Seattle City Council Special Meeting 9292020

and get the meeting started.

The September 29th, 2020 special meeting of the Seattle City Council will come to order.

It is two o'clock PM.

I'm Lorena Gonzalez, President of the Council.

Will the clerk please call the roll.

Council Member Morales.

Here.

Council Member Mosqueda.

Here.

Council Member Peterson.

Here.

Council Member Sawant.

Here.

Council Member Strauss.

Present.

Council Member Herbold.

Council Member Juarez.

Here.

Council Member Lewis.

Present.

Council President Gonzalez.

Here.

Eight present.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

Presentations.

Council members, Senior Deputy Mayor Michael Fong is here with us on behalf of Mayor Durkan to deliver the Mayor's Proposed 2021 Budget.

The contents of the Mayor's Proposed 2021 Budget will be added to item one.

It is Clerk File 314460, which appears on today's published agenda.

Mr. Fong, thank you for being with us.

You are recognized in order to deliver the Mayor's Proposed 2021 Budget.

Great, thank you, Council President Gonzalez and good afternoon council members.

Earlier this afternoon, Mayor Durkin provided a special presentation of her 2021 budget address on the Seattle Channel.

And now pursuant to Article 5, Section 6B of the Seattle City Charter, it's my privilege to provide to the council the mayor's message regarding her recommendations for the adoption of the 2021 budget.

Now, typically, if we were meeting in person at this time, I would be providing hard copies of the mayor's message to all of you and to the city clerk.

Instead, since we're meeting virtually, the mayor's office will be providing with each of you and the clerk's office electronic copies of mayor's speech.

And that'll be provided, I believe, right now.

Thank you for your time today and look forward to engaging with each of you during the fall budget season.

Thank you.

Thank you, Senior Deputy Mayor, for being with us.

Really appreciate it.

That concludes that portion of the agenda of presentations.

You're welcome to disconnect from the line at this point.

We're going to go ahead and begin items of business on today's agenda.

First up is approval of the minutes.

The minutes of the City Council meeting of September 21st, 2020 have been reviewed.

If there is no objection, the minutes will be signed.

Hearing no objection, the minutes are being signed.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the minutes?

There is one small minute correction, and if there is no objection, the special meeting minutes of September 15th, 2020 will be corrected to include the council's action of past to council bill 119891. Hearing no objection, the minutes of September 15th, 2020 are corrected.

If there is no objection, the introduction and referral calendar will be adopted.

Hearing no objection, the introduction and referral calendar is now adopted.

If there is no objection, the agenda will be adopted.

Hearing no objection, the agenda is adopted.

Okay, colleagues, at this time we will open the remote public comment period for items on the City Council agenda, introduction and referral calendar, and the Council's 2020 work program.

I want to thank everyone for their ongoing patience and cooperation as we continue to operate this remote public comment system.

It does remain the strong intent of the City Council to have remote public comment regularly included on meeting agendas.

However, as a reminder, the city council reserves the right to end or eliminate these public comment periods at any point if we deem that this system is being abused or is no longer suitable for allowing our meetings to be conducted efficiently and effectively.

As usual, I will moderate the public comment period in the following manner.

The public comment period for this meeting was noted to be 20 minutes on the published agenda.

However, colleagues, as I mentioned this morning, I would like to go ahead and extend this afternoon's public comment period by 10 minutes for a total of 30 minutes of public comment.

If there is no objection, the public comment period will be extended to 30 minutes.

Hearing no objection, the public comment period is extended to last a total of 30 minutes today.

Each speaker will be given 45 seconds to speak.

I will call on each speaker by name and in the order in which they registered on the council's website.

If you have not yet registered to speak but would like to, you can sign up before the end of public comment by going to the council's website at seattle.gov forward slash council.

The public comment link is also listed on today's agenda.

Once I call a speaker's name, staff will unmute the appropriate microphone and an automatic prompt of you have been unmuted will be the speaker's cue that it is their turn to speak.

And the speaker must then press star six to begin speaking.

Please begin speaking by stating your name and the item that you are addressing.

As a reminder, public comment should relate to an item on today's agenda, the introduction and referral calendar, or the council's 2020 work program.

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

Once you hear the chime, we ask that you begin to wrap up your public comment.

If speakers do not end their comments at the end of the allotted time provided, the speaker's microphone will be muted to allow us to call on the next speaker.

Once you have completed your public comment, we ask that you please disconnect from the line, and if you plan to continue following this meeting, Please do so via Seattle Channel or any of the listening options listed on the agenda.

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

Please remember to press star six before speaking.

Our first speaker is Dawn Creary.

Am I unmuted?

We can hear you.

Go ahead.

Okay.

I'm calling on behalf of the Drivers Union in support of the fair share legislation.

We can use the law as a shield or we can use the law as a sword.

Today, let's use it as a sword.

President, Council President Lorena Gonzalez, you stated those words about five years ago before you cast what I think was your first vote as a city council member.

That vote was to give TMC drivers collective bargaining rights.

We thank you for your vision and your support on that day.

And five years later, Council President, we're gonna ask you to draw your sword again.

The legislation before you has the possibility to be as impactful as the $15 minimum wage.

Thank you very much.

Thank you for calling in Don.

Next up is Howard Gale, followed by Katie Garrow.

Hi, this is Howard Gale, District 7. Just last week we saw a Seattle police officer run a bike across a protester's neck, and then yesterday we saw an officer brandishing a gun at protesters for no apparent reason.

After four months of unending abuse, have you simply become a nerd?

Are near-death experiences, brain trauma, the loss of sight and hearing, multiple seizures causing brain damage, severe burn and concussion wounds, PTSD not enough?

The council must arrange weekly public hearings to take testimony from abuse survivors.

The council must call on the city attorney to prosecute what are unquestionable crimes, and the council must act immediately to de-identify officers, so at the very least, if they are not prosecuted for their crimes, taxpayers are not forced to protect those officers and pay for the damages they have inflicted on our fellow Seattleites.

Thank you for calling in.

Next up is Katie Garrow, followed by Nurani Fofana.

Hi good afternoon council members.

My name is Katie Garrow.

I'm the Deputy Director at MLK Labor which represents King County's unions and over 100,000 working people.

And I'm here today to express the labor movement's sincere appreciation and vociferous support for fair share.

Seattle has a national reputation for passing groundwork groundbreaking moral worker policies.

We set the tone.

My Facebook reminded me this morning that four years ago, the mayor signed secure scheduling into law.

