank you.

So I wanna thank the Murphy Payne family for coming today.

Thank you for your resilience.

Thank you for your love.

Thank you.

And thank you for those words, because I'ma tell you this, we need to hear those.

Seattle needs to hear those.

we need to hear those and we need to do something.

So thank you all.

What we'll do now is we will be celebrating the life of Ammar downstairs.

And so it's an open community event.

And so I know that my team will take you all because we're gonna jump right into the meeting and we'll be downstairs during that time.

And I will come down there after our meeting, but we're looking forward to connecting with you all.

So thank you.

Thank you so much.

And so now, colleagues, we're gonna jump into our meeting today, and I wanna also thank you all for coming.

I do also want to mention, and we're gonna be at ease real quick while we're making this transition, Thank you.

I also wanna recognize, and I apologize, I didn't see her earlier.

We have our city attorney, Erica Evans here in the back.

Thank you for being here as well for us talking about gun violence and these conversations.

So thank you, city attorney Erica Evans for being here as well.

All right, awesome.

We'll continue.

And I'd be remiss if I didn't also mention that we were joined by Connor Dasa Holland's father who was here.

Connor was murdered in 2020 on Mother's Day in Rainier Beach.

His murder has still not been solved as well.

And so we are losing a lot of our kids to gun violence.

These are hard conversations to have, but we need to have them and we need to talk about them.

And so his dad was here as well.

And I know he's out in the hall.

Great man, his family's great.

All right, so now we're gonna transition into our public comment.

Colleagues at this time, we're gonna open up the hybrid public comment period.

Public comment is limited to items on today's agenda, the introduction referral calendar and the council's work program.

Council cannot accept comments on quasi-judicial items or on our campaign related matters.

Speaker, how many, speaker, I apologize.

Clerk, how many speakers do we have signed up?

We have eight remote.

Okay, eight remote, and then I'm looking at 27 here, so that means it's between 30 to 60 per council rules.

Everyone's going to get one minute to speak, and will the clerk please read the instructions for the public comment?

Public comment period will be moderated in the following manner.

Speakers will be called in the order in which they registered.

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

Speakers' mics will be muted if they do not end their comments within the allotted time to allow us to call on the next speaker.

The public comment period is now open and we will begin with the first speaker on the list.

Awesome, so we have Lynn Tai here, followed by Ron, then we have Steve, Clive, Rogillo, say it again?

Robsello, Roberto, Gabriel, Kathy, Elizabeth, and Marta.

I will go speak reading, a little bit with one minute.

Good afternoon, council president and honorable council members.

My name is Lin Tai, and I'm here today to respectfully invite you to a meaningful cultural and community event, the 66th, commemorations of Grand Master Nguyen Lao, the founder of Pho Vi Nam, Vietnamese martial arts.

For over 85 years, Vovinam has been more than a martial arts system.

It is a philosophy, a way of life, one that centers mind and body revolutions that emphasizes discipline, social justice, respects resilience, and service.

This year, our city community will host the 66th Commemoration ceremony on Saturday, June the 27th at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Hall in West Seattle.

On this special occasion, we respectfully ask the City and the Council to proclaim June 27th to 2026 Vobinam Day.

I'm passing the proposed proclamation language, as well as a copy of each, for an invitation, each Council member, and I hope.

Thank you, Lynn.

Just throw it in the box there.

Good to see you.

Next, we have Ron, followed by Steve and then Clive.

Hi, thank you for this opportunity to speak.

I live in Northwest Green Lake, in a certain area that seems to be very popular for land use.

Between the council, the mayor's office, SDOT, I think there's four different things going on at the same time right now.

I don't know which is going where, but it looks like the latest is the mayor's agenda on Aurora, which looks to be another eminent domain gathering of the same people that tried the same thing back in 08 and 09. So I'm here to proclaim my rights, to own my property again.

I think this is the sixth time.

under the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States to retain my rights to own my property.

Thank you for your time and your opportunity to speak.

Thank you, Ron.

Next we have Steve, followed by Clive and Rogillo.

We need a better Seattle.

I think appropriate taking a look at how long has it been since we've had squads that actually investigate crimes after the fact.

One person took it to me that you need something more after the police come and pick up the shell casings.

We need to actually become a civil society again.

And world wars have been fought in less time than the city has spent trying to rebuild our police department.

The other thing I have great concern about is land use, and we see obscene profits for developers.

We're building new housing, but for who?

Not for the people that are here.

We're seeing working class being shoved out of the city, and we are seeing the trees that

Thank you, Steve.

Next we have Clive, followed by Rogillo, then Roberto, Gabriel.

I'm asking that the City Council exercise oversight over the waterfront free speech zone and policy and require Seattle Center to establish rules that comply with the Constitution.

Seattle lost major First Amendment litigation in 2009 over restrictions on street performers in public spaces.

The city should not repeat this mistake on the waterfront.

This is not theoretical.

I was assaulted by a Seattle Center officer during enforcement connected to these rules.

That same officer later involved in an exclusion process incident that seriously injured an ESU officer who has now been off the job for more than nine months.

That should be a warning sign.

The whole set of rules and enforcement mechanism is broken.

When rules affect expressive activity are unclear, unjustified, or enforced without clear constitutional framework, the result is not public safety.

The result is escalation, confusing, and physical harm and liability.

Thank you Clive.

Next we have, is it Rogelio?

Did I say that right?

No.

Pardon me?

Rogelio.

Rogelio.

Rogelio.

Los Santos, my bad.

Hi, my name is Rogelio Flores.

I am a street performer.

I am completely against these blue boxes.

When the city paints squares on the ground and tells performers we can only speak or perform inside these blue boxes, they restrict freedom of speech.

The message is clear.

Outside of the boxes, my voice is not heard.

This is not just my opinion.

William Dorsett already won $450,000 in federal settlement against San Diego over this same First Amendment issue.

I'm also a co-legent with William in another lawsuit against San Diego, challenging the same kind of restrictions.

Seattle should not make the same costly mistake.

If they need to regulate actual bad behavior, regulate it, but don't put any blue boxes on freedom of speech.

Thank you so much.

Next we have Roberto, followed by Gabriel, Kathy, Elizabeth, Marta.

Hello, I'm a traveling, street performing magician.

I'm here with Clive and Rogelio.

Rogelio is a co-litigator in a current lawsuit going on in San Diego for expressive activity issues, and we're experiencing those same issues here in Seattle.

and we don't want to litigate, we want to work with the city.

Recently the waterfront has been redesigned and there's also been designated spaces for expressive activity and we only have five in comparison to the Pike Place Market where you have 15. It has been creating a lot of conflict with us at the waterfront and it has been chilling speech and pushing artists out of Seattle so we're asking that the City Attorney seriously review these rules and amend any unconstitutional policies.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next we have Gabriel, followed by Kathy, Elizabeth, and Marta, and then we'll go on to the second page.

Hey folks, happy Pride.

As a reminder, Pride was a riot started by queer and trans folks because of overt police violence and harassment and violence against queer people.

I'm glad that 57 years later, we can meet here to talk about police violence against trans and queer folks.

Now, I was happy to disrupt last meeting because of the sham we had up there.

Let's be incredibly clear here.

OIG explicitly covered up how bad that day was.

OIG explicitly stated that they turned, we are here to fuck people up, to, we encourage a stronger police response, because they wanted to ensure officer privacy.

Sure, he encouraged violence, but what about the fact he might face accountability for the violence he encouraged?

Secondly, they stated that OIG looks for stomach problems.

They don't deal with the day of problems.

That's OPA's job.

Now, let's talk about the job OPA's been doing.

to start, officers punched my friend in the head eight times while on the ground.

OPA ruled that these punches crossed the line, and they were not correct for ease of force, so they spoke with the chain of command.

After speaking with the chain of command, I have a minute, Jesus Christ, no, I'm just going.

Let's see here, they ruled that after eight punches, they spoke with the chain of command, the chain of command said, you know what, nah, that's fine.

Yeah, eight punches, no, that's actually good, and they kept going.

Here is how my friend's head was left.

Thank you, thank you, Gabriel.

Gabriel, thank you.

Thank you, Gabriel.

Gabriel, thank you.

No, thank you, Gabriel.

The mic is unfortunately cut, so thank you.

Thank you, Gabriel.

Gabriel, thank you.

Mr. Diaz, I know you're listening to me.

Thank you.

Thank you, Gabriel.

Thank you, Gabriel.

Thank you, Gabriel.

Hey, Gabriel, thank you so much.

Thank you so much.

Gabriel, thank you.

Thank you, Gabriel.

Next, we have Kathy Moore, former, excuse me, former Councilmember Kathy Moore.

Welcome.

Hold on, let's cut your mic back on.

No, no, we gotta cut.

You're good.

Okay.

There we go.

OK.

