Council Briefing 9/14/26

Awesome.

Good afternoon.

Today is September 14th, 2026. The council briefing meeting will come to order.

The time is 2.03 p.m.

Will the clerk please call the roll?

Council member Lynn?

Here.

Council member Rink?

Council member Rivera?

Council member Saka?

Here.

Councilmember Strauss?

Here.

Councilmember Foster?

Here.

Councilmember Juarez?

Here.

Councilmember Kettle?

Here.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Here.

Councilmember Rivera and Councilmember Rink are excused until they get here.

Colleagues, welcome back.

I know we had a great recess, and so this is our first council briefing back from recess.

We're really excited.

We have a ton on the agenda, so I'll keep my comments brief and we'll keep stuff moving.

If there's no objection, the minutes of August the 10th, 2026 will be adopted.

Hearing no objection, the minutes are adopted.

Today we have on the agenda four proclamations.

We have two presentations and one executive session after this council briefing.

There are also 25 items on the consent calendar and there are 50 items on the introduction and referral calendar.

A lot of those are appointments, colleagues that are getting voted on.

appointments.

The future council briefing meetings from September 21st through November 23rd will be canceled for us to allow council to prepare and deliberate on budget information for 2027 and 2028. okay so the first thing that we are we have our appointments that is our first presentation super excited about that so i know we have matt from the mayor's office and Amani from Y of greater seattle welcome and you'll just come sit here at the table Sorry, I didn't invite you all up sooner.

My apologies, but looking forward to...

Thank you, Matt.

Thank you, Imani.

Looking forward to the presentation today.

And I know we have some of those students here that are looking forward to their appointments and hearing from them as well.

Hello.

Hi, Matt.

You can jump right in.

Okay, great.

Good afternoon.

Council President Hollingsworth, council members.

Thank you for your time today.

It's a privilege to be here alongside my colleague Amani Bender.

My name is Matt McIntosh.

I work in the office of Mayor Katie B. Wilson.

First, thank you for all the work that each of you do to support our boards and commissions and to support our city's young adults in so many different ways.

I also want to thank the board and commission liaisons who do similar critical work to keep our boards and commissions running smoothly, including supporting the Get Engaged program.

And I especially want to thank Tal Madsen for her work in this regard.

The applicants that we will hear from today are a great reminder of just how hardworking, wise, and skilled our young leaders are.

They care deeply about public life in Seattle, and they represent the diversity of our city, representing many different neighborhoods, identities, and backgrounds, bringing unique skill sets and experiences to strengthen our city government.

As you know, Seattle's young people are not just representative of our city's future, they are leading our present too.

Mayor Wilson and her office have engaged young people in numerous ways, from her youth committee on her transition team to numerous visits to schools and community centers all over our city to discuss the key issues facing young people.

Mayor Wilson works with youth and young adults to craft an affordable city where they feel safe, have opportunities to live lives of dignity and purpose, and can plan to grow into adulthood to lead our city forward.

The mayor is grateful for council's leadership on these same issues and more.

And so on behalf of the mayor, I'm so pleased to be here to support the work of Imani and the Y to ensure that our city's boards and commissions include the perspectives and experiences of young adults from across our city.

Again, thank you, Council President Hollingsworth and council members for your time and consideration of this year's Get Engaged applicants.

And thank you to each of the applicants here today for your commitment to our city.

I will now pass it to Imani for further information about Get Engaged and this year's exciting group of applicants.

Awesome.

Thank you, Matt.

And for the record, Councilmember Rivera is here.

Go ahead, Imani.

Thank you, Matt.

Good afternoon, Councilmembers.

My name is Imani Bender, and I'm here representing the Y Social Impact Center, which is our social services branch with the Y of Greater Seattle.

Some of you might remember me from past years in this program.

So I'm very excited to be here today to tell you a bit about the Get Engaged program and the inspiring group of young people that are sitting before you today.

So Get Engaged program places young adults age 18 through 29 on the city of Seattle's boards and commissions to serve a year long term.

The program was established in 2001 and so it really represents this long lasting partnership between the Y and the city of Seattle and demonstrates the city's commitment to investing in our next generation of leaders and also uplifting young voices in local government.

The impact of this program over the years has been very clear.

Our Get Engaged Commissioners are contributing to board work plans, they are advocating for legislation, they're meeting with elected officials, and perhaps most importantly, they're really uplifting the needs of their neighbors and their communities in really critical moments and conversations.

They always ask those really hard questions.

Even in our Get Engaged cohort meetings, they stump me sometimes.

They have the courage to imagine our city in new ways, in ways that could be better.

We find that the young adults in this program tend to make an impact on city boards and commissions that last far past their Get Engaged term as well.

So we've got former Get Engaged commissioners who are now co-chairs on the Community Technology Advisory Board, our LGBTQ commission, the renters commission, and the Pedestrian Advisory Board.

And of course there are many other GetEngaged alumni who have continued their service on other board seats as well.

So for many of the young people sitting before you, today is just the beginning of a really long journey in civic service.

I want to take a moment to speak about our recruitment process as well.

So this year we started recruitment in spring and interviewed over 50 applicants across 21 boards and commissions.

Recruitment and outreach was extremely successful.

We spread the word on social media, we connected with local colleges, universities, young professionals groups, and handed out a ton of flyers all over the city in places that are frequented by our young people.

We also really center equity and diversity in the Get Engaged recruitment process.

Our goal each year is to put together a cohort of young commissioners that is representative of the many communities that make up this city.

And as a social services agency, the Social Impact Center has a large network of community partners that we are sure to reach out to in these moments with this opportunity.

We share the opportunity with youth-facing organizations like Urban League, Mockingbird Society, Youth Care, and Lambert House, just to name a few, and we really try to reach young adults who are coming from communities that have not historically had access to these types of civic decision-making spaces.

We really aim to reach young people who represent a wide variety of racial and cultural identities, neighborhoods, socioeconomic backgrounds, lived experiences, to really put together a well-rounded and representative cohort.

And we certainly don't do that work alone.

So I want to make sure I recognize and thank the board and commission liaisons who did a significant amount of outreach within their own networks.

And they participate in every single interview with me every single year.

I could not do it without them.

is also a huge effort, and we couldn't do it without the support of so many great city staff.

I also want to mention Tao Madsen with the City Clerk's Office, who's offered me so much guidance with this recruitment process over the years.

I'd be lost without Tao, truly.

I wouldn't know when anything was due, any of the deadlines.

So with that, I will get started presenting today's Get Engaged nominations.

You will be introduced to 22 hopeful appointees.

I had the opportunity to meet this group of young adults during the interview process, and they are truly extraordinary.

I'm just consistently inspired and impressed with these young adults, and I have the privilege to work alongside them, but really they teach me so much.

Awesome.

And before we go into the presentations, is it possible, because we don't have a visual stuff, but everyone was sent a memo, and I would actually like that.

Would you all like that memo up on the screen, or would you like a link to it so you have it?

Colleagues, there's 22 appointments.

I don't know.

How many folks do we have here today?

Yeah, so we've got 14 of the 22 here today.

Awesome.

Okay.

And I have a list and everything.

Would you all like that?

Okay.

Well, I'm going to have my team send that to me so you all have it in front of you so we know who you're talking about as well and with the memo from Tao.

Okay, go right ahead.

Thank you, Moni.

Yeah, so, you know, I guess we'll go ahead and start with our first nominee.

So I'll call Dale Baker up to the podium for the Community Technology Advisory Board.

That microphone, yeah, that should be on.

We cannot.

You need to pull it to you and then it should be on.

There you go.

Hello.

Yep.

Perfect.

Okay.

Good afternoon, counsel.

My name is Dale Baker, Jr.

He, him pronouns.

Thank you.

I am a UW graduate where I received my Master's in Human-Centered Design and Engineering and my BA in Communication.

I've been a Seattle resident my whole life as I was born and raised here and it is such an honor to have the opportunity to serve on CTAB.

By trade, I am a designer.

The ethos of my work is to bridge the gap between research and design to support and empower systemically marginalized communities through accessible culturally grounded solutions.

My practices are rooted in belief that the people most impacted by a system should be at the center of its redesign.

Some of the topics that I'm interested in are accessibility to technology, surveillance, and AI.

By the end of my term, the projects and poses submitted by me will be sure to be representative of the community that I am serving.

Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you, Dale.

All right.

Up next is Cariel Galbraith with the Seattle Arts Commission.