And I was reflecting about some of the women of color who built that campaign and carried this one, largely behind the scenes.

Women like Lakeisha Farmer, Sejal Parikh, Brianna Thomas, Kylie Rolfe, and Dawn Gearheart.

And I also just want to acknowledge and thank the city council and mayor for choosing workers today.

It is always the right thing to do.

It is not always the easy thing to do.

Thank you.

Next up is Nurane Fofana followed by Ana Zibartz.

Hello, council members.

My name is Nurane Fofana.

I'm a Uber Elite driver for about five years.

I'm a driver union member.

Today, I'm calling in to say thank you to council member Mosquera for being a true champion for working people.

You guided this fair pay plan through the legislative process.

You sponsored important transparency and living wage improvement for riders and drivers.

And you led the way on the nation's first paid sick pay for gig workers.

We really appreciate it.

And Seattle working people will forever, forever be thankful for you.

Thank you very much.

Thank you for calling in.

Next up is Anna, followed by Michael Wolfe.

Hello, this is Anna Zebart from Disability Rights Washington, the Disability Mobility Project, calling in today on two items.

First, the fair share proposal.

We're excited to see drivers get paid fairly and also in support of the revision to the block the box.

We're also excited to see bus drivers and bus riders, the transit riders and people who need to cross the street able to do so safely.

We're excited about building a city that has a transportation system that's accessible and equitable for everyone.

Thanks.

Thanks for calling in.

Next up is Michael Wolfe followed by Ahmed Mohamed Mahmoud.

Hi, this is Michael Wolfe, Executive Director of Drive Forward.

I'm thanking the council today for considering a minimum earning standard for rideshare drivers.

Unfortunately, the system that the mayor's office has given to the council to pass is a system identical to a failed system in New York that harmed drivers, not helped them.

We would ask the city not to pass this legislation and go back to the drawing board and not copycat failed systems from other cities and be innovative and find a good way to create a minimum earning standard that actually will help all drivers.

and not pick winners and losers like this legislation does.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next up is Ahmed, followed by Zachary Gardner.

Hello, my name is Ahmed Mohamed Mohamed.

I'm a member of Niavara Union leadership members.

I want to thank Mayor Jenny Jenkins for her leadership in the spearheading the fair share plan.

Thanks to Mayor, drivers have won.

The nation is facing protection against unfair deactivation.

Funding for the driver support services, and after today, vote historic fair pay standards.

I really appreciate for all this, and I am the driver, and I want this to happen.

I know always that somebody who is not a driver I say in the drivers is not good for them.

This is good for us, and we are going to get an affirmative time when we just get buzzed for this law.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next up is Zachary Gardner, followed by Sagai Abraha.

Hello, my name is Zachary Gardner.

I'm a resident of Belltown in District 7. I'd just like to really briefly thank the seven members that voted to override the veto, but also remind you that the demands are 50% reduction in SPD budget.

I very briefly took a glance at Mayor Durkin's proposal, and once again, it is an anti-Black proposal.

Please listen to the leaders at Decriminalize Seattle, King County Equity Now, EDM, end in morning March and stand by your promise to defund by 50% at least and reinvest in Black communities.

Thank you very much.

Thank you.

Next up is Sagai followed by Patience Malaba.

Hello, my name is Sagai Abraha.

I am with the Diverse Union.

First, I'd like to congratulate and then thank for the city council members, especially my city councilwoman, Lisa, from West Seattle, for the work that has been done.

This is, I mean, it's past due.

Workers have been working many hours for less pay.

We have been even didn't get a chance to go see our family when they leave to go to work or when they go to school because we have been working throughout the clock.

So this will give us the opportunity at least to spend time with our family.

And as the first responders also, we've been also part and parcel of the first response, taking care of people with their food, taking care of people to go from one place to another, driving them.

Thank you.

Next up is patients, followed by Baraket Kidos.

Patience, if you're with us, you need to hit star six so we can hear you.

Yes.

Thank you, Council President.

Good afternoon, Council Members.

I'm Patience Malava, and I am with the Housing Development Consortium of Seattle King County.

I will be speaking to the fair share proposal.

I'm speaking today on behalf of the Fair Share Seattle Coalition, a broad coalition of more than 60 organizations.

from housing to transportation advocacy organizations and labor unions, to the environmental community, faith and neighborhood groups.

We strongly support the fair share plan to raise driver pay.

This is a critical labor protection and something we can do right now to improve people's lives.

Raising pay would address racial inequity and the low wages in our community.

Thank you, Patience.

Next up is Baraket, followed by Beverly Water.

Baraket, make sure you hit star six so we can hear you.

My name is Baraket Kiros, and I am the chair for the Coalition of Immigrant, Refugee, and Communities of Color and WAMA, Washington African Media Association.

First of all, I'd like to thank you, the president and members of the council for supporting our members of the Uber and Lyft drivers.

We are one of the 65 organizations who supported the Lyft and Uber drivers from the start.

As you know, the drivers come from different parts of the immigrant communities, and we like to acknowledge your support throughout the year, and this is the time that you should step up and taking the fairness and equity and justice today.

Thank you for calling in.

Next up is Beverly, followed by Richard Browder.

My name is Beverly waters and I am a 5 star driver with over 16,000 right given and a former left driver of the year recipient.

I am retired and a little living on Social Security and driving for lift which gives me flexibility to maintain my lifestyle I make far more than minimum wage that they drive at least 70,000 a year.

and I'm able to write off my expenses and my taxes at the end of the year.

The beauty of Rideshare is the ability to turn on and off the app and decide to drive when and where I want to.

Being an independent worker is critical for my circumstances and the potential to earn a living with freedom to drive on my own schedule.

Please listen to all drivers and vote against this ordinance to maintain freedom and flexibility for all.

Thank you for calling in.

Next up is Richard Browder, followed by Abubakar Kante.

And Richard, you just need to hit star six so we can hear you.

Tech, can you confirm that Richard is on the line?

Affirmed.

Thank you so much, Richard.

Again, if you're speaking, you need to hit star six on your phone so we can hear you.

It looks like we're having some technical difficulties there, so we will circle back to Richard.

So, let's go on to speaker number 16, Abubakar Kante.

Abubakar Kante here.

Can you hear me?

We can hear you.

Go ahead.

I started right here as a coordinator with minimum wage, and I am tired of the word minimum wage.

This is an independent business owner.

It is not a contract.

We are not supposed to sit down and charge minimum wage.

I am earning way more than that.

I am opposing what you guys are promoting.