Good afternoon, honorable council president and council members.

I did not expect to find myself here today, clearly, by my attire.

I happened to be downtown and thought, well, I'll make a presence here because of what's going on in Aurora.

and I read two articles in the Seattle Times this weekend.

I have been following the issues.

Thank you, Council Member Juarez and Council Member Lynn for bringing forth legislation to allow the closure of streets for public safety purposes.

I think I would note that the mayor already has that authority under an emergency provision, but it would be good to remove any particular obstacles the city attorney's office chooses to throw in the way.

and I know that there have been conversations going on certainly because I know that happens.

But I wanted to be here to just say that it's going to take political will and you have the political will.

You have to look at Mondami and you have to look at Shoreline.

Shoreline has exactly the same laws and they do not have an open-air street sex market to implement and enforce their laws.

Shoreline, political will.

Thank you, Kathy.

Next we have Elizabeth followed by Marta.

Is Elizabeth here?

Hello, welcome.

Good afternoon.

My name is Elizabeth Aylward.

I'm a resident of West Seattle, and I'm here with others from the For Seattle group to ask you to vote in favor of the housing opportunities package amendments.

My husband and I recently built a new home in West Seattle and encountered an abundance of red tape and regulations, which, along with the two-year permitting process, added significantly to the cost and duration of our project.

Many of these regulations added nothing to safety or environmental protection or design aesthetic.

These same regulations are slowing down and adding unnecessary cost to homes built all over Seattle, reducing affordability of housing for all residents.

The Hopp Amendments will make common sense modifications to some of these regulations and provide construction incentives that will lead to more affordable housing for all, which in turn may reduce homelessness.

I hope you will vote in favor of the Hopp Amendments.

Thank you so much.

Next we have Marta, followed by Bob, then Logan, Evan, Yvette, Kenneth, Scott, Alicia, Sinta, David, and Leandre.

OK.

Hello, everyone.

My name's Marta.

I'm here with Forest Seattle.

I'll keep this short and sweet.

Just want to say, first of all, thanks so much for all your work going into the Housing Opportunities Amendments.

I'm super excited about this.

It brings more housing to lots of neighborhoods and a quicker timeline.

I also think it really sets a foundation for work going forward and how to address our critical housing supply needs.

That is all.

I encourage you to vote yes, and thanks again.

Thank you, Marta.

Next we have Bob, followed by Logan, then Evan.

Good afternoon.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you.

My name is Bob Elward.

I'm a new resident of West Seattle, which we are enjoying very much.

And I'm here today with my friends from For Seattle to talk about urging you to vote for the Hopp Amendments.

As I stand here today, I kind of look at the opportunity we have here through the eyes of my grandchild who lives on Beacon Hill.

Just like he is out taking his first steps, these amendments to me can be the first steps toward addressing the issues that we have in housing affordability here in Seattle that's going to confront us.

There'll be many opportunities to do better.

These are the first, and I would urge you to take this first step just like my grandchild.

Thank you.

Thank you, Bob.

That was clever, first step.

Logan, followed by Evan, and then Miss Yvette.

Good afternoon, Council President Hollingsworth and Council.

I am here to speak in support of Council Bill 121190, the Stormwater Code, as well as the HOP legislation.

MBACs encourages the Passage of both of these bills, I want to start by thanking SPU and SDCI staff for their diligent work in shepherding and refining the stormwater code over the past year.

And we look forward to further engagement with the city to creating a stormwater management process for the city of Seattle that is right-sized for Seattle's urban infill environment.

On the HOP legislation, very much encouraged by the fact that this is very targeted upzoning and rezoning that not only helps in the process of the comprehensive plan that we are going through right now, but also is going to mitigate displacement pressure in various neighborhoods.

And we see this as a very great opportunity for the city.

Thank you so much.

Once again, encourage passage on both these bills.

Thank you, Logan.

Next we have Evan followed by Yvette and then Kenneth.

Welcome.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Evan Sexton.

I live in District 4. I'm also here with 4Seattle to speak in favor of the HOP package.

We know that development prospects aren't what they used to be in this city, and I think this is a targeted response to that challenging climate.

So again, I ask you to please vote in favor.

Thank you.

Thank you, Evan.

Next, we have Ms. Yvette, followed by Kenneth and then Scott.

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all.

When I read that The Washington Boulevard is being closed Friday, Saturday and Sunday and posted on Nextdoor.

Within 24 hours, I got over 3,000 responses and everybody's pissed off.

The council president was not consulted, let alone our district representative.

Three days is egregious to close off Lake Washington Boulevard.

May I suggest that this dedicate every Sunday to Bicycle Sunday and let the rest of the hardworking community have access to Lake Washington Boulevard on the weekends.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Yvette.

Next we have Kenneth followed by Scott and then Alicia.

Good afternoon, council.

My name is Ken.

I'm a candidate member of the American Party of Labor and happy pride to everyone except for y'all, especially you, Joy Hollingsworth, a queer woman who has sold out her own community for her own political gain.

Shame on you.

The Lincoln Institute of Genocide Prevention has issued a second red flag alert for the genocide of trans people here in the United States.

And the most I've seen out of y'all is just raising flags and making statements and doing little photo ops.

Where are the resources?

Where are the actual statements specifically on Juniper Blessing who should still be here and going to UW?

Where are the statements on the other trans women who are missing?

where are the resources for the people in Seattle who are fleeing here from violence around the country only to be met with indifference?

Joy, you should give a shit, but instead you just advocate for police, the same police who brutalized people last night.

Madam President, Madam Chair, may I ask you a point of order?

I would ask that this person is being disruptive and doing personal comments.

Let's shut the mic.

Madam Chair.

You're recognized.

Yes, thank you.

It's being disruptive and I'd like that to be noted.

Without attacking the personal integrity

So this is a gentle reminder that attacking council members' race, sexual orientation, or their gender is not acceptable.

So I'm just saying that for the record so everyone knows.

So let's go ahead and start for the public comment.

We have Scott next.

Thank you, welcome.

I'm in full agreeance of what Kenneth just said to you city council.

As we know, you put a moratorium on the cameras as you contracted NYUPP to conduct the investigation of whether these cameras were safe or not.

This same NWPP has partnered with Axon on their AI ethics board.

As a reminder, Israel uses Axon AI technology to determine how to best kill Palestinian families in their homes with the daddy's home tactic.

The same axon that is complicit in genocide funds and uses the service of NYUPP.

Our tax dollars are not only going to your racist killer police force, but a company entrenched in the mass murder of innocent people that has taken place in Gaza since the Zionist occupation in 1948. Even in banning the cameras temporarily, you still chose to cooperate with the reactionary forces of oppression that profit off the death of innocents, much in the same way your police force profits off beating children and protesters off of the murder of our poor and minority communities.

Your true character is that of the oppressor.

You side with the camera company complicit in genocide.

You choose an audit service that still retains ex-PD, ex-SPD chief Kathleen O'Toole, which surely isn't a coincidence.

You Thank you, Scott.

Thank you, Scott.

Thank you, Scott.

Thank you, Scott.

Thank you, Scott.

Next, we have...

we have Alicia, welcome.

Thank you for coming.

Good to see you.

Good afternoon, President Hollingsworth and members of the council.

My name is Alicia Ruiz and I'm humbled here today to represent the families and community at Habitat of Humanity for Seattle, King, and Kittitas counties.

Habitat's mission is to build strength, stability, and self-reliance through shelter.

and to create a world where everyone has a safe, decent, and affordable place to live.

We urge for your support for Council Bill 12-1196.

It advances equitable housing opportunities and creates pathways to affordable homeownership for working families.

Habitat supports this legislation because these up zones will help create more housing choices across Seattle and make projects like our Liberty Commons development possible.

Liberty Commons is the largest habitat build in the world, and that is because of your support.

We appreciate that this proposal promotes equitable growth across more neighborhoods, while helping current residents remain rooted in their communities.

We urge your support, and behind every new home is a family working towards stability, opportunity, and a brighter future.

Thank you.

Thank you, Alicia.

Next we have, I think it's Cinta.

Is it Cinta?

Did I say that right?

Okay, awesome, thank you.

Cinta, followed by David, and then I think it's Leandre.

Welcome.

Rest in love to 17-year-old Amar Murphy Payne, 16-year-old Jahaz Phillips, 15-year-old Mabarak Adam, 17-year-old Ebenezer Hailey, 15-year-old Solomon Taylor, 18-year-old Tyshawn Malik Stewart, 17-year-old Trevea Hoffmans, and countless more.

This is for all of them.

Good afternoon.

My name is Senator Cordova.

I'm a member of the Washington NAACP Youth Council, a District 3 resident, and a freshman student advocate.

I address you with the heaviest heart and genuine concern.

I'm here to demand immediate action on the escalating gun violence devastating our communities.