Hi, my name is Cariel Galbraith.

I'm an enrolled member of the Central Council of Tlingit and Hyda Indian Tribes of Alaska.

I was born and raised in Sitka, Alaska, but I've called Seattle home for over five years.

I graduated from the UW Seattle campus with a bachelor's in English and American Indian Studies, and I'm honored to have been selected to serve on the Seattle Arts Commission.

I'm a writer and fiber artist who has had the pleasure of working and teaching at arts organizations, institutions, and nonprofits across the greater Seattle area.

I have found treasured community in Seattle's art scene and I've seen firsthand the positive impact engaging with art has on Seattle residents and visitors.

I look forward to serving on the Arts Commission and uplifting the needs of the diverse and vibrant arts community in Seattle.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And for the record, Councilmember Rinke is here.

Okay, up next we have Rashaun Sampson for the Seattle Disability Commission.

Good afternoon, Councilmembers.

My name is Rashaun Sampson, and I'm grateful to be here today accepting my nomination to serve on the Disability Commission.

This nomination is a full circle moment for me.

Being born and raised in the south end of Seattle as a proud graduate of Cleveland High School and Seattle University, I've been thinking a lot about time, people, and connection, and the roles each of us get to play as we move through life.

A little time ago, while at Cleveland, I shared a joint peace period with our special education class, and that's where I met my friend Sean.

At the time, I didn't know that that moment would still matter to me years later.

I just knew Sean and I connected.

We built a friendship that may have looked foreign to some of our peers, but to us, it was just a friendship.

We laughed, we communicated in our own ways, and we created a space where both of us simply could be ourselves.

My heart understood something before I had the words for it.

I didn't know all the language around accessibility, disability, or inclusion.

I just knew connection.

And now time has given me language.

People have given me perspective, connection has given me understanding, and this nomination has given me another role to play.

That's what I believe progress asks of all of us.

Not to have every answer, not to believe we can change everything ourselves, but to recognize the role we have and the time we have it, and to be attentive about what we do with it.

For me, serving on this commission is one of those roles.

I imagine that Seattle built around shared possibility, where accessibility and inclusion are considered from the beginning, and where people trust that their needs, experiences, and perspectives matter.

And that work belongs to all of us.

Whatever your role may be, we can listen, we can connect, we can consider one another, and we can intentionally move something forward.

Because time will continue, people will change, and our roles may shift, but we create that connection that can live beyond us.

The possibility is ours to create, and thank you.

and for the record we have, just one second, we have it up online so people's names so everyone can see and then you also have the memo in your inbox, colleagues.

All right, thank you.

Okay, next Amy Nichols with the Seattle Human Rights Commission.

Hello, honorable people.

My name is Amy Nichols, and I'm a member of the Barrett family of the Samish Indian Nation.

My mother is Lisa.

Her mother is Carrie.

Her mother was Margaret.

Her mother was Delia.

Her mother was Fanny, also known as Kumsalitsa.

The last six generations of my family have lived in the greater Seattle area and in the area since time immemorial.

The fabric of my life and my community has been woven into this place, to the waters, to the land, to the Salish Sea.

I'm very grateful to be standing before you today as I am a hopeful appointee to the Human Rights Commission.

I believe that in a multi-ethnic, multi-national, multi-racial society, when there's a challenge to the rights of one group, there's a challenge to the rights and well-being of all groups.

It is with that that I humbly ask for my appointment to the Human Rights Commission to continue my service to the community.

I also serve on the King County Climate Equity Community Task Force, and it's my goal to build partnerships between my fellow Get Engaged members, between fellow commissioners, and between fellow community members to really bring us all together as we strive to improve human rights in the city.

Thank you.

Okay, up next we have Teddy Sae with the Seattle LGBTQ Commission.

Teddy isn't able to make it today, so I'll go ahead and read their introduction.

Teddy is excited to serve on the LGBTQ commission as being part of the community means so much to them.

As a queer trans immigrant, fighting and advocating for queer and trans rights is a lifelong passion.

Teddy believes in creating and building a just world where we are no longer surviving but thriving and living does not have to feel exhausting.

Teddy is excited to work alongside and learn from the commission members and the Get Engaged cohort.

All right, up next we have Ashton Hope with the Seattle Renters Commission.

Hello, hello, there we go.

Hello Council, I am Ashton Hope.

I am indeed with the Seattle Renters Commission, and while I do not have my full script on me, I do have the summary of it.

I've lived in Washington State for my whole life, and I have cherished living in this city now.

I do a day job as a canvasser, and thus I end up seeing people from all walks of life.

Whether rich or poor, I end up hearing their stories, their anxieties, their hopes for the future, and helping them turn that into action with the non-profits I represent, which is why I am so excited to work on the renters' commission.

because I want to make sure that this is a city for everyone, a place where, regardless of your income, of your past, of your disabilities and struggles, that you are able to afford to have safe housing where you can truly live and be amongst your community.

So thank you for this opportunity.

I won't at all squander it.

All right, next is Prisha Vaja with the Seattle Women's Commission.

Good morning.

Hello, my name is Prashavaja, and I have been appointed to the Seattle Women's Commission.

It's great to be here.

I've been appointed because of my lived experience with domestic violence and racial injustice, as well as my experience presenting TED Talks to girls in high school all about dating violence, sexual assault, and domestic violence in a household so they can move away from it.

I'm very excited to be here, especially in Seattle, because I view it as a city prime for change.

So thank you so much.

Okay, up next we have Christopher Bennett Bohm with the Design Review Board.

My name is Christopher Bennett Boehm, and I'm seeking to serve our city as a member of its Design Review Board.

For over three decades, the Design Review Board has been one of the only public forums where commercial developers, municipal planners, and engaged residents could openly discuss the construction of a healthier, kinder, and more beautiful Seattle.

Drawing on my experiences with various mission-driven organizations, I promise to moderate these discussions with care, clarity and equanimity.

over my next year of service and with the support of my Get Engaged peers, staff from both the Department of Construction and Inspections and the Department of Neighborhoods, commercial developers, community organizations, and of course local stakeholders, I believe that the Design Review Board can show in no uncertain terms that safeguarding the voices of community members in the designing of their streets does not have to come at the expense of affordable housing.

I hope that I can count on your support.

Thank you.

Alright, next we have Sarah Champ with the Design Review Board.

Good afternoon.

I'm honored to be considered for appointment.

I currently work for Kitsap County as an analyst and hold a degree in urban planning.

My background has focused on sustainability and I have a deep interest in place making, community resilience, and the relationship between people in the built environments.

The design review process plays an important role in shaping how Seattle grows.

As our city continues to change, thoughtful design can help ensure that growth creates places that are welcoming and accessible and benefit our neighborhoods.

I'm excited for the opportunity to bring a community-focused perspective and to apply the city's design guidelines thoughtfully and consistently.

Thank you.

Sorry, just give me one moment.

And you can just have them come on up to an interview.

I'm actually reading this one.

Oh, you are?

Oh, okay.

So sorry.

You're okay.

Well, we can get through the people that are here while you're looking for that up.

Is that okay?

It is.

Yeah, I actually have it here.

Okay, great.

So I'm ready.

The next one that we have up is Eric Alipio with the Seattle Design Commission.

This is a reappointment.

So Eric is seeking reappointment.

Eric is a current Master of Landscape Architecture student at the UW.

Having lived in Seattle for a decade now, Eric has had the opportunity to work with this region's tribal nations, local native-led nonprofits, various local government community advisory groups concerning comprehensive planning and equitable transit-oriented development, and interned with different local planning and design firms.

Through his work, Eric has become passionate about co-creating more equitable, inclusive, and just cities.

As a member of the Seattle Design Commission, he is excited by the opportunity to continue advocating for healthy, playful, resilient, and community-oriented urban design within our city's public projects.

And then after that, we've got Sarah Warsami.

I'll also be reading for Sarah, as she was unable to make it.

Sarah's seeking appointment to the Seattle Planning Commission.

Sarah is a recent University of Washington graduate in geography and a longtime South Seattle resident.

Her personal connection to the area drives her advocacy on issues like gentrification and displacement.

As an intern at Puget Sound Regional Council, she worked on data visualization for the region's demographic profile and public engagement for the regional transportation plan.

Through this work, she gained first-hand insight into how critical community understanding is to effective service.

She aims to use her unique experiences and expertise into the planning process, ensuring that advocacy is embedded where it matters most from the very beginning.