Since when did TNC become a toddler thing?

My family, my family.

I got family.

Guess what?

I work.

and I earn money.

All we need to do is go back to the table and forget what has failed in New York to be implemented in Seattle.

We live next to the multimillion-dollar owners in the world, billionaires in Seattle.

How can we go to minimum wage?

It don't do no job for us.

Thank you for calling in.

Next up is Jamel Jara followed by Yimur Endidis.

And Jamal, if you're with us, you need to hit star six on your phone so we can hear you.

Okay, looks like we're having some technical difficulties there, so let's move on to speaker number 19, Ymir Indiris.

Hi, my name is Yimer Andres from Driver's Union.

I would like to thank Council Member Shama Tawan for being on the driver's side in the fight for fair pay, because fair pay is so important to me and all other drivers to make a living.

I'm very grateful for what you have done so far, and I'm positive you will be always on the right side of history.

in the fight for driver's rights and all other issues.

Thank you very much.

Thank you for calling in.

Next up is Jake Lindsay.

And Jake, if you're on the line, you need to hit star six so we can hear you.

Sorry about that.

My name is Jake Lindsay.

I am a constituent of Dan Strauss in D6 and wanted to call with the driver's union and do some volunteering for them.

And just wanted to call to thank Council Member Strauss, my guy, to put in a provision in fair share, ensuring that drivers are fairly compensated for their time spent cleaning and disinfecting their vehicles.

It's really important, great legislation you're passing here because no drivers will now earn less than a minimum wage, but can still earn more than that.

And this will affect tens of thousands of workers in Seattle, a huge number of which are BIPOC and immigrants.

I also just wanted to thank the council member for his vote to override the veto and want to hold him accountable to still defund by 50%.

Thank you.

Sorry about that, folks.

Next up is Mui Khan, followed by Bashar Hassan.

Hi, my name is Mui Khan.

I've been working with Uber and Lyft for like three years.

I'm also a part-time caregiver.

So this flexibility of the ride share helps me balance my life.

Like being a caregiver is a hard job and it requires a lot of physical work and I like to do the right share of part time to release, you know, like pressure on the arms and the legs.

So I like to balance.

And also this working both part time job allows me to, you know, give some family time to my daughter and help her with a grandson or maybe help my siblings with her kids for school time.

And I like the freedom of getting instant pay.

So I was hoping this does not pass, because this feature.

Thank you for calling in.

Next up is Bashar Hassan.

And then we're going to go back to speaker number 17, Jamel.

Hello.

Go ahead.

Yeah, good afternoon.

My name is Bashar Hassan, and I'm with the Drivers Union.

Today, I want to thank council member Tammy Jay Morales, you spoke strongly during your campaign about the importance of justice for Uber and Lyft drivers, and we are thankful for your voice on the council.

The day you knocked my house in November last year asking for my vote, I knew you were a champion, and the second district is proud of you.

Keep up the good work.

We are behind you, and we're really supporting the fair pay for Uber and Lyft drivers.

Thank you very much.

Thank you for calling in today.

Okay, we're going to try speaker number 17 again, Jamel Jara, and then we will hear from Jason Reeves.

Hello, my name is Jamel Jara, and I am with Drivers Union.

I'm supporting TNCC Fair Pay.

Thanks for Council Member Lewis.

This pandemic has raised awareness of uncompensated time and expenses drivers face cleaning our vehicles in between trips.

Thank you for your leadership on this issue both on hazard pay and this fair pay standard.

Fair pay is important because drivers can pay their expenses without much concern and help them spend time with their family.

I get more than 15,000 rides and I have five star rating of customer satisfaction but I'm not making much money.

Therefore, I'm hoping all council members will vote yes for fair pay.

Thank you so much.

Thank you for calling in today.

Next up is Jason Reeves, followed by Josh Perlman.

My name is Jason, and I'm here in support of fair share.

I have 4,300 completed jobs in the gig industry.

Right now, pay is on the decline because of the influx of new drivers who have been furloughed because of the pandemic.

This is good work when it works, but it doesn't always work.

Now, let the industry Don't let the industry continue to go unregulated.

It exploits the most vulnerable people who aren't given the option to work from home.

Drivers still working out there, taking on more risk than ever as a gig worker.

Lower pay keeps our numbers up, which keeps the pandemic going.

High pay equals social distancing.

This is a simple equation, folks.

Let's stop the astroturfing.

Let's start doing the responsible work of keeping this pandemic at bay.

Thank you for calling in today.

Next up is Josh followed by Abdu Gobeni.

Hi, my name is Josh and I'm a full-time ride.

Can you hear me?

We can hear you.

Go ahead.

Okay.

My name is Josh and I'm a, been a full-time ride share driver for about four years, uh, calling, uh, regarding fair share.

Uh, I, uh, Got close to 20,000 rides, five-star, all that.

I kind of agree with the last guy, actually.

It's kind of the tendency of these companies.

They want to flood the market with as many brand-new drivers as possible, which kind of mutes the voices of people who have been around for a while, for the most part.

You know, it also reduces the income vastly, and I think that the companies need to be doing a lot more of that, keep our earnings up.

Thank you.

Next up is Abdu, followed by Mandolin Nwa.

Hi, good afternoon, the council members.

My name is Abdu Gobani, Executive Director of Oromo Cultural Center.

Oromo Cultural Center is a nonprofit organization serving East African refugees in Seattle and its surrounding cities.

My talking agenda is TNC fair pay.

I stand in solidarity with Uber and Lyft drivers in their struggle for racial justice, fair treatments, and living wage.

The fight for fair pay has been a long, multi-year struggle.

led by black and brown immigrant drivers organizing together as a union despite being excluded from the protectionist of traditional labor laws.

I would like to thank all council members for voting today to this really amazing fairness.

Thank you so much.

Thank you for calling in.

Next up is Mandolin followed by Kosasi Winoto.

Hi my name is Mandalyn Noir.

I live in Burien and I have worked with Rover since 2014 in Seattle and other cities and I am a volunteer for work in Washington.

I'm here to testify in support of CB 119876. I support the need for a fair base wage.

Drivers I've talked to say they make about $4,000 per month and that's including tips and before factoring in huge expenses and taxes.

which ends up equaling an amount less than minimum wage.

Pay on Uber and Lyft has decreased over time and that's true for other apps as well.

I appreciate council supporting this law for ride share drivers and I urge you to do the same for other gig workers.

Gig companies need to be more clear with.

Thank you for calling in today.