Gun violence is a deep, complex issue rooted in socio-economic and systemic problems, not just guns.

Our current reactive approach, waiting for tragedy before acting is failing our youth and community, causing trauma and perpetuating disadvantage by limiting access to vital resources like jobs, internships, and mental health support.

Unaddressed issues like homelessness, trauma, and lack of support, et cetera, create anger and hopelessness.

Tragically, ladies.

and violence combined with easy access to fire.

I need your support and advocacy.

I am young and I do not know where to start at that alone.

There's been a tidal wave of deaths amongst my peers and youth and I have no idea what to do.

Gun violence rates may have gone down, overall gun violence amongst youth doubling, lives lost amongst, er, lives lost, candlelight vigil, Grieving families, friends, and community members, et cetera.

Yet nothing has been done, no spark of concern, and I can't sit and do nothing or wait for another death to occur to take action.

Directed by safety, I recommend increased funding for community agencies and outreach programs, reinforce, or reincorporating summer use of employment programs, funding for community violence prevention programs, stricter gun control, expanded mental health services for youth and community advocacy to reduce gun violence and gun access.

This is not all, and I'd love to talk to you all more on this, and I'd love to have a meeting with Joy Holly and Eddie Lynn.

Action is needed now and not after another life lost.

Thank you, Cinta.

I'm gonna take a moment, just a moment of silence.

Colleagues, I hope you join us in the Bertha Nite-Landis room after this meeting to continue the conversation.

Up next, we have David Glogan, Lysandro V. I see some Keandre, Ashley, and then Jessica.

David, welcome.

Good afternoon, Councilmembers.

I'm Dave Gloger from District 5. I'm here to address Council Bill 121190, the Stormwater Code.

I'll spare you the details and talk about the practicalities of it.

King County announced double-digit sewer rate increases for years to come to handle the stormwater runoff.

Why are you relaxing the codes when the county says that we need more infrastructure?

And then just a few days ago, Seattle Parks Department closed two more beaches.

And this is on top of the toxic algae bloom at Green Lake.

Our beaches are unsafe due to stormwater runoff, and the council is proposing to relax restrictions.

Last year, council passed the first phase of the comp plan, allowing nearly 100% lot coverage.

This will surely need more stormwater runoff and beach closures.

Please amend this bill to protect our water.

Trees are a tool to manage stormwater.

They hold water in their trunks and canopy.

I ask that you amend the bill to allow trees, the stormwater managers on all property types.

Thank you.

Thank you, David.

Up next is Lisandro, followed by Keandre.

Good afternoon.

Welcome.

Good afternoon.

In lieu of Lysandra Vela, my name is Joshua Douglas with the Carpenters.

We are in favor of the Hopp amendment and urge your support on that vote.

Thank you, counsel.

Thank you.

The speakers that we have left remaining in person, Keiondre, Ashley, Jessica, Michael, Alex, Jennifer, Susan, and then we'll move to online public commenters.

If folks want to line up, the tall mic is the best, but we have limited time, so if we could move quickly through the next section.

Keiondre, would you like to come up?

Keiondre, Keiondre, Ashley, Ashley is next.

Keiondre, are you coming up?

Two weeks ago, Joy Hollingsworth requested at least two cops be president at city council.

Since there's been no public comment on why, I am left to assume that this is to keep people from keeping her accountable.

Joy, you told me at a Hey Black Seattle event that I need to get off a progression plantation.

However, you're using your power to enforce the biggest oppressors of black people and trans people to be here, disrespecting the security guards who work day in and day out to keep the city council safe.

The $500 million budget that SBD gets, yet again, being used for cops to shit around and do exactly what they do best, nothing.

There still has been no accountability for the cops who have killed four people last year.

There are still families of police violence begging the city council to hear their pain and that they carry every day due to police negligence.

We're about to see, we're about a week out.

Thank you, Keandre.

Thank you, Keandre.

Thank you, Keandre.

Next, we have Ashley, followed by Jessica.

Welcome, Ashley.

Hi, my name is Ashley Nervig and I live in the East Lake neighborhood.

I'm here to ask you all to pass the housing opportunities package.

I'll keep this short because I know, but after I left Seattle, it took me like 10 years to get back here just because it was so hard to afford housing.

So I just really love that there is something that will increase the availability of affordable homes all across the city.

So thank you so much.

Thank you, Ashley.

Next, we have Jessica, followed by Michael, and then Alex.

Welcome, Jessica.

Good afternoon, Council.

I'm Jess Yang, a Ballard homeowner who wants to make room for more neighbors in this wonderful city we call home.

I'm here with 4Seattle to ask you to vote yes on the Housing Opportunity Zoning Amendment.

As we're all aware, we have a shortage of housing here in Seattle.

HOP is the kind of response we should prioritize, legislation that's already been drafted and reviewed and can kickstart projects that are ready to go.

I've been advocating for a better comp plan for over a year now and while that important legislation will guide our ability to produce housing for the next decade I know it's only one tool in our toolbox and that's why I encourage you to move hop forward we need to both plan for the future and respond to the moment with urgency I see this as a win-win-win a win for affordability for more choices and a win for those who want to live in Seattle and support our communities so thank you so much for your continued work on these issues

Thank you, Jessica.

Next we have Michael, followed by Alex, followed by Jennifer, and then Susan.

Welcome, Michael.

Hello.

First time giving public comment.

My name is Michael.

I live in the Finney Ridge neighbour of Seattle.

I'm here to show my support for the zoning amendments today.

It's very simple.

I don't believe you need to have too high incomes just to be able to afford to exist in Seattle or even to raise a family here, as I hope to do.

I have to say that generally I'm very proud to live in Seattle.

We've made tremendous progress on transportation infrastructure through our transportation levies.

I hope to one day be able to say the same thing about our progress on housing.

So thank you very much.

Awesome.

Thank you, Michael.

Next, we have Alex Lofton, followed by Jennifer, then Susan, and then we have Howard Gale, and then we'll jump online.

Hi, counsel.

Thank you very much for having me today.

Alex Lofton, CD resident, encouraging you to pass a hop today.

I also just want to thank you all again for your public service.

It's not an easy job, and we all see it.

And I just want, you know, I'm just excited for this particular legislation because I think about my friends who are baristas, who are performing artists, who are working all sorts of service jobs, just struggling to make it.

And, you know, housing is a foundation of affordability.

So anything we can chip away at it, let's do it.

This is what it looks like when we have something in front of us we can do.

Let's make it happen.

We'll be tracking it to see if it actually produces houses and take lessons learned from there and keep going.

So pass hop.

Thanks so much.

Awesome, thank you Alex.

Next we have Jennifer followed by Susan Howard-Gale and then we will jump online.

Welcome Jennifer.

Hello.

So I, first of all, support your work on gun violence.

I have an 83-year-old uncle who was fatally shot with no investigation, so I'm very much grateful for your work.

About the stormwater code, the NOAA-ORCA recovery plan recommends highest population areas on the Sound reduce polluted runoff.

We can build and protect the green spaces that naturally reduce stormwater volume at no cost and minimal maintenance, unlike human-made mitigations.

It's not a hard choice, and we can have both.

Turbidity, temperature, and toxins harm fish habitat and increase with hard surfaces with four to six Separate single family homes on lots, there will be, where will above ground flow control go when we can manage, that can manage the new hard surface runoff when below ground options are no longer required?

Where are the calculations showing the difference in increase in hard surfaces?

the reduced flow control, what will happen with the stormwater with reduced flow control requirements.

Sewage overflows and code mistakes need correcting.

Council Member Rivera's recital is an important accountability step, and I support it.

I request the feedback loop be closed to use the performance metrics data to adapt the code to prevent them.

I emailed and printed out a suggested closing line for them.

Thank you Jennifer, you throw it in the box.

Thank you so much.

Susan, followed by Howard Gale, and then we'll jump online.

And Ruth Dwight, you were the first person online.

Good afternoon.

I'm here to speak about Council Bill 121190 with stormwater codes.

I'd like to urge Council to approve Councilmember Rivera's amendment, setting standards based on performance metrics that are adaptive and clearly defined accountability.

When approving updated stormwater code, please keep a few things in mind.

The sewer infrastructure is maxing out, and ratepayers are shouldering the cost.

The continued insignificant loss of our mature tree canopy is a major factor.

All those lost trees once mitigated stormwater flow for free, and that loss is exacerbated by a heavy increase in impervious surface.

Last winter, we sustained catastrophic flooding, causing several sewer mains to burst across the city, which was expensive.

combined sewer overflows have now become common, causing nitrogen levels to increase, which reduces levels of oxygen in Puget Sound.

And several public beaches have now been shut down due to unhealthy levels of bacteria in the water.

As a larger city situated on Puget Sound, we have a duty and obligation to ensure health for our waterways and the marine life that inhabit them.

Thank you.