Okay, up next we have Samari Wakimoto with the Urban Forestry Commission.

Hello, good afternoon, City Council members.

My name is Samari Wakimoto, and I'm honored to have been selected for the Urban Forestry Commission.

I was born and raised in Southwest Washington, and some of my happiest memories are from the days I spent walking through urban forest in my hometown with my grandma.

It brought us peace, joy, and the opportunity to learn.

And now that I'm in Seattle, I get to explore another world of urban forest.

I'm about to start my senior year at UW studying environmental studies and science.

I've learned a lot about Seattle's tree canopy and green space, but we especially learned that canopy loss in Seattle is not happening equitably.

Neighborhoods hit hardest by racial and economic injustice started with less canopy, and they've lost even more of it than the rest of the city.

Statistics and conversations like these are what made me want to do more for Seattle and what made me interested in joining the Urban Forestry Commission.

This commission is a way to protect green space and rebuild what's been lost.

It's a way to make sure access to green space isn't decided by your income or your zip code, but most importantly, it's a chance to listen and interact with the needs of our people.

Our green spaces keep our people healthy, happy, and thriving, and I'm excited to help make sure every neighborhood gets to grow up with a green space like the one that raised me.

Thank you.

Next is Gabriel Navarro with the Community Involvement Commission.

Good afternoon Council, my name is Gabriel Navarro.

It's a pleasure to be here with all of you today for the opportunity to be appointed to the Community Involvement Commission.

I've lived in this city for over half a decade now in Districts 3, 4, 5 and 6 and worked in and for Districts 1, 2 and 7 and I love Seattle.

I love this city.

I view my peers here as my brothers and sisters and all of you as my uncles and aunts.

and elders that can teach me and us a lot of things.

What I want to bring to the Community Involvement Commission is just that, is viewing each other as more than just residents, but community members and neighbors at the end of the day.

I am very grateful to live in a city such as Seattle that has these opportunities for us and has opportunities for community to get involved.

I seek to create more opportunities for my own neighbors and my communities for all of us to connect.

I very much look forward to the day of service on September 26th through the Department of Neighborhoods and the City of Seattle, and again grateful for that.

And one thing that I want to carry forward in this opportunity is my love of God, and God teaches us to love thy neighbor.

And so I want to carry that energy forward, do everything I can to connect us, to help with our public development, public infrastructure, and contribute to public safety, all through involving community for the greater shaping and shared prosperity of our future and our city.

Thank you.

Okay, up next we have Anna Gold with the Landmarks Preservation Board.

I'll be reading for Anna today.

So Anna Gold has been selected to serve on the Landmarks Preservation Board.

Anna graduated from the University of Washington in 2023 with a Master of Architecture and Certificate in Historic Preservation.

Anna is excited to bring her professional experience working with old structures and to continue to advocate for the significance of communal spaces during her time as a commissioner.

And then next we have Isabella Gossing with the Pioneer Square Preservation Board.

I will also be reading for Isabella.

Isabella uses she, her pronouns, and was selected to serve on the Pioneer Square Preservation Board.

She is honored to have the opportunity to serve the people of Seattle.

She is a Washington native attorney and a program manager and has called Seattle home for the past several years.

Outside of her legal career, she has a lifelong background in the performing arts as a dancer and actor, which has shaped her appreciation for the history, culture, and creativity that give a city its identity.

Every time she walks through Pioneer Square she is mesmerized by its historic stone and brick buildings and that feeling that for a moment she has been transported back to another time.

There is something incredibly special about places that allow us to experience the history of a city in such a tangible way.

She believes places like Pioneer Square, which connect us to the people, stories, and character of Seattle's past are worth protecting.

She is excited to bring her legal and analytical perspective to the board while learning more about historic preservation and helping ensure that this unique part of Seattle is preserved for generations to come.

And then next we have Jonathan Lopez-Chavez.

Jonathan is seeking reappointment to the Immigrant and Refugee Commission.

Jonathan Lopez Chavez is a first generation Latino and the son of immigrant parents.

He is passionate about closing knowledge gaps and opportunity divides that can make it difficult for individuals and families to navigate systems, access resources, and pursue opportunities.

Through his involvement with the nonprofit Year Up United, Jonathan has worked to connect young adults with professional networks, career opportunities, and resources that can help them advance.

That experience has reinforced his belief that access to information, representation, and the right support can meaningfully change someone's path.

For Jonathan, serving on the Seattle Immigrant and Refugee Commission is an opportunity to bring that same commitment along with his lived experience to Seattle's immigrant and refugee communities.

He hopes to strengthen the connection between communities and local government, make resources and opportunities more accessible, and ensure immigrant and refugee voices are represented in the conversations and decisions that affect them.

Alright, next we have Cassidy Witt with the Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners.

Good afternoon.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Cassidy Witt.

I'm a current fifth grade teacher and resident of District 6. I'm honored to be considered for appointment with the Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners.

I believe that parks and communal spaces are necessary for connection and equity within a community, values that I have held throughout my academic and professional career.

While pursuing my Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, I interned with my hometown of San Antonio's Neighborhood and Housing Services Department, where I wrote and presented policy proposals to the mayor.

There, I saw the importance of engaging with the public to seek feedback and hear their concerns.

Additionally, my background in teaching has strengthened and reaffirmed my values and desire to become involved in my community.

I've primarily worked with low-income and historically underrepresented populations, and as a first-generation college graduate from a low-income background myself, I understand the importance of empowering and supporting community members, a power I believe parks hold.

I understand that parks are vital to a community's economic, cultural, and social health, and I commit to bearing these aspects and responsibilities in mind while I represent them with every decision I make on the Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Thank you, Cassidy.

Okay, up next we have M.

Rexer with the Seattle Bicycle Advisory Board.

M. Rexer is honored to be appointed as the Get Engaged member for the Seattle Bicycle Advisory Board.

An engaged member of the local cycling community, they rely on cycling for transportation, recreation, and socializing.

They bring a strong analytical lens and live commuter experience to help evaluate and expand safe, accessible infrastructure across our transit network.

Em looks forward to representing the young adult perspective and is grateful for the opportunity to serve the city.

Next we have Caroline Hedlund with the Seattle Center Advisory Commission.

Good afternoon.

My name is Caroline Headland, and I've been selected to serve on the Seattle Center Advisory Commission.

After graduating from the University of Washington, where I studied urban planning and business, I've had the privilege of joining an amazing team within the City of Kirkland Planning Department.

As a planner, I perform technical review of permit applications and provide information about city regulations to the public and industry professionals alike.

Through working with homeowners, architects, developers, and more, I've gained a deep appreciation for transparency, efficiency, and accessibility in local government.

This appreciation is what drew me towards this program.

Just as I believe local governments should work for everyone, I believe good cities should too.

The Seattle Center is a great example of this.

In addition to being an economic powerhouse, the Seattle Center is a beloved community gathering space.

I believe that vibrant, fun, and inclusive cities create a better environment for businesses and citizens alike.

I'm excited to bring my passion for economic development, community building, and local government to my term as a commissioner, and I thank you all for this opportunity.

Okay, next we have Marisa Terry with the Seattle Pedestrian Advisory Board.

Good afternoon, everyone.

My name is Marisa Terry and I'm a resident of City Council District 3. I present myself today as the hopeful appointee for the Seattle Pedestrian Advisory Board.

I have a background in political science, environmental justice and sustainable development, as well as several years of experience in the transportation and mobility advocacy space in both Pierce and King County.

I come to you today as someone who believes pedestrian safety and the right to walk in the city are cornerstones of equity and accessibility.

I'm interested in serving because I care deeply about my community and about creating a city that is safe, accessible and welcoming for everyone.

As an urban mobility advocate, I've had the opportunity to work with community members across Seattle and I want to help elevate their voices in conversations that shape our streets and public spaces.

The way we design our neighborhoods and transportation systems has a direct impact on who is ultimately able to access jobs, schools, services and community life.

Through this role, I hope to keep pedestrian issues front and centered in discussions about transportation, infrastructure, safety and mobility, while ensuring that the needs of the most vulnerable residents remain a priority in the decisions that we make as a city.

I would commit myself to critically examining the ways pedestrian infrastructure is too often sidelined, whether through the prioritization of other modes of transportation or through fears around loitering and vagrancy that shape how public space is designed and policed.

Urban design decisions are not neutral.

They carry histories marked by race, class, and ability-based exclusion.

from ensuring that people can walk without fear of vehicles to advocating for cleanliness, adequate shade and places to sit and rest.