Next up is Kosasi, followed by Suk Chin Banwet.

Hi, good afternoon, country member.

I really appreciate for your time.

So I'm drive for Uber and Lyft.

It's about five years.

And then everything is good for me.

I like flexibility.

I like freedom.

So I'm over.

$25 an hour, so I feel sorry for my fellow driver who makes less than that, you know.

And then also, if you want to make this bill even, so increase the pay per mile for Uber and Lyft.

So every driver can make more money.

Don't say how much minimum pay, because we are not the employer.

Thank you for calling Next.

Next, we have speaker number 32, Sukhchain, followed by Valerie Schloret.

Hello.

Can you hear me?

We can hear you.

Go ahead.

Thank you.

My name is Sukhchain Banwath.

I am the union member, Uber and Lyft driver for seven plus years.

Today's victory is the result of long, multi-year campaign led by drivers.

We would not be here today without the leadership of the former council member, Mike O'Brien, and the other champions who have come before us.

Also, I'd like to thank you, Seattle Mayor and council members.

We really appreciate all the help, again, for the fair pay, vacation, and medical.

Thank you so much.

We really appreciate your help.

Thank you for calling in.

Next up is Valerie, followed by James Thomas.

Hi, this is Valerie Surette from District 2. In the past week, I've seen videos of a Seattle police officer rolling his mountain bike over a protester's head.

Another video last night of an officer holding his gun in his car pointed toward a protester who was just trying to talk to him.

just two very small examples of SPD doubling down on violent responses to protest at a time when there's widespread concern and criticism about that.

We really do need an intervention by city council since Mayor Durkan is not interested in doing it.

We've had far too many injuries and it really is a very dangerous situation.

Please get

Thank you.

Next up is James Thomas, followed by Mariah Mitchell.

And James, if you're on the line, you need to hit star six.

Okay, we're not able to hear James, so let's go to Mariah Mitchell, and then we'll hear from Lata Ahmed.

Hi, my name is Mariah Mitchell.

I live in the third city council district, Kusama-Salat district.

And I am calling today regarding the fair wage for drivers.

But before I say that, I would like to say about the defund Seattle, that our children and us have been living with the police using their power against us for a long time.

And I really believe that people should step up and tell the truth and be honest.

about what's going on.

But I'm calling in today regarding the fair share.

And I think that it is great and it's long overdue.

I'm a former Lyft driver and currently an Uber Eats and Postmates driver.

And I support the fair share policy for Uber and Lyft.

And I think that you guys should have done this a lot sooner and made these protections for all gig workers that rely on these gig work while the pandemic is going on and we don't

Thank you for calling in.

Next up is Lata Ahmed, and then we will try James Thomas again.

Thank you, Council Member.

My name is Lata Ahmed.

I'm from Driver Union, and I support fair pay.

And these drivers unite from a diverse community.

is what created today's victory.

Thank you to council, to all council members who have not been spoken yet.

But I just wanted to appreciate again council member Sharma Swat for the hard work and for the all support she's been giving out to the community.

And the one thing I've learned from her is that solidarity is what make us strong again.

And I unite with the all community who organization who supported us as a driver union.

And thank you to all council member.

Thank you for calling in Lata.

Next up is James Thomas.

And again, James, make sure you hit star six in order to unmute yourself.

All right, sounds like we are still having some technical difficulties with caller number 36. So we're going to go ahead and move on to caller number 39, Maddy Kebe, followed by Bob Golbrunson.

Hi, can you guys hear me?

We can hear you.

Go ahead.

Yes, my name is Maddy Kebe.

I drive Uber and Lyft since 2015. And I just want to thank you guys so much.

This means a lot for us, for our family.

And we drive Uber and Lyft, we're depending on it.

We do it for full time, and we sacrifice our family, saving time to them.

For this driving, we end up with nothing.

So we want to thank you, Council Member, for doing this.

We really appreciate that.

Thank you so much.

Thank you for calling in today.

Next up is Bob Golbrinson, followed by Peter Quell.

Hello, my name is Robert Golbrinson.

I'm with the Drivers Union and I'd like to thank Council Member Juarez You first met with the drivers back in 2015, and your support has been strong ever since.

Thank you.

Fair pay is important to me because our cost of cars, gas, insurance, and taxes are rising more every year, while ride share companies are taking more in commissions on every ride.

Drivers need Mayor Durkin's fair share plan.

Thank you for Thank you all councilmembers and bye.

Thank you for calling in today.

Next up is Peter followed by Amado Diallo.

All right.

My name is Peter Quill.

I'm the union president and the mayor of Seattle.

Thank you so much to everyone.

Today, I would like to thank the union members and also I would like to thank the minister for their support.

And also with that, we are able to win the activation law that was passed.

Ajit Pai and Waiwai Center.

And we will be a fair pay, the highest pay in the country.

With our diverse community, we are able to make it.

Thank you for calling in.

Next up is Amadou Diallo, followed by Ahmed Farah.

Hello, can you hear me?

We can hear you.

Go ahead.

Yes.

Hi, my name is Amadou Diallo.

I came from Union Drivers.

And I thank the city council member to be on the side of the drivers.

And I support the fare raise.

And I would drive for Lyft and Uber since 2018. And I take all my time to work like full time.

So I left my family home.

I work hard.

And I end up making not enough to pay my bills.

So it's not compared to where I make it and expensive of the city.

So we need to raise, you know, the city council member to be on our side to raise the price at least a little bit.

Thank you.

Next up is Ahmed Farah.

Hi, my name is Ahmed Farah and I'm calling in support of the Drivers Union and also the Fair Bay.

I would like to take this time to thank the Seattle City Council, the Mayor, Teamsters, Local Union 117, and all of the community members that call in today to support us.

And I would like to encourage our council members to please take this final step and approve this policy.

And I thank you and I thank all my co-drivers out there who are supporting this.

Thank you.

Thank you so much colleagues that does bring us to the conclusion of our public comment period.

We have been going for a little over 30 minutes and made it about 95% of the way through the list.

I'm going to go ahead and close out the period of public comment.

My apologies to those who signed up, but we didn't get to.

hear from today, but we do have well over 20 items of business on our agenda today.

So I'm going to go ahead and again, close out the period of public comment and begin the items of business on the agenda.

First up is payment of the bills.

Will the clerk please read the title?

Council Bill 119901, an ordinance appropriating money to pay certain audited claims for the week of September 14, 2020, through September 18, 2020, and ordering the payment thereof.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

I move to pass Council Bill 119901. Is there a second?