Thank you, Susan.

Next, we have Howard Gill.

And then online, we'll start with you, Ruth, when we go online.

Afternoon.

Gun violence is horrible and needs to be stopped.

But there is a difference between gun violence perpetrated at random and gun violence that is planned by Seattle police.

We've killed 19 people in the last 14 years who had only knives or no weapon in their hand.

Right now, over at the county courthouse, there's an inquest into the death of Derek Hayden.

Again, murdered because he was suicidal, in crisis, had a knife, Cops came upon him, and within 15 seconds of getting out of their car, unleashed four high-velocity rifle rounds at him.

This is not changing.

In 2017, this is gonna be the ninth anniversary of Charlene Lyle's murder.

And everyone in council at that time, including some people that are sitting here today, said we will demand accountability, transparency, we will make sure this doesn't happen again.

And yet it has happened 14 times.

When are you going to stop it?

When are you going to take action?

And again, at the end of this week, six King County jurors are going to decide that what the SPD did with Derek Hayden in 2021...

Thank you, Mr. Gale.

Thank you, Mr. Gale.

Next, so now we'll go online.

So we'll go online and we have Ruth, followed by John, and then Suzanne, and then Rose.

You will hear star six to unmute yourself, and then you'll go.

And colleagues, we have 11 people signed up online.

Hi.

Yeah, I just learned about this HOP target zoning proposal.

It sounds good, but I will guarantee you 0.0001% of the population knows about it.

I briefly want to say it doesn't make sense to reduce our runoff standards at all, especially when we're upzoning so much.

I've emailed you, or I will email you links to a two-minute video by Patrick Condon, author of Broken City, condensing what he learned about upzoning and affordability in Vancouver.

He'll speak in Seattle on June 15th.

Also a video by urban economist Michael Storper, who wrote, Inequality, Not Regulation Drives America's Housing Affordability Crisis.

Please hear what they have to say.

It's important that you hear a narrative different than the one you've been hearing.

Also, heads up, we've set our proposal for phasing growth centers and corridors, and another will be coming soon on zoning code changes to the LR, and we think there's a big problem with the NR zone that is part of it.

Thank you, Ruth.

Next we have John, followed by Suzanne, and then Rose.

Good afternoon.

Good afternoon.

My name is John Botten and I serve as the Executive Director of the University YMCA located on the north side of 50th in the U District.

I'm speaking today in strong support of CB121196 also known as HOP.

We believe this bill will create opportunities for mission-driven organizations like the Y to be a part of the solution by pairing affordable housing with much needed community-based services.

We thank the committee for their unanimous recommendation and we encouraged the full Council to support the passage of HOP.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, John.

Next we have Suzanne followed by Rose.

Press star six, unmute yourself.

Hello, Council Members.

I want to express my concern and empathy for the families here today who lost children to gun violence.

Unprecedented increases in impervious surfaces in the comp plan require parallel increases in storm water regulation.

I hope you've paid attention to the plight of our resident endangered orca.

They cannot care for themselves, so we must do so.

With nearly 100% lot coverage by homes, there will be no room for on-site mitigation planters and trees, leaving many areas vulnerable to flooding and increased combined sewer overflows, which are already happening.

Impervious hard surfaces generate water pollution, but trees' green space reduce and filter it.

What can you do?

Allow trees as stormwater managers on all property types.

Stop allowing mature trees to be cut down.

Or will you repeat the grievous errors being made by President Trump, who clear cuts for us and denies science and climate change, which you know is happening?

Polluted runoff is the top source of our salient sea water pollution.

Don't deregulate the stormwater code.

Each of you has to do something to prove you don't support the Trump policies.

Today you can take that step.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next we have Rose, followed by Anitra and then David Haynes.

Star six, unmute yourself.

Hello, my name is Rose.

Pride Month is usually a time for where we celebrate what it's like to be queer in America.

Unfortunately, this year we are learning what that really means.

Trans people are going missing all over Seattle.

We are having people kill themselves.

We are having people go missing, especially young trans people, and we are having people being constantly assaulted in our parks.

Over this last week, I've heard of multiple people being assaulted and Cal Anderson being harassed through either just not just insults, but people being physically attacked and also attacked by right wing provocateurs.

It is imperative that the city starts looking into our community and helping our community because we are in desperate need and right now there is nothing being done about it.

We need the emergency declaration to be able to help the individuals that are helping our people in our city already that the city has left behind.

And if we are unwilling and incapable of doing that, then this is just going to continue and get worse and worse and worse.

look out for us.

We're trying to look out for each other, but we can only do so much.

Thank you, Rose.

I don't see a Nitra Fuller present, so we'll go to David Haynes, followed by Hallie Willis, and then Nate Howard.

The city cares more about the alcohol sales tax than the over-serving bartenders.

And It seems like the police chief is not here to put people in jail like he promised he was not going to put people in jail.

And it's a telltale sign that we need to have an investigation of the Human Services Department for paying gun-toting criminal gangbangers to relocate if they don't retaliate and using homeless crisis money to prioritize BIPOC repeat offenders that are connected to the underworld to get a pass on scrutiny.

You know, maybe we need new leadership at the council president.

Council president, maybe you should step back and focus only on Capitol Hill and let council member Kettle step up and have some real public safety, proactive crime-fighting efforts that help the cops get it accurate as opposed to people complaining about them getting it wrong.

Because you took an extended vacation last week, you got nothing on the agenda, and you're having a party for a victim acting like you care.

It's two-faced.

Thank you, David.

Next we have Hallie Willis followed by Nate Howard.

Good afternoon, Councilmembers.

My name is Hallie Willis.

I'm the Policy Manager for the Seattle King County Coalition on Homelessness, speaking today in support of the resolution from Councilmember Rink and Foster to respond to the forensic evaluation of the KCRHA.

This community has made it clear that we need a county-wide regional approach to homelessness that operates with transparency and is a good steward of public funds.

The resolution before you today takes steps towards that goal and we urge your support.

As you go through this process over the coming months, we urge you to deeply engage direct service providers, coalitions, and people with lived experience of homelessness in your process to determine what happens next.

and ensure there is no disruption to the essential housing, shelter, and services that people rely on every day.

It's more important for us to get this right together than to do it fast alone.

Thank you very much.

Awesome.

Thank you, Hallie.

Next, we have Nate Howard, and then we'll go to our in-person speaker, Bennett.

Star six, unmute yourself, Nate.

Hi, my name is Nips.

I am calling from District 3. I am here just to speak in support of Councilmember Rivera's recital.

A couple of targeted asks here.

First would be that we add performance metrics, which include taking samples at outfalls citywide at intervals throughout the year.

That's outfalls of CSOs.

This is in regards to the swamp water code update.

I would also ask the SPU practice adaptive management that will lead to adjustments in the code when performance metrics show degradation in water quality at outfalls and then also note that degradation of water quality should be expected when the comp plan is allowing for near 100% lot coverage by development and we're expecting something like the hot plan to allow for a vast increase in development in the city.

Not opposed to development, of course, but we do need to be smart about our stormwater coverage and our impermeable.

Thank you.

Next we have Bennett.

Good afternoon, Council.

Just a last-minute thought, because I stopped by Aurora yesterday, where they had the new concrete chicanes.

New word that I use were the sort of staggered concrete traffic slowers you can drive around them.

And on 98th, they still have the big metal planter thing, the one that the neighbors actually dragged out to block the street off.

I'm not sure why they left that one there and got rid of the other two.

Everybody knows these homemade street blockers are probably not going to remain there forever, and they were a hazard while they were there.

Ambulances couldn't get down the street, but here's the thing.

When the neighbors dragged those things out there and put them there, the city listened, and what they did very quickly was replace them with the concrete blockers instead.

But you have to wonder, if the neighbors had just come to City Council public comment week after week, do you think the city would have responded as quickly?

You know, we have our rallies and marches and sometimes riots all the time.

You know, the people on Aurora, they rioted the way the people living on Aurora did, which is they dragged trash out of the street to block the road.

So we should try to make sure you're listening to people before they get to the stage.

Thank you, Bennett.

Thank you, Bennett.

Is there any more public commenters at this time?

And then if you were online, you're not present.

So that's Anitra Fuller, Jill McGrath, and then Nathan Wall.

We'll give you like two seconds.

All right, they are not present.

So the public comment period is now closed.

I wanna thank you all for coming, giving us your public comment, whether it's online, emails, in the box as well, or if you're seeing us pass through the hall or on social media, any type of public comment.

So thank you all so much.

We're now gonna jump into our meeting.

So if there's no objection, the introduction and referral calendar will be adopted.

Hearing no objection, the introduction and referral calendar will be adopted.

If there's no objection, the agenda will be adopted.

Hearing no objection, the agenda is adopted.

We're now gonna consider the proposed consent calendar.