I will work to protect the rights of all people to move freely through the city without fear, exclusion or suspicion.

Thank you and I'm excited to contribute to the board's work.

Thank you.

Okay, next we have Rashab Balakrishnan with Seattle Transit Advisory Board.

Good afternoon, council members.

My name is Rashab Balakrishnan, and it's an honor to be in front of you all here today.

Growing up, transit has always been at the core of who I am.

My mom was a public transit employee for over 10 years and counting.

And so I used to have to take the bus and train pretty much everywhere.

I took it to high school.

I used to take it to after school activities.

And even now in Seattle, I don't have a car.

And I love taking the bus and the train.

And as a commuter, I care very deeply about some of the little things.

I'm a self-proclaimed transit nerd.

So all of the little things, when you take the bus, I pay attention to how long the stops are.

I pay attention to how many people are coming on the bus at the whole times.

And so for me, public transit is at the core of who I am.

And so especially in a city like Seattle, transit is a gem.

It's something that allows everyone to live happier, healthier, and more sustainable lives.

and it is a force for profound equity in our communities and really interlinks deeply with the system that is infrastructure, with opportunity, and really just progress for everyone else.

So thank you all so much for having me here today.

I'm a UW grad, so go Dawgs, and thank you so much.

Thank you.

I believe we have one more, one last one, correct?

Awesome.

So our last nominee is up for reappointment.

This is Leonard Harrison Jerome with the Transportation Levy Oversight Committee.

Leonard apologizes for not being able to make this hearing in person.

No one should be killed by a car because they choose to walk or bike as their mode of transportation.

Even if a biker or walker makes a mistake, as any of us are prone to make, the consequences should not be so dire that they do not come home Focusing on safe walking and bike routes is a noble project and the single most important prerequisite to giving people transportation options other than driving.

If reappointed, Leonard will continue fighting to ensure these projects are done well and on time.

He humbly asks to be reappointed to the Transit Levy Oversight Committee.

Awesome.

Well, thank you, Imani.

Thank you, Matt.

I want to thank the 22, the people that are in person, 14 of you all and the 22 total for this program and for you all wanting to volunteer your time to get involved.

that is huge that you all are at this point of your life as young adults.

I remember when I was your age, I didn't even think about any program like this, but the fact that you are thinking about getting involved in local government and helping us shape what is important for you, because the decisions that we make up here, the mayor makes, impacts you all the most.

When we're talking about light rail in 2040, I'm not gonna tell you how old I'm gonna be, but that's gonna impact you all.

And so I think that's what's...

Council Member Kettle, it will be very old, but these are, you'll be older, but these, your work does not go unnoticed and we're incredibly happy to have you all here as well.

I will pause here for any comments before we transition into our next President and Council Member Warris.

Thank you.

I'll be very brief.

First of all, thank you as my eight or nine years being here.

Will you speak in the mic?

Sorry.

Thank you.

Okay.

I've overseen many years of board participation, community, all these different groups and nine or 10 years of doing this.

So, and it's always interesting to see the folks that come forward.

So thank you for all the work you do and thank you for you all wanting to be on these boards and serve, because we all take it seriously.

I know you think we don't, but we do.

But I'm going to embarrass somebody because I want her to know how special she is to me, and that's Cariel.

Cariel, just quickly, I'm just going to add this because I don't want to bury the lead.

Cariel has been very active with me, and I've had the opportunity and honor as an auntie to watch her grow professionally and personally through the Native Action Network, her work in Indian Country, Miss Emerging Indigenous Women, her work at the University of Washington, and the book she wrote where she got one important fact wrong.

She said that I went around the Native American circuit playing basketball.

I said, girl, I'm 5'3", okay? They would have killed me on the Native American basketball tournament when I was growing up. They called her up and I said, Gara, it's baseball. And even then I sucked. But anyway, she didn't write that in the book. But anyway, Carol, it's so good to see you. And I'm really proud of you. Thank you, Council President.

awesome thank you council member Juarez are there other comments thank you big thank you all um i'm just seeing big big thank you i don't know if there's any closing comments from matt or imani oh there is one from council member Rivera thank you um council president i just want to say that um this is such an important program the get engaged program

It's been around forever and it just speaks to, well, first of all, that folks, again, want to volunteer their time to sit on this program.

They can sort of sit on these commissions rather.

They care so deeply about this city.

I am so appreciative and I love seeing young people involved because you guys are the present and the future.

And then I want to say I've had the pleasure, he's not here today, but of meeting Jonathan Chavez he's reached out to meet with me proactively and it just goes to the engagement of these young people so I know he's not here today but I'm really happy he's getting appointed today and I just to each of you I just want to thank you for your getting involved for the great and very special words that you gave today about why you want to be involved.

We are so grateful.

We need more folks, especially young folks, to be involved.

So I, for one, just want to thank you.

Thank you, Council President.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Rivera.

Councilmember Kettle.

Thank you, Chair or Council President.

I feel like I've been goaded to say this, but when I was in your position, I think Ronald Reagan was president in the Cold War.

There still was the Soviet Union.

Yes, Council Member Juarez, you and I are together in that.

But at the same time, after retiring from the Navy and starting anew, I was at the Evans School here locally at UW, and I was volunteering in a similar but different situation.

And investing in yourself and investing in this work helps you, but it also helps the organizations that you may be working for.

And I think it's really important to understand that the more that you invest in what you're doing the more you can help your community but it also invests in your future so that you can then take the next step which is something I used to tell my sailors all the time is like look how best to take that next step for yourselves and your community and this is really an opportunity where you can do both and I noted by the way since Seattle University here, this is my chance to get back at the chair here, that I saw that she was on the Seattle University basketball team, and I think, you know, she'd take you.

Thank you, Councilmember.

I coached there for three years.

Thank you, Councilmember Kettle.

Councilmember Rank?

Thank you, Council President.

And unlike Councilmember Kettle, I think I just aged out of the Get Engaged program.

So thank you.

Appreciate that.

And I want to thank you all for being here today, for your willingness to serve on our boards, and also thank you for sharing your stories and your why.

I'm a firm believer that it is time for our generation to step up and shape our future, and the Get Engaged program really promotes and supports exactly that.

and so I know my office, we work with a lot of our boards and commissions in the city, so I just wanna not only say thank you, but just say I'm really looking forward to working with you, learning more about you and your priorities and how you wanna shape the future of our city.

So thank you and thank you, Council President.

Awesome, thank you, Council Member Rank.

I don't see any further comments.

Once again, thank you all.

Thank you Imani and Matt for being here and for running the program that you all do with the YMCA.

We're very, very grateful.

And then for you all participating in the program as well.

So just really grateful for you all to be here.

This will be on our, this will be voted on next Tuesday, I believe.

No, this Tuesday, excuse me.

This coming Tuesday, we're voting on it.

My apologies.

This Tuesday, tomorrow.

So tomorrow we are voting on your appointments.

Yes, this coming Tuesday.

Thank you so much.

Thank you all for being here and taking the time out of your day too as well.

Thank you.

Thank you all.

We are now gonna transition as we are making this switch.

We do have our budget process and we're gonna have Lish from our fearless central staff director come to the table to talk about the budget process.

And before we start, I know we'll wait till we get this up on the screen.

Colleagues, thank you all for coming.

Really appreciate our young people.

And for Council Member Rank, throwing shots at the rest of us saying she just aged out of your program.

Okay.

No shade, council president.

Yeah, no shade.

Yeah, okay.

Council member Strauss, we are just jumping into our budget.

Thank you.

It's all yours.

I'd like to hand it off to you, our fearless budget chair.

Wonderful.

Let me find my notes after what a fun day we've been having so far.

Lost my notes, but what I can tell you my friends is that I am excited to be your steward through this budget process.

There they are.

That was the first bullet point.

For those of you that were here last year, you know that I shepherded a process of collaboration, of transparency, of us working together.

I do that again.

I look to do that again this year.

We're going to find out next week what the mayor has and has not included in this year's budget.

Year after year, this council has addressed the structural budget deficit.

It started at 275. It has come down.

It's gone back up.

But I was very proud of the chair's package last year that did indeed reduce the structural budget deficit.

I'll continue on my focus on budget reform, both in process and in content.

I hope that there are elements of the mayor's budget that engage in that and really the message that I have for you colleagues is I'm here to help you.