Second.

Thank you.

It's been moved and seconded that the bill pass.

Are there any comments?

Hearing no comments, will the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill.

Morales.

Yes.

Mosqueda.

Yes.

Peterson.

Yes.

Sawant.

Yes.

Strauss.

Yes.

Herbold.

Yes.

Juarez.

Yes.

Lewis.

Yes.

President Gonzalez.

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

The bill passes and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please.

Council President, you are on mute.

Sorry, I have been.

I'm hitting the proper button and it's just not working for me today.

OK, the bill passes and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation?

Committee reports of the City Council item one.

Will the clerk please read item one into the record?

Agenda Item 1, Clerk File 314460, Mayor Jenny A. Durkin's Budget Address on the 2021 Budget.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

I move to accept and file Clerk File 314460. Is there a second?

Second.

Thank you.

It's been moved and seconded to accept and file the Clerk File.

Are there any comments?

Council Member Mosqueda, please.

Thank you very much, Council President.

I just wanted to take a quick second to say thank you, Council colleagues.

I've had the chance to meet with many of you over the last few weeks to talk about the upcoming 2021 fall budget process.

I appreciate all of the items that you are teeing up for our discussion over the next month and a half here in front of us.

looking forward to making sure that we continue to work together, advance priorities as a collective and also build on the proposal that's in front of us, have the opportunity as well to connect with the mayor on the priorities in her proposed budget.

I really look forward to reviewing the robust materials that we've received today and to working with all of you and the community at large As a reminder, we only have the 2021 budget in front of us.

We will not be having the 2022 budget for endorsement this year.

Just wanted to flag that and say thanks in advance for all of your work to your offices, to our city, central staff, and to the community.

Thank you, Madam President.

Thank you, Council Member Mosqueda.

Are there any additional comments on this clerk file?

Okay, hearing none, will the clerk please call the roll on accepting and filing the file.

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Yes.

Peterson?

Yes.

Sawant?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herbold?

Yes.

Juarez?

Yes.

Lewis?

Yes.

President Gonzales.

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

The motion carries and the clerk file has been accepted and filed.

Item two.

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

Agenda item two, Council Bill 119888, relating to city employment, adopting a 2020 citywide position list.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

I move to pass Council Bill 119888. Is there a second?

Second.

Thank you.

It's been moved and seconded to pass the bill.

A sponsor of the bill.

I'll address it really quickly and then ask if there are any additional comments.

Again, colleagues, as I mentioned this morning during Council briefing, this bill relates to city employment.

It is legislation that presents the official 2020 citywide position list, which fulfills an important administrative function but does not have a substantive impact to city operations, employees, or funds.

This is routine legislation that the Council considers annually around this time of year.

And this morning I did ask members to contact my office or my chief of staff, Brianna Thomas, with any questions or concerns about the legislation.

And we did not receive any additional inquiries.

So I am urging my colleagues to vote in favor of passage of Council Bill 119888. Are there any additional comments?

Hearing none, will the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill?

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Yes.

Peterson.

Yes.

Sawant.

Yes.

Strauss.

Yes.

Herbold.

Yes.

Juarez.

Yes.

Lewis.

Yes.

President Gonzalez.

Yes.

Nine in favor, nine opposed.

Thank you.

The bill passes and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation.

Item three.

Will the clerk please read item three into the record.

Agenda Item 3, Council Bill 119882, authorizing the Director of the Department of Finance and Administrative Services to execute and accept from the Washington State Department of National Resources on behalf of the City of Seattle a waterway permit and three sequential waterway permits for the Seattle Police Department's Harbor Patrol use of Waterway 20.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

I move to pass Council Bill 119882. Is there a second?

Second.

It's been moved and seconded to pass the bill.

Council Member Herbold, you are the prime sponsor of the bill and are recognized in order to address this item.

Thank you so much.

As the title suggests, the legislation executes and accepts a waterway permit and three sequential waterway permits for the Seattle Police Department's Harbor Patrol use of what is called Waterway 20. This is the area to the west of the city-owned SPD Harbor Patrol facility adjacent to Gas Works Park.

The area contains a dock, a holding pen enclosed by a log boom, and a concrete boat ramp.

This is on land that is under the jurisdiction of the Washington State Department of Natural Resources.

Harbor Patrol has been using it for some time for temporary storage of navigational hazards, impounded or stolen vehicles, evidence, and other uses.

And as it relates to navigational hazards, This is detritus that they collect in the water.

As a condition of the permit, FAS will have to meet with the Wallingford Community Council and the Center for Wooden Boats on a monthly basis in order to create a future conceptual plan for the use of Waterway 20, which meets the interests of both the City and the Community Council.

It was a really interesting article that appeared in Crosscut a few weeks ago about the history of the waterways.

Notes that the Harbor Patrol has been using it since 1962, and this would approve a permit to do so.

There's been strong community interest in public access to the water at this particular location.

And I'm really pleased that the permit itself addresses this by including as a condition of the permit that FAS will meet with the Wallingford Community Council and the Center for Wooden Boats on a monthly basis in order to create this future conceptual plan.

The permit is through June 30, 2022. It does not include an automatic right to renewal.

The permit states that the city and the Waddingford Community Council have not reached consensus.

By the end of the permit, the state shall deny the application for a new permit.

unless the state in its sole discretion waives the requirement of a consensus conceptual use plan.

Also want to just real quickly give a shout out to some of the advocates, the shoreline access advocates who've been maintaining the site over a very long period of time.

Ted Hunter and Lee Ran are two of the many names that come to mind.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Herbold.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Councilmember Peterson, please.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you, Councilmember Herbold.

Couldn't have said it better.

And, you know, when I was a legislative aide, I would go to these community council meetings.

And this issue was brought up when I was a legislative aide about the desire to have more public access to the waterfront.

This is something, as you said, that they've been working on very hard for a long time.

And I want to thank the Finance and Administrative Services Department for putting this forward, working with Washington State Department of Natural Resources to get this done.

It's an important step toward getting public access in the future.

So thank you for your work, Councilor Herbold, as well.

Thank you, Councilor Peterson.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Hearing none, will the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill.

Morales.

Yes.

Mosqueda.

Yes.

Peterson.

Yes.

Zawad.

Yes.

Strauss.

Yes.

Herbold.

Yes.

Juarez.

Yes.

Lewis.

Yes.

President Gonzales.

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

The bill passes and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation?

Item number four.