Items on the consent calendar include the minutes of May 19th, 2026, Council Bill 121-216 and 121-217, payment of the bills, five bills from Parks and Rec Light Committee, four appointments from Housing Arts and Civil Rights Committee, and seven appointments from the library, Education and Neighborhoods Committee.

Council members, are there anything that you would like to remove from the consent calendar?

All right, awesome.

Hearing none, I'm gonna move to adopt the consent calendar.

Do I have a second?

Second.

Thank you.

It's been moved, seconded, and third to move the consent calendar.

Will the clerk please call the roll on the adoption of the consent calendar?

Thank you.

Council member Saka.

Council Member Saka?

Aye.

Thank you.

Council Member Strauss?

Aye.

Council Member Foster?

Yes.

Council Member Juarez?

Aye.

Council Member Juarez?

Aye.

Thank you.

Council Member Kettle?

Aye.

Council Member Lin?

Yes.

Council Member Rink?

Yes.

Council Member Rivera?

Aye.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

Consent calendar is adopted.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the minutes and legislation on the consent calendar on my behalf?

Awesome, we'll jump into committee reports.

Will the clerk please read item number one into the record?

Agenda item one, appointment to 3468, appointment of Dwight D. Dively as director of finance of the Office of City Finance for term to December 31st, 2029. The committee recommends that the appointment be confirmed.

Councilmember Strauss, as the committee chair, you're recognized to give us the report.

Thank you.

Thank you.

In the interest of time, because I know we have folks waiting for us downstairs, I'm gonna be brief just to say I wasn't lucky enough to be one of Professor Dwivley's students.

We'll go into that another time.

UW Admissions, looks like you messed up.

Just all that to say, Professor Director whatever your title may be, you cut through politics with your focus on the numbers, with your focus on best practices, with your focus on being able to improve the people around you.

It is a humble honor and a privilege for me today to get to recommend passage of your confirmation here at the Seattle City Council for your role as our city finance director.

For laypeople, it's our comptroller.

It's just a unique role.

I'm enjoying working with you so much already and I look forward to the many years that we get to work together.

Colleagues, I urge an aye vote.

Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Strauss and for your leadership and ushering through this your committee and getting us here with Director Dively.

Is there any comments on the floor regarding this appointment?

Awesome, seeing none and hearing none.

Council Member Strauss, do you have any closing words?

I have been looking forward to this day for quite some time.

Thank you.

Awesome, will the clerk please call the roll on the confirmation?

Council Member Sokka?

Aye.

Council Member Strauss?

Aye.

Council Member Foster?

Yes.

Council Member Juarez?

Aye.

Council Member Kettle?

Aye.

Council Member Lynn?

Yes.

Council Member Rink?

Yes.

Council Member Rivera?

Aye.

That's President Hollingsworth.

Yes.

Not in favor, none opposed.

Motion carries.

Appointment is confirmed.

Congratulations, Director Dively.

You are recognized to provide some brief remarks if you would like.

Thank you for the record, Dwight Diavle.

It is a privilege and an honour to return to this role.

I thank you for your confirmation and the confidence you've shown in me, and I look forward to working with all of you in the days to come.

Awesome.

Thank you, Director.

Congratulations.

We'll give you a clap.

Awesome.

Will the clerk please read item number two into the record?

Agenda item two, appointment 3469, appointment of Alberto Llerce as director of the Office of Economic Development.

The committee recommends that the appointment be confirmed.

Council member Rink is chair of the committee.

You're recognized to provide the committee report.

Thank you, Council President, colleagues.

It's a real pleasure to bring forward this appointment for your consideration today.

Pero Ibarce is a business executive, entrepreneur, and nonprofit leader dedicated to advancing economic equity and entrepreneurship, and has over 15 years of experience driving growth and impact across business, nonprofit, and public sectors.

from his days as a solo immigrant entrepreneur, word on the street is you could buy the most gorgeous jewelry from him, to also his time leading at Ventures, to his time leading at the Small Business Administration's regional office, Mr. Yarse has always put his experience and expertise in service of community.

His generosity and civic-mindedness have already delivered so much value to our community, and I'm excited to see where we go as a city with Mr. Yarse at the helm of the Office of Economic Development.

Since his appointment has come forward, I'll note for the record we've received a number of community letters and messages of support for Director Yarse's appointment.

Our Human Services Labor and Economic Development Committee voted unanimously to recommend the confirmation.

I encourage a yes vote today.

Thank you, Council President.

Awesome.

Thank you, Council Member Rink.

Colleagues, are there any comments about Director Yarse and this appointment?

I'm excited to be voting yes on this.

I have known Director Yarse, Acting Director, for the last 10, 12, long time, over a decade, and just really grateful for your service and looking forward to working with you as well.

So will the clerk please call the roll?

Council Member Saka?

Aye.

Council Member Strauss?

Aye.

Council Member Foster?

Yes.

Council Member Duarez?

Aye.

Council Member Kettle?

Aye.

Council Member Lin?

Yes.

Council Member Rink?

Yes.

Council Member Rivera?

Aye.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

Awesome.

The motion carries.

The appointment is confirmed.

Congratulations Director Yarse on recognizing you to be our new Director for Office of Economic Development.

So congratulations.

Would you like to provide a few words?

And Council Member Rank, I didn't ask if you had closing comments, but we confirmed it already.

I'm sorry.

My apologies.

Director.

Thank you, Madam President and honorable council.

I'm very, very grateful for the opportunity.

Looking forward to collaborate with all of you and support your goals.

And I also want to thank my team who has been tremendous support on my journey here and just very, very kind and humble team.

So there are some of them here representing.

So thank you so much and looking forward to it.

Thank you, Director Yarse.

Now we read item number three into the record.

Thank you.

Agenda item three, resolution 32202, a resolution regarding next steps after the forensic evaluation of the King County Regional Homelessness Authority, requesting that the Seattle Mayor take steps to immediately safeguard public funds, provide an initial assessment of whether it is feasible for KCRHA to adequately address all of the findings in the forensic evaluation recommend if KCRHA, should be dissolved, restructured, or continue as is, submit a set of next steps on how the city will approach the dissolution or restructure of KCRHA if determined to be necessary and submit to monthly reports.

The committee recommends the resolution be adopted.

Awesome.

Council Member Rink is chair of the committee.

You're recognized in order to provide the committee report.

Thank you, Council President.

Colleagues, I've noted some of these points a few times now publicly, but I will reiterate them today.

As a new member of KCRHA's governing board and chair of the committee that oversees human services, the findings of the forensic evaluation are serious and require immediate accountability.

and this proposed resolution is a swift but thoughtful measure that starts charting that pathway forward for the agency and addressing these findings.

Since learning the full details of the forensic evaluation, I have worked in collaboration with Councilmember Foster, service provider partners, KCRHA leadership and governing board members and our counterparts at King County Council to figure out where we go from here.

The proposed legislation sponsored by myself and Councilmember Foster summarizes the findings of the forensic evaluation as well as the timeline for deliverables expected from KCRHA over the coming months, including the corrective action plan to address all findings.

As a point of information, KCRHA will come to the Human Services Labor and Economic Development Committee meeting this upcoming Friday, June 6, to discuss the corrective action plan that was submitted on May 22nd.

The legislation before you also requests that the mayor's office make an initial assessment of that correction action plan and requires the mayor's office make an official recommendation on whether the city should dissolve, restructure, or continue as is with KCRHA.

And if the mayor recommends the restructure or dissolution, it requests the mayor then submit a plan for how that will occur and outlines a number of items for us to start deliberating on.

I will note that the King County Council's Committee of the Whole passed a similar measure last month, a resolution, and the resolution before us today puts the city in alignment with the work that's being done over at the county.

I want to thank Councilmembers Baron and Fein for their work in moving that forward.

But to close, as responsible elected leaders, we have a fundamental duty to get people housed and do right by taxpayers, and we do that by working on a plan together deliberately, collaboratively, and transparently.

As I have repeatedly stated, now is not a time for knee-jerk reactions.

Our homelessness response system is already in a delicate place and needs to be handled with caution.

Now is a time for balanced and thoughtful discussions and to not add additional harm to an already volatile situation.

So finally, I want to thank my team, Councilmember Foster's team, our Tireless Central staff, for all of their work on KCRHA issues over the past few months.

I will note this bill passed out of committee with a unanimous vote, so thank you to committee members, and I ask for your support today.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Rink.

Councilmember Foster, did you have anything I know as co-sponsor as the legislation?

Okay, awesome.

Thank you both, Councilmember Rink and Councilmember Foster, for your work on this as well.

and your continued work as well, not just on this, but your continued work.

Oh, I'm sorry, Council Member Wires.

Well, I'm going to say something.

So I'm looking at Councilmember Foster and Councilmember Rink.