I'm here to help you meet the needs of Seattleites in the ways that you find to be most important and each of us as nine separately elected officials have a different group of people whether it's geographically or just by who we are as human beings.

are able to interact with.

We don't have to, there was a famous budget amendment that I brought once that was for a project in District 1 and Council Member Sokka and I were able to partner on that, right?

So we are not here by district, we are all here serving the entire city of Seattle.

So I'm here to help you and what I'll need from you is a budget lead within your office.

I'll need you to call me if there's something good or if there's something bad.

As we approach the chair's balancing package, I will need you to be available to answer questions.

I'll need you to help central staff by meeting their deadlines.

And as we did last year, I will be basing my chair's package off the work we will be doing through policy identification and through council member proposals.

We are 36 days away from October 20th.

October 20th is the day where you have to have your councilmember amendment proposals co-sponsored by two other individuals and submitted to central staff by noon, and that is a hard deadline.

And so 36 days away, we'll be going through the first rounds of the process that help us I identify and structure our amendments, but I'm giving us 36 days to have your ideas, your co-sponsors lined up so that we can create this chair's package as seamlessly as possible because I'm doing it with us, not for us.

I'm doing it alongside of you, not in a different position than you.

Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Strauss.

And I will say you have always been professional.

You have always had information ready.

You have always been collaborative.

So just really appreciate your hard work during this process.

So Lish, without further ado, the council budget process.

After Lish is finished, I'll point it back to Councilmember Strauss and then we'll take questions.

Great.

So the Council's Select Budget Committee will start its annual review of the Mayor's proposed budgets for 2027 and 2028 next week.

We have a nine-week process, very similar to last year's, that will allow the Council to adopt a balanced budget the week before Thanksgiving.

You received this calendar in July when the Select Budget Committee was set up, and I'm going to briefly walk through the different phases.

The mayor will be releasing her proposal on September 22nd.

Two days later, the committee will convene to start digging into that proposed budget.

It will kick off with an overview presentation from the City Budget Office and then dives into key department budgets with department directors and finance directors.

If you have strong feelings about a department presenting during this phase, please let Chair Strauss know as soon as possible.

We're firming up that list of departments.

The first public hearing on the proposed budget will take place about a week later, on October 6, with remote testimony in the afternoon and in-person testimony in the evening.

As you are receiving presentations, my team will be diving deep into the proposed budget.

We may not have all of the answers you want right at the beginning of the process, but we'll work diligently to get you the answers you need.

We'll have summaries of key changes in the budget and policy options for the Council to consider at a series of meetings starting on October 13th.

And at the end of that week, we'll receive an updated budget forecast from the Office of Economic and Revenue Forecasts.

Your budget amendment concepts will be due to my team on October 20th at noon.

You'll need two co-sponsors, and depending on the complexity of the budget and the revenue forecasts, Chair Strauss may ask that you identify a funding source for any budget increases.

We'll spend the next week or so refining those proposals, and those amendments will be presented on October 27th through 29th.

At those meetings, we'll be providing a high-level summary of each amendment, and you'll have the opportunity to dig into the arguments for why you're proposing them and to add yourselves as co-sponsors for amendments that you really support.

After those meetings, Chair Strauss will compile a balanced package of amendments to the mayor's proposed budget.

It will be released on November 3rd and be discussed at a meeting on November 4th.

It will reflect the revenue forecasts and incorporate your proposals to the extent possible.

Based on the amount of revenue available, some proposals may need to be scaled.

We probably won't have enough money for everything that council members want to propose.

The chair's package will probably include some new ideas to reflect changes in revenue forecasts.

For example, if we suddenly have a lot more money, we'll have an amendment to add that more money to the budget.

Approximately 48 hours after the publication of the chair's package, there will be another round of public hearings on November 5th.

After those meetings, you'll have the opportunity to propose changes to the chair's package by noon on November 9th.

Again, you'll need two co-sponsors, and at that phase, your amendments will need to be balanced.

The chair will put forward a final package for committee votes on November 13th and 16th, and will also consider any amendments outstanding to the chair's package.

The final committee action will be sent to full council for a final vote on November 20th.

And happy to answer any questions.

Thank you.

I will redirect to Councilmember Strauss and then we'll open up questions to other colleagues.

Councilmember Strauss.

Lish said it better than I could say anything else, so I have nothing to add.

Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you.

Happy to answer any questions.

Thank you, Councilmember Strauss.

Our colleagues, are there any questions regarding, oh, Councilmember Foster.

Thank you so much, Council President.

Thank you, Budget Chair Strauss and Central Staff.

Really appreciate your work.

I just wanted to clarify on the potential for self-balancing amendments.

I know this is something the Chair spoke to as a possibility a few months back.

I think I heard you say still a possibility, so it sounds like we'll be hearing more about that, but not a certainty at this point.

Is that correct?

That's correct.

And I think it will depend to some extent on the revenue forecasts.

The forecasts have been volatile, and if they come in where we are seeing significant deficits from what the mayor is proposing, which is a possibility, self-balanced amendments are more likely to be required.

That's helpful.

And then remind me just one more time the date for that updated forecast.

That is on the Friday of October 16th.

Okay, fantastic.

So it sounds like if we are going to need to do self-balancing shortly after that is when we'll hear that.

Is that a look to the chair through you, Council President, if that's okay?

Thank you.

May I, Chair?

Thank you.

Well done with parliamentary procedure.

And I will say, I think we added this caveat during the memo drafting phase before the most recent revenue forecast and before we did the supplemental budget where we had this experience where we asked people to find funding sources.

We're still reviewing if that was helpful or unhelpful.

And so I appreciate this as a provision this year.

I'm not sure we will utilize it.

It is something that as we go through issue identification, the first and second round I can't remember what we call it these days.

I'm stuck in the past in that way.

Once you tell me what it's called, then it's called that for the rest of my life.

So once we go through the first two steps, the departments presenting and then central staff presenting, you will also want to be aware of if we don't have a positive revenue forecast in October, what are those places that you want to be pulling from?

even if you are not required to bring it to self-balance your amendment, it is something that everyone should be thinking about in advance.

And one of the problems that we found with asking to self-balance is everyone chose the same pot of easy money, right?

And I appreciate that, but it's also more complicated than that.

So we're going through it, and I appreciate everyone being willing to entertain this as an option.

Thank you so much.

And, Council President, if I've got a few, okay, fantastic.

That's very helpful.

The only other question I wanted to ask, I heard you say, you know, if there's a department that we feel passionate about presenting to make sure that we share that information with, was that with central staff or with the chair?

I think the chair is firming up the schedule.

Fantastic, and I assume there's some, bear with me as my first budget rodeo.

Chair, do we have a list of who you're already anticipating or should we just send you our priorities?

already participating in department presentations?

Correct.

We have a general list.

I think we're finalizing it right now.

If there is a department that you are highly interested in, please send it our way.

There has, over the last decade plus, been a core group of departments that seem to receive more questions than others.

What will also occur, like last year, and we need to reconfirm with the budget director that we do this again this year, Last year for the departments that did not present, they still created PowerPoints for us to review.

And so whether they are in chambers answering the questions or providing us the same information through PowerPoints, it's a balance between if we had every single department up here, we would be here for two months and then the budget wouldn't be passed on time.

So we're all kind of balancing.

Okay, I won't send you an email that says all of them.

Okay.

Thank you, Chair.

Thank you, Council President.

Awesome.

Thank you, Council Member Foster.

I'll add that we will be creating memos for every single city department.

Thank you, Lesh.

Council Member Rivera.

Thank you.

Council President, I'd love to ask the chair if- Absolutely.

He has started to meet with council members about their budget priorities, one question, and then the second question is around how departments will get selected for presentations at budget meetings.

Thank you.

So I want to answer the second question first about departments, and it is based on the departments that have presented over the past years.

It's a similar core group of departments.

There's not a lot of change there.

As far as meeting, this year is a little bit different than the past years with Labor Day a week later in the calendar than others.

Councilmember Kettle was asking, like, why does it feel so intense right now?

And it feels so intense because we have one fewer week between recess and the budget starting.

All that to say is we are figuring out if we're going to meet with you Thursday, Friday, Monday, Tuesday.

We're going to be setting up two Councilmember-to-Councilmember meetings throughout the process.

and if I'm unavailable, you can always, for an official meeting, just give me a call or something like that.

Your priorities right now, I won't need until October 20th.

So it never hurts for me to know earlier, but from a functional process standpoint, I won't need them before October 20th, but I do need them by October 20th.