Will the clerk please read item four into the record?

Agenda item four, Council Bill 119896, relating to the City Light and Seattle Public Utilities Department, temporarily removing the charge of interest on delinquent utility consumption and utilization accounts.

Superseding several sections under Title 21 that authorize and require the collection of interest on building utility consumption and utilization accounts and ratifying and confirming search and fire acts.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

I move to pass Council Bill 119896. Is there a second?

Second.

It's been moved and seconded to pass the bill.

Council Member Peterson, you are the sponsor of this legislation and are recognized in order to address the item.

Thank you, Council President.

As I mentioned at Council briefing this morning, this Council Bill 119896 is another example of the relief that we've all been providing during the COVID pandemic.

Specifically, this legislation is needed to extend for another several months the ordinance that we passed earlier this year to prevent charges for late payments on utility bills.

This financial relief applies to both of the utility enterprises that we own and operate, Seattle City Light and Seattle Public Utilities.

I'm happy to support this extension and thank Mayor Durkin and her general managers of each utility, Debra Smith and Mami Hara, for figuring out a way to make this happen financially.

This relief extends through the end of this year and we can visit it again at that time.

Thank you.

Thank you, Council Member Peterson.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Council Member Mosqueda, did you have your hand raised?

Yes, Council Member Mosqueda, please.

Thank you, Madam President.

Council Collings, I am happy to be voting to extend the suspension of late fees until January 2021, but want to note, as I think Council Member Peterson, you just articulated as well, it's possible that we will likely need to revisit the timeline before it expires at the beginning of next year.

We know that the crisis of the COVID impacts will not end at the beginning of next year, and in fact, given compounding crises that are in front of us may even be more acute as various protections and support systems erode, either at the federal level or local supports expire.

So I just wanted to lift that point up and say I think this is a really good step for us to be taking right now, but also note that advocates such as Puget Sound SAGE are working at the state level for utility relief, recognizing these bills are an important piece of the affordability puzzle, And that without them, there are serious hardships that folks are experiencing, whether it's struggling to pay rent or put food on the table or care for families.

And although there is a moratorium on shutoffs in place in Seattle during COVID emergency, we don't want any households to be racking up utility late fees during this pandemic.

And therefore, it's extremely likely, in my opinion, that we will need to revisit the change prior to the January 1st, 2021 expiration.

But every little bit matters and is really important right now.

So excited to support Council Member Peterson, you on this effort and looking forward to future conversations on this.

Thank you, Council Member Mosqueda.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

All right, colleagues, hearing no additional comments, will the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill?

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Aye.

Peterson?

Aye.

DeWant?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herpold?

Yes.

Juarez?

Aye.

Lewis?

Yes.

President Gonzales?

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

The bill passes and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation?

Agenda item number five.

Will the clerk please read item five into the record?

Agenda item five, Council Bill 1019-897, establishing additional use for automated traffic safety cameras to reduce traffic congestion.

and increased safety, amending sections 11.31.090 and 11.50.570 of the San Luis Obispo Code, and ratifying and confirming search and fire acts.

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

I move to pass Council Bill 119897. Is there a second?

Second.

Thank you.

It's been moved and seconded to pass the bill.

Council Member Peterson, you are listed as a prime sponsor of this legislation and are recognized in order to address this item.

Thank you, Council President, and I'm co-sponsoring this bill with Councilmember Herbold, and I know that other Councilmembers have worked hard on this to make this a reality, including Councilmember Strauss, so I hope others will speak to this as well, but I'll summarize the bill for folks right now.

This is the long-awaited block the box transportation legislation, and this As you know, the transportation expert on our city council central staff, Calvin Chow, wrote an excellent memo explaining this council bill in detail.

The bill authorizes the city to take advantage of a new state law to expand our use of automated cameras to enforce rules prohibiting vehicles from blocking crosswalks and bus lanes.

I know we're eager to have these cameras installed to help traffic flow along the Spokane Street swing bridge following the closure of the West Seattle High Bridge.

The state government authorized this as a pilot project that requires reporting of the results along the way.

And unless it's extended, it would expire in June 2023. I imagine we'll seek to have it extended.

Ideally, the results will show that this legislation helped us to prioritize pedestrian safety and the efficient flow of public mass transit.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Peterson.

Are there any additional comments?

Councilmember Herbold, please.

Thank you.

I just want to speak specifically to the West Seattle related implications of this legislation since the automated cameras will be used first on the Spokane Street lower bridge.

SDOT has indicated that uses and access to the Spokane Street lower bridge can be reconsidered after camera enforcement begins and we get a sense of what the new traffic patterns are with more robust enforcement on the restrictions.

We know that general access is allowed on the lower bridge from 9 p.m.

to 5 p.m.

But at all other times, general access is restricted.

School buses, employer shuttles, van pulls of essential workers, access for longshoremen, and West Seattle businesses are the only vehicles that should be on the bridge at times other than 9 p.m.

to 5 a.m.

And so it's really important that the general public observe these restrictions from 5 a.m.

to 9 p.m.

And again, by having more robust enforcement, we might be able to reassess whether or not we can allow more sanctioned access to the lower-level bridge.

at the time it's restricted from the general public.

That could mean allowing more van pulls.

It could mean allowing more employer shuttles.

It could mean allowing maybe essential workers who are not in a van pull.

and it could mean looking at changes to the times that the restrictions exist.

Under state law, only warning notices will be allowed in 2020 and fines up to only $75 will be starting in 2021. Half of the funds would go to a state fund and the remaining funds may only be used for equitable access transportation improvements and mobility for people with disabilities.

I want to flag that the fiscal note for the bill identifies the need for additional officers in 2021 for the statutorily required review of tickets.

There is a function that a sworn officer has to fulfill in reviewing the tickets before their issuance.

And this is a statutory requirement in state law and in our ongoing efforts to to look at functions that uniformed officers are assigned.

I want to just flag.

This is perhaps something that we should work with our state legislature.

to allow either an SDOT employee or a non-uniformed officer to fulfill this function.

I want to also thank the 34th district representative, Joe Fitzgibbons, a long champion of the state legislation that allows the city to move on automated enforcement as it relates to transit lanes and blocking the box.

Thank you.

Thank you, Council Member Herbold.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Okay, hearing no additional comments on the bill, will the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill?

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Yes.

Peterson?

Yes.

Sawant?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herbold?

Yes.

Warren.

Aye.

Lewis.

Yes.

President Gonzalez.

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

The bill passes and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation item six.