I think I said this in our Council briefing, but I think that we should really raise our hands to Councilmember Foster and Councilmember Rink for taking on and looking at the King County Regis Homeless and the audit and all the things that have happened in between in the two watershed moments.

I can't remember the two dates now, May 23rd and whatever, when the Corrective Action Report came out.

like I said I had a chance to look at it and it's 150 pages and there's a lot of work to do but I think more importantly what we're seeing and I'm glad to see is as Council Member Rink said and I've also heard from Council Member Foster is let's just take a moment measure for measure and look at this and address this in a timely but deliberate matter about how we fix or not fix the King County Regional Homeless what is it homeless Authority.

Because when we instituted this in 2019, there was a different vision.

That vision changed.

There were, I think, four directors.

Were we on the fourth director?

Or third?

Fourth?

Third?

Fifth?

We're on our fifth.

Okay, I guess my point is this.

As far as local government goes in the City of Seattle, I think we contribute to 60% of their budget.

It's a lot of money.

So, but needless to say this, without piling on, because we need to address this, but more importantly, we need to look at what outstanding services are out there, the contracts that we signed, but more importantly, the people that were serving, which was the original intent in 2019. and if our heart and our North Star is still true, then that's what we'll do.

We're beyond pointing fingers.

It's time to, as these two, and I'm just gonna say it, I'll probably get in trouble for saying it, but these two young legislators are doing is rolling up their sleeves, reading the material, doing the work and saying, how do we fix this?

How do we move forward as an elected body?

And I know we don't always get praises, but I get to work with all these wonderful individuals and watch all the behind the scenes every single one of you and I know how hard you work and I know what you put up with a lot of the time and I will be gone in six months so you won't have anti rambling anymore but I just want the public to know how hard it is and how these things affect us and how we all try to work together to instill confidence in the residents and in the region in this elected body so thank you Madam Chair

Thank you, Councilmember Juarez.

Councilmember Foster?

Thank you so much, Council President.

I wasn't going to say anything, but now Councilmember Antti Juarez has compelled me with that comment, so thank you for that.

And thank you so much, Councilmember Rink, for your leadership.

it's been a real pleasure to get to work collaboratively with you on this and I will say you know coming into this role coming in as a new council member and as and both of us coming in as new board members we knew that the agency needed support but I think we we were not expecting these audit findings and I think that the work that we were able to do with the agency quickly and with the other electeds really reflects the commitment and the seriousness that we are bringing to this moment.

And it's absolutely right, and we've said this a lot in committee and a lot at the KCRHA board, this agency is incredibly important, not just because it holds our public dollars here locally, but because of the role that it plays with our point-in-time count, with managing our HMIS, which is our homelessness information system, with managing federal dollars.

And so it really can't be understated how important it is to ensure that we have the right approach, not just saying the right thing or what sounds like the right thing first.

And so I'm really proud of the measured approach that we are taking.

And there's still a lot of work to do.

This is definitely not a mission accomplished moment.

This is a moment where we are laying out the next steps and trying to create and creating an orderly process for managing those next steps.

So thank you so much for your partnership on this and colleagues, I ask for your support.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Foster.

Councilmember Rank, any closing remarks?

Just deep appreciation for my colleagues for their remarks.

It really means a lot.

Thank you.

Oh, oh, I'm sorry.

I see Councilmember Rivera.

I did not see your hand.

My apologies.

Councilmember Rivera.

Thank you, Council President.

I want to say that It's very transparently, everybody knows that I feel very strongly about what's happening at KCRHA.

I've always said the city and the county partnered together and went into it with the best intentions.

It did not work out the way we had anticipated.

We do need to work collaboratively with the mayor and with the county to take a regional approach, but it is time to dissolve the agency and then pivot to next steps on how we're going to continue to do the work.

And I will say that the providers have always been doing the work, but the agency itself, starting with problems from providers not getting paid all the way through what the report unveiled, it is just not working out.

And I think that for us to continue down the path of doing more of the same is not gonna work.

So I think we're all in agreement in terms of collaboration and transparency, but I do think it's time for us to pivot.

Now, I wanna be really clear that my call for dissolution was never an overnight thing.

It can't be an overnight thing.

It's going to take time to undo what was done.

But I do think we need to take those steps.

And I think it is very important because there is the work urgently needs to get done.

And so we need to get to the next step.

But what are we going to do to do the work with the agency not in place?

and I have to say the work is being done.

The city took back the outreach and the prevention dollars.

Some of the work has already transferred back to the city.

So I think that I will be voting for the resolution today because it is not contrary to the path forward in terms of what are the next steps for KCRHA, but I do think it will ultimately end up with a dissolution of the agency and then what and then an approach for next steps because we still need to do the work.

We are doing the work and we will continue to do the work and the public needs to be confident that the work is gonna happen.

That is what we all want for the work to happen.

We may disagree on how we approach KCRHA but we do not disagree on the work getting done and that is really important and we do need to be united in that.

So I do have, as you all know, an ordinance that is in Legistar that would dissolve the agency asking for the mayor then to start the process and then detail next steps on what will happen.

I don't think it's dissimilar to the resolution other than calling for the solution sooner rather than later.

But like I always say, we can agree to disagree, but I really feel strongly that the time has come to pivot to a different strategy and move away from the King County Regional Housing Authority because we can't keep throwing good money after bad.

Thank you, Council President.

You're all good.

Thank you, Councilmember Rivera.

Are there any final comments before we call the roll for the bill?

Alright, awesome.

Will the clerk please call the roll on the adoption of the resolution?

Council Member Salka?

Aye.

Council Member Strauss?

Aye.

Council Member Foster?

Yes.

Council Member Juarez?

Aye.

Council Member Kettle?

Aye.

Council Member Lin?

Yes.

Council Member Rink?

Yes.

Council Member Rivera?

Aye.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Yes.

None in favor, none opposed.

Resolution is adopted.

Chair will sign up.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation on my behalf?

Will the clerk please read item number four into the record?

Agenda item four, Council Bill 121-190.

An ordinance relating to the 2026 Stormwater Code Update, updating stormwater control requirements for development, roadways, utilities, and maintenance activities.

strengthening stormwater treatment and infiltration standards, clarifying vesting and reviewing thresholds, ensuring city's compliance with the requirements of the city's 2024 through 2029 phase one municipal stormwater permit issued by the State Department of Ecology.

The committee recommends the bill passes amended.

Awesome, thank you.

As chair of the committee, I'm gonna provide the report.

I'm grateful to all the people who came in person or virtual public commenters or sent us emails regarding this legislation and why it's so important.

We were brief and discussed these updates to the 2026 Stormwater Code twice in the Governance and Utilities Committee.

And I know that we are on a state timeline where we must amend the city stormwater code to maintain compliance with the state and federal water quality permits and align with the recent land use code updates.

We brought forth two changes are revised.

So the definition closely related projects and flow control requirements for small sites, or excuse me, Two major changes, I didn't put these changes, but two major changes are definition of closely related projects and flow control requirements for small sites from 2000 to 5000 square feet of new plus replaced hard surfaces.

So I've offered two amendments in coordination, what we heard back from people and community.

One amendment proposes technical changes to the legislation, including punctuation and formatting, so that's a technical.

And Amendment 2 adds three recitals to the bill regarding exploring the role of trees and considering the best available science and future stormwater code updates, both passed at a committee on May 14th to add to the stormwater code.

And I do believe there is an amendment today brought forth by Council Member Rivera, so I'm gonna, at this time, ask you to see if you wanna move your amendment and then we can discuss it.

Thank you, Council President.

I move to amend Council Bill 121190 as presented on Amendment A.

Second.

It's been moved and second to amend the bill as presented on Amendment A. Councilmember Rivera, you are recognized in order to address it.

Thank you, Council President.

Colleagues, this is a friendly amendment that central staff worked with SBU on and it just adds one more recital that acknowledges the work that SBU does.

and tracking their performance related to its various activities, including stormwater efforts.

And then it highlights SPU's commitment to explore further performance metrics related to its stormwater policies to support water quality and address the negative impacts of stormwater runoff.

In the course of the committee meeting, we had a conversation with General Manager Lee and his team about the work that they do in tracking how well they're doing on their stormwater policies and as part of the conversation we had a conversation about what additional measures they might put into place and I know they're committed to doing it so we just put the recital in to really acknowledge and so the public can see that SPU exists very seriously and they work really hard to establish performance metrics to really show how the city is doing in terms of addressing the negative effects of stormwater runoff.

So I'm happy to answer any questions, but hope to have your support just to put this as a recital.

So like I said, folks know that the department is doing this work, acknowledging that, and that they're going to continue to find additional ways to continue to improve upon this.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you, Councilman Rivera.

Thank you for your work on this.

Colleagues, I consider this a friendly amendment, so I will be supporting this today.

And thank you for just your due, the Rivera diligence, the, not due diligence, but the Rivera diligence.