Ms. Thank you.

And, Council President, one more question, and that is, is there anything you can share, maybe not here, but individually with us about what you may know about the budget process?

I mean, about the budget itself and what we can expect.

Yeah, I mean, I have some insight.

I'm waiting for next week, just like everyone else, to figure out what exactly, where all of the different movements have occurred and what discrete actions have occurred within departments.

So I'm waiting to dig really into the details, but happy to chat with you two.

Thank you.

Yeah.

Thank you, Council President.

Awesome, thank you Councilmember Rivera.

Colleagues, are there any more questions regarding the budget process for the chair or central staff?

Awesome, okay, well looking forward to Councilmember Strauss.

Yeah, one last thing now that we've had a little bit of discussion for Councilmember Foster and Lynn, I will share that we have a six-year look-back document that is really helpful and I think we should resend that around.

This year we did a better job of having it completed in January or February.

and so that looked at last year's budget.

That six year look back plus the budget document that we receive helps navigate through where have things shifted over like since just before the pandemic as compared to where we are today, as well as once we enter budget, are communication protocols that change with departments.

And so if you have a question about budget, it does need to be routed through our SharePoint document that central staff manages with CBO.

The reason is, I bet you all nine of us have the same question about item number 10, right?

and so if we all ask the department about item number 10, they're stuck in a frenzy.

If we route it through central staff, we're able to get better clarity and official answers.

And so I just highlight that as an important communication tool.

There will also be, you know, depending on budget, last year we actually came out in a better place than we expected to and in part that was due to progressive revenue through the B&O changes, the B&O tax changes.

And at the beginning of budget, I said, look, we really need to focus on statements of legislative intent because I don't know where our money's going to be.

Turned out we were okay.

You know, we came out with a chairs package that was reduce the structural deficit, but everyone also added 10 statements of legislative intent.

So my ask to you all this year is one or the other please.

Either fund programs or ask questions, but please don't do both.

Thank you.

Thank you, Council Member Strauss.

Council Member Rivera, is that an old hand or it is?

Oh, old hand, sorry.

Okay, no worries.

No, no, no, you're good.

You're good.

I know you're good at the follow-up.

Okay.

All right, perfect.

Thank you, Lish.

Thank you, Council Member Strauss for that overview.

Thank you, colleagues, for your questions.

We're gonna keep plugging along here.

Today, we have four proclamations for discussion and signature.

I will ask each council member to introduce the proclamation and so we can seek final feedback before our request of roll call.

so council members can affix their signature to each proclamation.

Council member Foster declaring September 15th to be clean air day for blue skies.

Council member Foster, give us blue skies.

All right.

Thank you so much, Council President.

I'm really excited to bring forward this proclamation, excuse me, this proclamation to establish September 15th as Clean Air for Blue Skies Day.

And I want to first start off with thanking former State Rep Velma Valoria, who, as many folks know, is a longtime advocate for environmental justice alongside the King County International Airport Community Coalition.

Those folks reached out to my office to help bring more attention to air pollution and other aviation-related health impacts to communities, particularly in South Seattle.

As we all know, Georgetown and South Park already experience significant environmental health disparities, and this proclamation reinforces Seattle's commitment to collaborating, improving air quality, public health, and environmental justice for our residents.

A copy of the resolution has been circulated to all of your offices, and I will just read a brief excerpt.

Whereas residents of Seattle South Park and Georgetown neighborhoods have historically experienced life expectancy approximately 13 years shorter than residents of some wealthier Seattle communities, reflecting cumulative environmental and socioeconomic burdens that include air pollution, limited access to green space, proximity to industrial activity, major transportation corridors, whereas protecting our shared atmosphere requires sustained partnership among residents, community organizations, local and regional governments, public agencies, businesses and institutions, and requires the voices of those who have borne the greatest environmental burdens, help share the solutions and investments intended to address them, and whereas the United Nations Environment Program recognizes International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies annually in September, calling attention to our shared responsibility to reduce air pollution, protect human health, and safeguard our planet.

Colleagues, I ask for your support for this proclamation.

Thank you, Councilmember Foster.

Are there any comments regarding Clean Air Day for Blue Skies before I call the roll.

All right, awesome.

We will, can we, oh, I'm sorry, my bad.

Council Member Lynn.

Thanks so much, and I apologize having tech issues with logging on.

But just want to thank Council Member Foster for bringing this forward.

In addition to South Park and Georgetown, you know, there's schools right above the International Airport there on Beacon Hill, Maple Elementary, Cleveland.

and it's a little bit shocking to know that there's still leaded fuel used in these small planes and it's still a little unclear how big of an impact that is in terms of how much that's landing on the dirt and soils and playgrounds near this airport, but certainly I think it's about time to put it into leaded fuel.

and so appreciate you bringing this forward, appreciate certainly all the work of former Rep Velma Veloria and the whole coalition that's working on this issue.

Awesome, thank you Councilmember Lin.

Councilmember Sacco.

Thank you, Madam Council President.

I too wanted to thank Councilmember Foster for bringing this forward, bringing awareness to this critical issue that impacts two neighborhoods, two specific neighborhoods in my district, South Park and Georgetown.

So very important and also very impactful.

So thank you again.

Thank you, Councilmember Sokka.

Any additional comments?

All right, seeing none, will the clerk please call the roll to determine which council members would like their signature to fix the proclamation?

Councilmember Lin?

Yes.

Councilmember Brink?

Yes.

Councilmember Rivera?

Aye.

Councilmember Sokka?

Aye.

Councilmember Strauss?

Aye.

Councilmember Foster?

Yes.

Councilmember Juarez?

Aye.

Councilmember Kettle?

Aye.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Yes.

Nine signatures will be affixed.

Awesome, thank you.

We will now move on to our second proclamation.

Council Member Rink declares September 25th to be Dolly Parton Day.

Council Member Rink.

Thank you, Council President.

It is truly bittersweet to bring this proclamation forward today, honoring the life and legacy of the one and only Dolly Parton.

On August 25th, while council was on recess, our nation lost a true icon with Dolly Parton's passing following a brief battle with cancer.

Now, I was in the UK when the news broke, and even on the other side of the world, the shops, cafes were filled with her music celebrating her life.

Dolly Parton was many things, a diva, a queer icon, a singer-songwriter, but also a philanthropist.

And her children's literacy advocacy with the Imagination Library mailing free, high-quality books each month to kids from birth to age five is something I will remember the most.

The Imagination Library expanded into Washington State in 2022. It currently has over 85,000 children enrolled and has distributed nearly 4.5 million books statewide, and that's just in Washington.

So this proclamation will be presented in community next week at a Family Storytime event in partnership with Seattle Public Libraries and the Imagination Imagination Library of Washington.

Additionally, next week, September 25th, or 9 to 5, it is being encouraged that communities all over celebrate Dolly's life.

And locally that day, I will note that Seattle Parks and Recreation is hosting a silent disco followed by a screening of Dolly's 9 to 5 film at Denny Park.

Seattle will always love and miss Dolly.

And colleagues, I ask for your signatures.

Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you, Council Member Rink.

Are there any other colleagues that have any questions regarding the Dolly Parton Proclamation?

I love it.

Thank you, Council Member Rink for your leadership on this.

Looking forward to signing on.

Probably the coolest thing that I read, obviously her philanthropy, but she employed thousands of people, you know, in Dolly Parton land and all the good amusement parks.

So that was like really, really impressive.

the business dealing of Dolly Parton as well.

All right.

Will the clerk please call the roll on who would like their signatures affixed to the Dolly Parton Day proclamation?

Council member Len?

Yes.

Council member Rink?

Yes.

Council member Rivera?

Aye.

Council member Saka?

Aye.

Council member Strauss?

Aye.

Councilmember Foster?

Yes.

Councilmember Juarez?

Aye.

Councilmember Kettle?

Aye.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Yes.

Nine signatures will be affixed.

Awesome.

Thank you.

We're now going to go to our third proclamation.

Councilmember Rivera is declaring September 10th through September 19th as Welcoming Week in Seattle.

Councilmember Rivera.

Thank you, Council President, colleagues.

I'm requesting your signature on a proclamation recognizing September 10th through the 19th as Welcoming Week.

Welcoming Week is one that is being recognized by a number of cities across the country.

By recognizing Welcoming Week, Seattle's joining 49 other cities across the U.S. in expressing a deep solidarity with immigrants from all corners of the world.