Will the clerk please read item six into the record?

Item six clerk file 314458. I move to approve and file clerk file 314458.

Thank you, Council President.

This is a memo from our city auditor simply requesting a few more months to complete reports on two Seattle Department of Transportation-related surveillance technologies, the license plate reader technology and the closed circuit TV technology.

So happy to answer any questions about it.

The memo is self-explanatory as well, which is the clerk file itself.

Colleagues, any comments on the bill?

Sorry, the clerk file.

Thank you for that brief explanation, Council Member Peterson.

Okay, will the clerk please call the roll on the approval and filing of the clerk file?

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Aye.

Peterson?

Aye.

Dwan?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herbold?

Yes.

Juarez?

Aye.

Lewis?

Yes.

President Gonzalez?

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

The motion carries and the clerk file is approved and filed.

Item seven, will the clerk please read item seven into the record?

Agenda item seven, appointment 1617, appointment of Christopher Martin Bowne as a member of Pike Place Market Historical Commission for term to December 1st, 2022.

Thank you, I move to confirm appointment 1617, is there a second?

It's been moved and seconded to confirm the appointment.

Council Member Strauss, you are the prime sponsor of this appointment and are recognized in order to address this item.

Thank you, Council President.

There are several amendments that we will be voting on momentarily.

Appointment 01617 is for Christopher Brown to the Pike Place Market Historical Commission.

Christopher is a real estate contract officer for the FAA, Federal Aviation Administration.

and has served on the boards of several local private schools.

He is being appointed to fill a friends of the market position to the board.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you so much.

Council Member Strauss, are there any additional comments on the appointment?

Hearing no additional comments on the appointment, will the clerk please call the roll on the confirmation of the appointment?

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Yes.

Peterson?

Yes.

The what?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herbold?

Yes.

Juarez?

Yes.

Lewis?

Yes.

President Gonzalez?

Yes.

None in favor, none opposed.

Thank you.

The motion carries and the appointment is confirmed.

Items eight through 10. Will the clerk please read items eight through 10 into the record?

Agenda items A through 10, appointments 1633 through 1635. Appointments of Dylan Jones, Julie L. McCulloch, and Blake Voorhees as members of the Forestry Commission for term to March 31st, 2023.

Thank you.

I move to confirm appointments 1633 through 1635. Is there a second?

Second.

It's been moved and seconded to confirm the appointments.

Council Member Strauss, you are the sponsor of these appointments and are recognized in order to address them.

Thank you, Council President.

These three appointments to the Urban Forestry Commission.

The Urban Forestry Commission advises the city on tree policies and is currently working to update the urban forestry management plan for our city.

These three positions fill specific positions within each board.

As we know, each commission has specifically allotted positions on their board to ensure broad representation.

L.B.

Jones is the Green City program manager at Fort Terra, a certified ecological restoration practitioner with the Society for Ecological Restoration.

They are being appointed to the board for the urban ecologist position.

It's a mouthful sometimes.

Julia is a research scientist at the Landscape Ecology Lab and Conservation Lab at the University of Washington.

She's being appointed to the wildlife biologist position.

Blake Voorhees is a real estate broker with Caldwell Bain and has a background as a litigation paralegal for several firms in the area.

He is being appointed to the realtor position.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you, Council Member Strauss.

Are there any additional comments on the appointments?

Hearing no additional comments on the appointments, will the clerk please call the roll on the confirmation of the appointments?

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Aye.

Peterson?

Aye.

DeWant?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herbold?

Yes.

Juarez?

Aye.

Lewis?

Yes.

President Gonzalez?

Yes.

None in favor, none opposed.

The motion carries and the appointments are confirmed.

Items 11 and 12. Will the clerk please read items 11 and 12 into the record.

Items 11 and 12 appointments 1637 and 1636 appointment of Tanya T. Wu as member International Special Review District Court for term to November 30th, 2020. And appointment is Matt Fujimoto as Member International Special Review District Board for term 2 December 31st, 2021.

Thank you.

I move to confirm appointments 1637 and 1636. Is there a second?

Second.

Thank you so much.

It's been moved and seconded to confirm the appointments.

Council Member Strauss, you are also the sponsor of these appointments and are recognized in order to address these items.

Thank you, Council President.

These are two appointments to the International Special Review District Board.

The ISRD is unique among other boards and commissions in that residents and property owners within the ISRD elect five of the seven board members with the other two appointments being made by the mayor.

The mayor also fills vacancies in elected positions.

Matt Fujimoto is being appointed to one of the mayor's appointed positions.

He is an architect who has previously worked with Low Income Housing Institute and Compass Housing.

Tanya Wu is a mayoral appointee to fill a vacant elected seat.

She was raised in the CID and is working on the Louisa Hotel redevelopment project, which is beautiful and a great project.

She previously served on the board from 2018 to 2019. Thank you, Council President.

Thank you, Council Member Strauss.

Are there any additional comments on the appointments?

Hearing no additional comments on the appointments, will the clerk please call the roll on the confirmation of the appointments.

Morales.

Yes.

Mosqueda.

Yes.

Peterson.

Yes.

Nalant.

Yes.

Strauss.

Yes.

Herbold.

Yes.

Juarez.

Yes.

Lewis.

Yes.

Yes.

President Gonzalez?

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

The motion carries and the appointments are confirmed.

Report of the Public Safety and Human Services Committee, item 13. Will the clerk please read item 13 into the record?

Agenda item 13, appointment 1639, appointment of Catherine Marie McDowell as Seattle Municipal Court Judge, position one.

The committee recommends the appointment be confirmed.

Thank you.

Council Member Herbold, as chair of the committee, you are recognized in order to provide the committee report.

Thank you so much.

Judge McDowell has served as pro tem at the Seattle Municipal Court and has been a judge as a pro tem at King County District Court for over seven years.

Pro tem McDowell received a rating of well qualified from the King County Bar Association, qualified from the Lauren Millen Bar Association, and exceptionally well qualified from the Washington Women Lawyers.

We received a letter of support from the Judicial Evaluation Committee, which you can review in the clerk file, which represents several local minority bar associations.

There is a process that was established by Ordinance 121698. This ordinance was passed in 2004. because of the importance that the council at that time placed on firmly establishing judicial independence from the mayor in the instances where the mayor has to fill a vacancy on the court.

The process as described requires the city clerk to send written notice of existing vacancies to each of the bars, including, again, King County Bar Association, Washington Women Lawyers, the Latinx Bar Association, the Lauren Miller Bar Association, the National Conference of Black Lawyers, Northwest Chapter, the Asian Law Association, and any other personal organization that has previously informed the clerk in writing that it wishes to receive this notice.