So this is a friendly amendment for sure.

Colleagues, are there any other comments regarding the bill, or the bill as, or the amendment, Amendment A?

Will the clerk please call the roll on the adoption of Amendment A?

Council Member Salka?

Aye.

Council Member Strauss?

Aye.

Council Member Foster?

Yes.

Council Member Juarez?

Aye.

Council Member Kettle?

Aye.

Council Member Lynn?

Yes.

Council Member Rink?

Yes.

Council Member Rivera?

Aye.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

Motion carrying Amendment A is adopted.

Are there any further comments on the bill as amended, colleagues?

Will the clerk please call the roll to the bill as amended?

Council Member Saka?

Aye.

Council Member Strauss?

Aye.

Council Member Foster?

Yes.

Council Member Juarez?

Aye.

Council Member Kettle?

Aye.

Council Member Lin?

Yes.

Council Member Rink?

Yes.

Council Member Rivera?

Aye.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Yes.

9 in favor, none opposed.

Bill passes.

Chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation on my behalf?

Will the clerk please read item number 5 into the record?

agenda item five, Council Bill 121, 196, an ordinance relating to land use and zoning, rezoning certain land in the University District, the Fremont neighborhood, the Madison-Miller neighborhood, and Rainier Beach neighborhood, and the downtown neighborhood, rezoning land and amending development standards to increase housing supply, support multi-purpose redevelopment on certain sites with community-based uses, remove code barriers to passive house, modular and mass timber construction, and to conversion from commercial space to housing in more zones and incentives, community servings used along with the construction of more housing in certain areas.

Community recommends that we'll pass with Councilmembers Lynn, Strauss, Foster and Rink in favor, none opposed, with an abstention from Council President Hollingsworth.

Awesome, thank you.

Councilmember Lynn, you are recognized.

Thank you, Council President, and I think the clerk's reading of the title says it all about the purpose of this bill.

Just really want to say thank you to OPCD for their hard work on this, to the Mayor's Office for their support, to all the members of the public here who have been showing up time and time again to speak in favor of this.

You know, I think what's exciting for this is these are very specific opportunities for hopefully to make it more feasible to develop housing throughout the city in these different areas, also to reduce these barriers for things like mass timber, for passive house and modular.

So I think this is an exciting opportunity for us.

The committee, we had four in favor and one abstention, and I'd urge you to support.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Lynn.

Are there any other comments regarding the bill in front of us?

Councilmember Strauss.

Thank you, Council President.

Colleagues, you may know that I have a history with rezoning industrial lands.

There are industrial land changes that are in this bill.

It is of my opinion that we cannot adjust We cannot reduce the amount of industrial lands that we have in our city without a process that allows all voices to be heard and for consensus to be built.

In 2023, I brought forward the Maritime and Industrial Lands package that was a nearly 10-year effort of stakeholders, of so many different people.

I'm not going to go into it because we're running short on time.

All that to say we had a compromise throughout our city that would work for everyone, and the items that were not yet agreed upon by all parties were set to the side.

There were four locations, Georgetown, Fremont, Ballard, and Soto.

Each of these four locations had a clear process to continue the conversation.

Each of them had a clear process.

What you see in this bill is the location in Fremont that has continued along this process.

And what you see today is nobody speaking in favor, well, nobody speaking against.

We had many people speaking in favor.

and this is the product of important hard work of collaboration to reach consensus.

That doesn't mean that there's not disagreement still.

I'm always concerned when we're losing industrial lands out of the industrial land zoning category because one third of our sales and use tax comes from industrial and manufacturing sectors that it always stays steady.

When the tech booms, nobody notices.

When that tech drops, Everyone is relying on the industrial and manufacturing sector.

So I don't know the latest on Georgetown.

I know the latest on Fremont here, and I support this.

which is again a rare opportunity of me supporting removal of industrial lands for other uses because it took a process that increased collaboration and consensus.

I'm also aware of the location in Ballard that I'll be checking in to see where it is at and if we need to move it forward if there is consensus.

I think you all know where we are at with Soto Housing.

I will take this opportunity to say that there was a clear path to create collaboration and consensus despite immense disagreement and that path was not chosen, which is why we have the outcome in which we have.

All of that to say, I support the bill before us.

I'm gonna see what's going on with Georgetown and with Ballard and if those changes need to be moved forward as well.

Thank you, colleagues.

I urge a yes vote.

Thank you, Council Member Strauss.

Are there any further comments?

I'll explain my abstention.

I said it in committee.

I will be supporting this today, but I abstained in committee on the simple fact that there had needed to be done better outreach, particularly some places that are in the Central District which are historically redlined areas and also having community feedback and just explaining what this is.

So that's why I abstained so we could check and we were able to connect but this is my friendly reminder for our departments how important outreach is for people to understand it in a very palatable form so they know what to expect in their communities and outreach is not putting something on social media.

It is physically going to people and talking to them and having conversations.

So you got to find folks in these communities because oftentimes they don't have access to City Hall.

Sometimes this is their first time here at City Hall when they do come.

So that was my abstention for that, just to check, just to make sure everyone knew.

So thank you.

Council Member Rivera.

Thank you, Council President.

And to your point, I did follow up in terms of that outreach.

I wholeheartedly agree with your comments.

Thank you.

And for the Fremont and the university district locations, there was outreach done and for the university district, definitely mailers went out.

And so we heard support for both of these.

I did not hear any concerns.

and so really appreciate and want to also underscore along with you to the departments the importance of doing that robust outreach, the mailers to each of those residents nearby was really, really critical and we should continue to do things of that nature and as robust outreach as we can do is warranted not just a simple posting.

because we want folks to really know what is happening and give them the opportunity to weigh in on the front end.

When we do that, we get better outcomes.

So thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you, Council Member Rivera.

But I do want to take this time to thank Council Member Lynn because Council Member Lynn did his own outreach and really appreciated that work that you did to bring this so we could all be collaborative in this.

So thank you, Council Member Lynn for that.

Really appreciate that.

Do you have any closing remarks before we call the vote?

Just want to say thank you to the colleagues.

Yeah, this did touch properties in a number of different districts and I absolutely agree.

We can always do better.

And in this case, really appreciate you and Council Member Rivera double checking that work and doing some of that engagement.

So thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you, Council Member Lynn.

All right.

Will the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill?

Council Member Saka.

Council Member Strauss?

Aye.

Council Member Foster?

Yes.

Council Member Weires?

Aye.

Council Member Kettle?

Aye.

Council Member Lynn?

Yes.

Council Member Rink?

Yes.

Council Member Rivera?

Aye.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Yes.

None in favor, none opposed.

Bill passes.

Chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation on my behalf?

We got claps for housing and hops.

That's amazing.

That was probably the loudest clap.

Will the clerk please call the roll, or not call the roll, excuse me.

Will the read item number six into the agenda?

This is our last item.

At Judd AM6, Council Bill 121-1204, relating to the City Light Department authorizing the General Manager and Chief Executive Officer to grant an easement over a portion of fee-owned property to Puget Sound Energy and accepting payment of the fair market value for the assessment.

Excuse me, easement.

The committee recommends the bill pass.

Council Member Juarez is chair of the committee.

You are recognized to provide the report.

Thank you.

I will be very brief.

I was going to disagree with Council Member Strauss over here, so now that he knows what he's going to do.

Park slide in committee report, and I'll be very brief.

It's a transfer of jurisdiction.

It's a piece of legislation.

This ordinance allows City Light to grant an easement over a portion of owned property in Bellevue.

to Puget Sound Energy at fair market value, which is $6,800, in order to support T-Mobile equipment.

It will have no impact on Seattle City Light operations.

Let me just say it in basic English, it's basically 900 square feet, so PSE can provide an underground gas line to the T-Mobile generator.

They are paying for the rights and property associated with an easement area, 900 square feet underground, as the rights will be assigned to PSC to provide as a provider of the underground gas line.

So there you have it.

Oh wow, really?

Thank you, Council Member.

Warris, are there any, Councilmember Strauss?

Colleagues, thank you and my apologies for using our collective time in this way.

I still have additional questions about whether or not backup generation is required for the legally, we are required to allow T-Mobile to put their cell tower on our transmission line.

I still have questions about whether we are required to allow them to put explosive fuels near our transmission lines.

I'm just going to vote no today, but transmission lines are just so crucial and important, as well as the cell network, but I don't want to put any unnecessary risk to our transmission lines, but I might be just being weird.

Wow.

Okay.

I see how it is.

Thank you, colleagues.

Apologies for using your collective time this way.

No worries.

Thank you, Council Member Strauss.

Are there any comments regarding the bill before us before we call to a vote?

Council Member Waters, do you have any closing comments?

Yes.

Will everyone please vote yes?

Awesome.

Will the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill?