Welcoming Week encourages organizations, cities, and localities to showcase their values through events and initiatives that foster connections and collaboration between immigrants and non-immigrants as well as belonging for all.

There's more in this proclamation, but I think you all know, colleagues, that we in Seattle support our immigrant communities wholly and we are bringing this forward so that we can join our voices with those other cities that are also declaring this as 10th through the 19th as welcoming week.

This proclamation colleagues will be presented at a Citizenship Day clinic hosted by One America on September 19th.

The clinics are held to support folks who are taking the next steps to become citizens.

They offer free legal help to ensure folks are filling out forms correctly and provide help preparing for citizenship interviews.

Applying to become a US citizen, as you all can imagine, is a very big deal.

This event where immigrants will get their citizenship is such a moving and joyful experience.

If you have not ever attended one, I would encourage you to do so.

It really is an amazing event.

And I ask for your support.

Happy to answer any questions.

Awesome, thank you Councilmember Rivera for your leadership on this.

Very happy to sign.

Are there any other comments regarding the proclamation before us as welcoming weeks, September 10th through September 19th?

Seeing none, will the clerk please call the roll who would like their signatures affixed to the proclamation?

Councilmember Lenn?

Yes.

Councilmember Rink?

Yes.

Councilmember Rivera?

Aye.

Councilmember Saka?

Aye.

Councilmember Strauss?

Aye.

Councilmember Foster?

Yes.

Councilmember Juarez?

Aye.

Councilmember Kettle?

Aye.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Yes.

Nine signatures will be affixed.

Awesome, thank you.

And then last but not least, colleagues, I want to revisit our proclamation.

We declared August 18th to be Lynn Ruth Day, and several council members were excused from the August 18th city council meeting and were unable to sign the proclamation.

Ms. Lynn has been with the city for 50 years.

Last year was her 50th year working here.

She's with the Department of Neighborhoods.

and just wanted to give everyone an opportunity.

We had a great honoring with her on the 18th, celebrated with a lot of, mostly all the Department of Neighborhood staff and had a party as well.

And so just wanted to give people the opportunity to be able to sign on on that as we give Alyn her, Miss Alyn, excuse me, her proclamation.

So if there's no other further comments, real quick, just kind of a technicality, will the clerk please call the roll on who would like to fix their signature?

Councilmember Len?

Yes.

Councilmember Rink?

Yes.

Councilmember Rivera?

Aye.

Councilmember Saka?

Aye.

Councilmember Strauss?

Aye.

Councilmember Foster?

Yes.

Councilmember Wares?

Aye.

Councilmember Kettle?

Aye.

Council President Hollingsworth?

Yes.

Nine signatures will be affixed.

Awesome, thank you so much.

Sounds like a plan.

Colleagues, we're moving through it, and we also have an executive session, so now we are going to move into our final item on the agenda, which will be our discussion of city council actions and council and regional committees.

In order of discussion, we'll start with members sitting on my right, and we'll just move down.

Colleagues, we do have an executive session today.

and so just asking that we are, you all can do what you wanna do, you're all, you're elected, but just saying it would be nice if we heard what was just in your committee, okay, and whatever else that you would like to share with the group, what you ate for lunch, what you did on the weekend, okay, who won the basketball game, whatever, but just if we could keep our comments limited.

Thank you.

Council Member Kettle, you're first, you're gonna start us off.

Please set the tone.

Well, I was just saying USA, USA after the United States beat France in the FIPA Women's Basketball World Cup.

So starting with that, Council President, I will just note quickly, I have two Public Safety Committee meetings coming up tomorrow, which will be focused on the RV legislation with our colleague, Councilmember Strauss, and then on the 22nd, which is primarily gonna be a bite of Seattle after action report, centered primarily on the Seattle Police Department, and looking to look at that holistically.

So that's gonna be the second one, and that will also have an RV piece to it too.

Just quickly this morning, partnership for competitive Puget Sound was at that event.

So much work we need to do.

And just wanted to highlight that because at the end of the day, we need to move forward as a city.

And you know what, I'll look at everything else on my list and I will just say, Just from last week, I had a good meeting with City Attorney Evans, working the issues related to a functional criminal justice system, which leads to my meeting on Wednesday that I had with the Mayor, Deputy Mayor, Director of Public Safety, City Attorney Evans, her Criminal Chief, Jenna Roberts, three members of the King County Prosecuting Team, Chief Sales and Captain Garth Green, talking about the Belltown Labor Day weekend shootings.

We have to do more and we need to press on this topic for the safety of our entire city, not just for Belltown, but we have to move forward on gun violence.

And this will be some of the work that we do on committee.

And I'll just stop there.

I'm proud of you, Council Member Kettle.

Thank you for that.

Two minutes.

Oh, we got a timer down here.

Council Member Rink.

Thank you, Council President.

Last week, the Human Services Labor and Economic Development Committee voted unanimously on the fair pricing legislation, and that bill is headed to full council not tomorrow, but next Tuesday.

We have our final pre-budget Human Services Labor and Economic Development Committee meeting this Friday on the 18th.

and we will have the following items on the agenda.

And we do expect committee to run a bit long.

We will have our commercial lease transparency ordinance with any discussion on amendments and possible votes.

We have four pieces of SDHR legislation, including civil service status changes, an FAS automotive sheet worker ordinance, salary compression inversion ordinance, and then an SPR restoration ecologist ordinance.

And then lastly, we will be hearing from KCRHA on the 90-day cap report.

They will be having a briefing.

And that concludes my report.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you, Council Member Rank.

What's my time?

That was amazing.

Council Member Lynn.

Thank you, Council President.

We'll have a Land Use Committee meeting on Wednesday.

We have some appointments to the Green New Deal Oversight Board, the Urban Forestry Commission, and the Sweeten and Beverage Tax Oversight Board.

We have our bill amending development standards for institutions and multi-family zones.

We have a public hearing on that.

And then we have some sub-area plans.

There originally were four sub-area plans, Northgate, Downtown, Greater Duwamish and the Benwick.

The downtown, we're going to propose an amendment to remove downtown because of the Growth Management Hearings Board decision and also the Greater Duwamish.

Just want to give that one a little bit more breathing room.

So we'll have an amendment to take those off of action and to move forward with Northgate and Benwick on Wednesday is the expectation.

That's all.

Awesome, good job Council Member Lynn.

We'll pop up to Council Member Saka and then we'll come back down to Council Member Saka.

All right, thank you, boys.

When you're done eating your snack, make sure you're up there doing your homework.

Don't start fighting right now.

Working parents' struggles are real, folks.

But in any event, let me start off just by saying, with respect to our committee meeting, We will have one final committee meeting before budget this coming Thursday on the agenda, which is already published.

There are four, exactly four agenda items.

One is the Safer Streets package of three ordinances.

The other is hearing number one on the mayor's proposed permanent nominee for the Seattle Center director position.

And with respect to the safer streets legislation, I am looking forward to deliberation and the vote on these three ordinances on Thursday.

And as a friendly reminder, this will be the third committee meeting we've had on safer streets.

The first one was August 20th, second was September 8th, and the third one that committee will be on this coming Thursday.

And I appreciate everyone for putting forth amendments to make the package even better and appreciate some of the offline conversations I've had and collaborative conversations I've had with my committee.

mates as well on those.

In the interest of transparency, my office as well will be putting forth two of our own amendments.

One is a definition to modify the definition of vulnerable traveler under the ordinances to be more indirectly in line, to be more expansive, more accessible, to be more directly in line with some specific feedback we heard from the Seattle Disability Commission.

and the other amendment will be will modify certain duties of the city traffic engineer and expanding their authority basically to review major street changing capital projects and relevant safety needs and possible safety treatments using guidance from Vision Zero basically making this transforming it at a high level from a may do permissive may incorporate construct if they determine such projects are necessary to you must do incorporate or you determine it's not feasible framework so um in any event that is my updates uh for today on committee um thank you we'll welcome any questions or comments if not we'll pass the baton awesome thank you council member sacca uh council member juarez yes sorry

I'm speaking to the microphone.

So I'll be brief.

Parks and City Light Committee, the final committee meeting that I will chair will be this Wednesday, September 16th.

We have one item to discuss and vote on, the final legislation package for the Lake City Community Center, which I've been working on since 2014. As you recall, this is a two-story, full-service community center with 111 new affordable homes on the upper floors through a partnership with Mercy Housing, first of its kind in the city.

Very happy about that.