Council Member Sokka?

Aye.

Council Member Strauss?

No.

Council Member Foster?

Yes.

Council Member Juarez?

Yes.

Council Member Kettle?

Aye.

Council Member Lynn?

Yes.

Council Member Rink?

Yes.

Council Member Rivera?

Aye.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Yes.

Eight in favor, one opposed.

The bill passes, the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation on my behalf?

Colleagues, there's no items removed from consent calendar.

There's not a resolution.

We do have further business.

Council member Foster, you are recognized.

Thank you so much, Council President.

I really appreciate that.

I just want to make a couple of comments.

You know, today is the second day of Pride Month, and yesterday we had the opportunity to be downstairs in Bertha Night Landis celebrating Pride Month, and I got the opportunity to do the Pride Month proclamation, and that baton, I think, was passed to me by Council President Hollingsworth.

and I remember sitting here thinking about it, I remember last year watching you bring forth a proclamation and honor black queer leaders, black trans leaders and people who often don't get recognized and don't get recognized in particular by this body.

And I want to thank you for bringing Amar's family today.

And I want to thank you for the resolution and the dedication to his life and his memory.

And I want to thank you for the work that you do to make this body accessible for people who are often not seen by this body.

I see that work and I appreciate it.

And I also want to say, every time I sit here as a black queer woman and I listen to public commenters attack a black queer council member for her identity, I'm so disappointed in us.

I'm so disappointed in us.

We can have differences of opinion.

We can have policy disagreements.

We should.

we should not attack members for who they are, especially, especially when we don't appreciate them for what they do for black members of this city.

I do not want to see it in this chamber anymore.

I'm happy to be on record about that.

It is shameful.

I'm also gonna say this, every time I have thought about the work I need to do, particularly when it comes to who I should call in the Central District, who I need to reach out to, you have been there and I appreciate that and I appreciate you.

We have differences of opinion and I love it because you have never shown me an ounce of disrespect.

You have always respected my voice when it is dissenting, you have made the most gracious efforts to reach out to other members of this body in your role as Council President.

You have not acted unilaterally despite the fact that people are claiming that you have done.

You have not.

And I just want to put that on the record and say I appreciate you and say I'm tired of seeing that level of disrespect to our Council President.

Thank you.

Amen.

Thank you, Councilmember Foster.

Councilmember Juarez.

Thank you.

I'm really glad, Council Member Foster, thank you for sharing that.

I know that that was a difficult or emotional moment for what we have to put up with.

I'm going to quickly say this, and I meant to say at the beginning, I apologize, Council President.

I want it, and I think I shared it with in the clips, but today is the anniversary of 102 years ago in 1924 that my people, Native Americans, got the right to vote.

1924. So therefore, your land acknowledgments are stupid.

And that's why I want to say, when people come here, I'm going to say what Katsura Foster said.

I am tired of people attacking us on our race and our gender and whatever else, personal attacks.

But the other issue is using my own history as a Native American, as a Latina, against me. by non-people of color, and I know you know I don't like that word BIPOC, but it's just so disrespectful, it's just so crude, and quite frankly, it's racist and sexist, and I'm tired of it.

and we all get tired of it, but I love it when people come here, as Council Member Foster said, and you have said it, every one of you have said it, and tell us what we're doing wrong, where you're not happy, where we voted, but when you just personally attack us just for sitting here, I mean, we endure a lot, but that doesn't bother me.

It's the personal attacks for us just being either a black queer woman or a Native American mom, grandma, boomer, whatever.

It gets ridiculous to the point where we're not even...

I'm almost shutting down because...

What do you want me to do?

I can't change it.

I mean, this is who we are.

So just without making it any more emotional, it has been an honor to serve this body.

It's been an honor to serve this city.

It's been an honor to represent District 5. and it's also been an honor to work with every one of you, but of course, working with Council President, and we don't always agree, and we have voted differently, but we always maintain respect and dignity and an open conversation, even now with Council Member Strauss and I.

I was giving them a hard time for voting no, but we're good.

there's nothing there, right?

I mean, well, I don't mean you, but you know what I mean.

So with that being said, I wanna thank you Council Member Foster for sharing those words.

So thank you and happy 102nd anniversary to my people to getting to vote.

Thank you, Council Member Foster.

Thank you, Council Member Juarez.

Those great, much needed words.

Council Member Rivera.

Thank you, Council President.

I want to join the voices of my colleagues in so appreciating you and calling for folks to come to chambers and, yes, give public comment, but the personal attacks are unwarranted and many are racist and demoralizing and there shouldn't be a place for that.

in our city in general.

And so I thank my colleagues for speaking up against that.

And I also want to say, Council President, that I very much, I'm so proud to have you be our Council President.

And I am very proud to serve with everyone on this body.

And we don't always agree, but we're showing the public that we respect each other when we are speaking.

in chambers about each other or the work that we're doing, we're always respectful, even when we disagree.

And so I think what we're doing is trying to lead by example, and it is very demoralizing when folks show up and do the personal attacks at anyone on this body.

And then I wanted to say, colleagues, because it is gun violence awareness, a month.

As you all know, I've been working for a very long time on this symposium.

It took many different forms throughout the conversations.

I want to thank Council President for your partnership and the mayor's office.

I've spoken with many of you.

Councilmember Kettle, you as chair.

And the thing is, You all know that I ran for office because of gun violence across our city, particularly as regards our children.

Children like Amar Murphy Payne and other kids that we've lost to gun violence in this city.

And, you know, as a mom of two girls who were in lockdown at Ingram because their child got shot in their school, We gotta do better.

We just do.

And so this symposium is really just an attempt to look at an additional approach.

It's about focused deterrence.

It is additive.

We do a lot of things in the city in the prevention and intervention realm.

We do a lot of great work.

we still have a lot of gun violence happening in our city and particularly involving our youth.

But it's not exclusive to our youth.

And I just think that we really need to look at, we owe it to our kids and our constituents across the city and our city to look at all the ways that we can try to address gun violence.

And so this convening really, it's less of a symposium, more of a convening to hear from some other cities that have had some success with this focus deterrence approach is important.

And it's more for our law enforcement agencies who are doing this work than us really, because they're the ones that are having to manage for the public safety pieces and then what to do when this happens.

And that's what this is about.

So I want to thank you in advance for, I know we have, we all want to participate in the conversation.

I, you know, this is one of, I think, many conversations we'll have in general, but I do want to say today especially that this is something that I know we all very much care about and we're all grappling with how to best address and so I hope that we can all continue to work together with the mayor and the city attorney and the prosecutor and executive and all of the entities that have a hand in SPD and everyone that has a hand in trying to keep our city safe so we can continue to look at ways that we can address this really important issue because I don't want to lose another important life like Amar Murphy Payne.

And when we lose a kid, it is obviously my heart goes out to the Murphy Payne family who was in chambers today and we all suffer the loss of every single child that we lose in our city.

And as a mom, I take that really personally and to heart.

So anyway, I just wanted to acknowledge what is going to be happening on Monday.

And I just hope that we're able to find some ways that we can bring some resolve to some of these families because not getting justice and I will say I know Councilmember Saka there's a child in your district that got killed and again no one has been arrested for that crime.

I can't even imagine what these families are going through when they don't know, they don't have outcomes on who committed these crimes and there's no there is no closure.

So anyway, thank you for listening colleagues and just wanted to acknowledge that and given also the proclamation was really to bring awareness this month to this really important issue in our city.

Thank you.

Thank you, council member Rivera.

I'm looking forward to joining you.

And I know colleagues are at the symposium that you've brought together with important governmental parts next week.

So looking forward to that.

Thank you colleagues for your words.

I support each and every one of you and it's an honor to serve side by side with you all as well.

And I say that, and I really, really mean that.

I know we don't always disagree, but.

It's okay, we don't have to.

I don't expect to agree with y'all, because, you know, especially you, Council Member Kettle.

I'm just fine.

Okay, anyways, last but not least, okay, because we have one more minute, and I don't want us to go above two hours.

I want to give a special shout out.

The finals start tomorrow, and the Spurs are playing the Knicks.

We have a special connection.

The head coach of the Spurs is Mitch Johnson.

Mitch is from Seattle.

He went to O'Day High School.

He loves Seattle through and through, and he's a great dude and so that's why we should all be supporting the Spurs and they also knocked out Oklahoma City Thunder, okay?

That is the true reason why.

A descendant from, his dad played on the 1979 basketball team for the world champion and he is a descendant of a world championship team that knocked out the Oklahoma City Thunders.

If that's not pure joy, I don't know what it is, okay?

So thank you all, Gun Violence Awareness Month.

we're gonna do the best we can for our babies.

Thank you all.

The next meeting, as this comes to a close, will be June the 9th at 2 p.m.

Hearing no further business, colleagues, we're adjourned.

Thank you.