The community center costs 38 million, the housing is 86 million, approximately 122 million total.

And five city departments have worked together on this, and I hope that we will see much more community centers and other essential governmental functions and services placing community housing, low-income housing, affordable housing on these type of footprints.

I will be speaking on the panel this Friday for the Indigenous Civic Engagement Day hosted by the Indigenous Advisory Council.

My understanding is that Councilmember Foster will be joining us at some point.

Yeah, great.

The goal of the event is to bridge connections between city and Native communities, particularly urban Native organizations and community members.

Topics to be covered are Civic Engagement 101, City of Seattle budget process, grants and funding for organizations, services and programs for Native residents, advisory boards and commissions and liaison programs.

And in other news, very quickly, and I'll have more to add later, yay.

Been working on this since 2014, 2015. We are going to have the opening for the Pinehurst Light Rail Station.

As you recall, on Sound Transit 3, which we passed in 2016, we had three stations.

It was Pinehurst, Graham, and the Boeing Access Road.

And when yours truly served on Sound Transit, we shepherded all three of those into happening.

A community celebration will be hosted by Sound Transit in the afternoon at the station.

There will be food trucks, art demonstrations, and community tables, group tabling.

In late August, I, along with our community friend and organizer, Renee Stanton, met with the Seattle Times and went through the whole history of what happened from 2015 to 2026. A long time coming.

I'm really proud to share that of the three stations, Pinehurst, Graham, and Boeing Access.

Pinehurst costs the lowest and has the highest ridership, and that is what we expected and what we believed would happen when you have transit-oriented housing, transit-oriented development, and you put in a infill station between 145th and also Northgate, which is the other station we worked on.

So I'm so glad that I got an opportunity to come back to City Council and actually see this stuff getting done.

And I hope those of you will join us at the community celebration on September 30th.

Let me see if there's anything else.

Nope, that's it.

Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Wars.

Councilmember Strauss.

Thank you.

There are no more Finance Native Community and Tribal Governments committees between now and budget as we have shared that time with the Public Safety Committee for its special meeting tomorrow.

which does include the vehicle resident assistance program.

As you heard, it's up tomorrow.

Tomorrow's briefing will be a further discussion of the bill and central staff issue ID.

We're hoping that amendment concepts can be part of it.

That does require everyone to release confidentiality so that we can start talking about it in public.

Also, I'm noticing that we might have a bunch of duplicative ideas, and so to trim down the number of amendments, I'm just releasing requesting release of confidentiality so that we can look at everyone's amendments.

Talked about budget, talked about the Deborah Juarez station at 130th being open on the 30th.

And last is Association of Washington Cities.

Councilmember Rivera and I will be at the end of next week.

I'll be here for budget and then I'll have to disappear for Association of Washington Cities' work at the end of the week, Friday and Thursday and Friday.

Thank you.

Thank you Councilmember Strauss.

Councilmember Rivera and then we'll go to Councilmember Fosser.

Thank you, Council President.

Ditto to what my colleague, Council Member Strauss just said, I'll be joining AWC later this month.

At our last committee meeting, we had three of the departments that are under the committee, OIRA, Deal, Department of Education and Early Learning, and the Seattle Public Libraries.

Seattle Public Libraries talked about the Seattle Reads Book, which this year is True Biz by Sarah Novick.

Sarah is the first deaf author that has been part of the Seattle Reads program and it's really exciting and our colleague, council member, Oh my gosh, I'm doing it again.

Foster read the book, so she really outshined us.

And I hope you all, I know that you all got copies of the book, so everyone will have an opportunity to read it.

And they also talked a little bit about preliminary information, and really it was just a reiterating of information related to the library's levy.

investments.

We also had Department of Education and Early Learning talking about the timeline for the implementation plan and everything is on schedule and the LOC, the Levy Oversight Committee has been set.

And I know that they all, I had requested that they make sure to check in with all of you to make sure that the representatives selected for your particular district.

For those of us that are district specific, were included on the Levy Oversight Committee, so that's really exciting.

And then the Department, or the Office of Immigrant and Refugee Affairs gave an update on their great work in support of immigrant communities in our city.

They talked a bit about the $4 million investment, which is going, the bulk of which is going toward legal defense and also some to give direct, excuse me, to give direct support to community members.

Then tomorrow, colleagues, as you all know, at full council, we will be voting on my resolution to partner with the National Network for Safe Communities on bringing a gun violence reduction strategy to Seattle.

I hope to be able to have your support tomorrow.

Let me know if you have any questions.

I've been talking about this for so long and it's been almost a year actually.

but happy to answer any questions you may have.

And then finally, I wanna thank Council President in advance because tomorrow starts Hispanic Heritage Month and I'll be bringing a proclamation next week to our full council meeting.

As you know, colleagues, the last two years I've sat on council, I brought this Hispanic Heritage Month proclamation, obviously something that's really near and dear to my heart as a Puerto Rican woman.

in Seattle.

The month goes from September 15th through October 15th and really want to recognize all the contributions of our Latino communities.

Immigrants, whether you were born here or you immigrated to this country, you've made amazing contributions and we just want to recognize our Latino communities.

Muy caliente, Councilmember Juarez.

And there are three Latinas up here.

So that is really a source of pride I know for our community, Councilmember Juarez, Councilmember Rank, and myself all having Hispanic backgrounds.

So anyway, thank you.

That's all.

Happy to answer any questions and otherwise I'll pass the baton to Council President.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Rivera.

We'll go to Councilmember Foster.

Fantastic.

Thank you so much, Council President.

Thank you, colleagues.

I'm really excited to give some updates.

So tomorrow at full Council, we will be voting on the confirmation for the new Office of Housing Director, Kelly Larson.

Really excited about that.

thanks to my colleagues on the Housing, Arts and Civil Rights Committee for unanimously voting Kelly's appointment out of committee.

I am really looking forward to confirming her tomorrow.

I also wanna express my appreciation to Council Member Rink for your bill that we are just so excited about in terms of...

in terms of providing protections for different family structures here, and I look forward to voting on that in full council tomorrow as well.

And then colleagues, we will have a, for folks who are on the Housing Arts and Civil Rights Committee, we have a special meeting this Friday at 2 p.m.

If you were on that committee, you will hear from my team members this week.

just to make sure that you have more information on what to expect in that committee and we anticipate publishing that agenda tomorrow afternoon.

Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you, Council Member Foster.

I will end with my committee, Governance and Utilities.

This will meet Thursday, September 10th at 2 p.m.

So this Thursday, we have four items on the agenda.

Council Bill 121292 authorizing Seattle Public Utilities to acquire three parcels of land on Aurora.

also the appointment of Shannon Smith as our Chief Technology Officer of the Information Technology Department.

This is first of two committee meetings for briefing and discussion and then the appointment of D as the City Auditor for briefing and discussion, which council members are going to get meetings.

Okay, that is on our, okay, excuse me, sorry, that kind of took, Okay, so we have four things on our committee meeting in September, so thank you.

Before, and I will discuss with my team and also you colleagues about our auditor as well.

Are there any questions, council member?

Council President, just wanted to say thank you for the welcome back note from recess and a little note of appreciation well received.

Thank you very much.

Awesome.

Thank you, Councilmember Strauss.

Welcome back to love, y'all.

Okay?

So I just want to thank y'all.

We're the love floor.

All right.

Well, thank you.

What's the love floor?

Okay.

I love all y'all.

All right.

Thank you, Councilmember Strauss.

It's going to be the fall of love.

Okay?

Yeah, step into fall.

Y'all know you like your...

you like your cuddle poxies and your north faces.

All right, so now we're gonna go right into executive session.

Are there any other comments?

Thank you.

Appreciate y'all.

So if there's no further business, we will move into an executive session.

Hearing no further business, we're now moving into executive session.

As presiding officer, I am announcing that the Seattle City Council will now convene into the executive session.

The purpose of the executive session is discussing is to discuss pending potential and actual litigation.

The council executive session is an opportunity for council members to discuss confidential legal matters with the city attorney as authorized by law.

A legal monitor from the city's attorney office is always present to ensure the council reserves questions for policy for open discussions.

I expect the time of the executive session to end by 4.35 p.m.

If the executive session is extended beyond that time, I will announce the extension expected duration.

At the conclusion of the executive session, this council briefing meeting will automatically adjourn.

I'm actually, for the record, gonna have it at 445, because it will take us time to get to our desks.

Okay, so 445. All right, council is now in executive session.

Thank you, colleagues.