All individuals that advise the mayor that they wish to be considered for this appointment and confirmation for municipal court judicial positions, then submit their names to the bar associations that I already mentioned.

And these bar associations thus form a judicial candidate evaluation committee.

And the King County Bar Association is then requested to provide to the mayor and the council the names of those candidates receiving the highest ratings in that evaluation process.

The list is required to include no fewer than three names.

And other bar association groups that have evaluated candidates are also invited to provide the King County Bar Association a list of the names of candidates given their highest ratings.

King County Bar Association then compiles the lists and forwards them to the mayor and the council.

the mayor then reviews and appoints a candidate from the three recommended candidates submitted by the evaluation committee, and of course, the council reviews and appoints.

In this instance, there were 13 applicants that the committee reviewed.

and three were recommended to the mayor.

This appointment was previously, the position was previously held by Judge Edward McKenna, who retired at the end of April of this year.

And if appointed, the Pro Tem McDowell will serve in the vacancy until December 31st, 2022.

Thank you, Council Member Herbold.

Are there any additional comments on the appointment?

Hearing no additional comments on the appointment, will the clerk please call the roll on the confirmation of the appointment?

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Yes.

Peterson?

Yes.

DeWant?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herbold?

Yes.

Juarez?

Yes.

Lewis?

Yes.

President Gonzales?

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

Thank you.

The motion carries and the appointment is confirmed.

Item 14. Will the clerk please read item 14 into the record?

Item 14, appointment 1638, appointment of Dorothy Lee-Louisette as member of Public Safety Civil Service Commission for term to December 31st, 2022. The committee recommends that the appointment be confirmed

Thank you, Madam Clerk.

Council Member Herbold, as chair of the committee, you are recognized in order to provide the committee report.

Thank you again.

The Seattle Public Safety Civil Service Commission is a three-member impartial quasi-judicial body.

The mayor and the council each appoint one member to the commission, and the city's civil service employees elect a third member.

Each commissioner serves a three-year term.

The commission hears appeals of sworn police, and uniformed fire employees involving disciplinary actions, examination and testing, and alleged violations of the city charter personnel rules and personnel ordinance.

One topic, as mentioned this morning, of great interest that the commission is involved in is we know that proposals from the chief of police for out of order layoffs in the interest of efficient operations of the department, as the council has requested, The Public Safety Civil Service Commission director makes the decision with the advice of the commission, and the commission hears appeals.

The applicant before us today is Dorothy Yee Leggett.

She has a wide variety of legal and policy experience at the federal, state, and local levels in areas including workers' comp, family law, and nonprofit governance, and experience in a civil service system, and quasi-judicial decision-making.

She serves as staff attorney for the Eastside Legal Assistance Program, assists survivors of domestic violence, hosts legal clinics, and advises clients on issues including employment, housing, public benefits, immigration, and family law.

As staff counsel to the California State Compensation Insurance Fund, she conducted investigations and legal research of state regulations and case law, and made over 500 appearances before the Workers' Comp Appeals Court.

Thank you, Council Member Herbold for that report.

Are there any additional comments on the appointment?

Hearing no additional comments, will the clerk please call the roll on the confirmation of the appointment?

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Aye.

Peterson?

Aye.

Sawant?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herbold?

Yes.

Juarez?

Yes.

Lewis?

Yes.

President Gonzales?

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

The motion carries and the appointment is confirmed.

Okay, item 15. Will the clerk please read item 15 into the record?

Item 15, Council Bill 119893, relating to the Seattle Whistleblower Protection Code, expanding the definition of reports and the City of Seattle Whistleblower Protection Ordinance to include reporting to the Office of Inspector General for Public Safety, amending section 4.20.805 of the San Francisco Code.

The committee recommends the bill pass.

Thank you so much.

Council Member Hurdle, as chair of the committee, you are recognized in order to provide the report on this item.

Thank you again.

This bill amends the whistleblower protection code to provide whistleblower protection to employees who report improper government actions to the Office of the Inspector General by amending the definition of report in the whistleblower protection code.

It's in the public interest.

to encourage public employees to report instances of improper governmental action in order to give the governmental entity the opportunity to correct improper governmental actions.

And the most effective way to encourage public employees to report improper governmental actions is to provide an effective whistleblower protection program that includes a clear reporting process and effective protection from retaliation.

In committee last week, the Office of the Inspector General noted that situations have arrived or have arisen in the previous work of the Office of the Inspector General that led to this legislation, namely people wanting to come forward to report improper governmental action to the Office of the Inspector General and finding that they did not have whistleblower protection.

This legislation, in addition to granting protection to complaints directed to the Office of the Inspector General, also updates the title of the OPA from Office of Professional Accountability to the Office of Police Accountability.

I'm sorry, the Office of Ethics and Elections, Director Wayne Burnett was present in committee last week as well, and he has indicated his support for this legislation.

Thank you so much.

Council Member Herbold, are there any additional comments on the bill?

Hearing no additional comments on the bill, will the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill?

Madam Clerk, you may be muted.

Council Member Morales?

Council Member Morales?

Yes.

Council Member Mosqueda?

Aye.

Council Member Peterson?

Here.

I mean, aye.

Council Member Sawant.

Yes.

Council Member Stroud.

Yes.

Council Member Herbold.

Yes.

Council Member Juarez.

Aye.

Council Member Lewis.

Yes.

And Council President Gonzalez.

Aye.

Nine in favor, nine opposed.

The bill passes and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation?

Okay, report of the Finance and Housing Committee, item 16. Will the clerk please read the short title of item 16 into the record?

Council Bill 119876 relating to the Transportation Network Company driver labor standards, establishing minimum labor and compensation standards for Transportation Network Company drivers.

The committee recommends the bill pass as amended.

Thank you so much, Madam Clerk.

Council Member Mosqueda, as chair of the committee, you are recognized in order to provide the committee report.

Thank you very much, Council President.

Council colleagues, I am really honored to be bringing forward this piece of legislation with all of you today.

The substitute legislation dealing with providing key labor protections and wage standards to TNC drivers passed out of the Finance and Housing Committee unanimously.

And in addition to that, all of the Finance and Housing Committee colleagues are co-sponsors.

Thank you, Vice Chair Herbold, Council President Gonzalez, Council Member Lewis, and Council Member Strauss.

And I know the enthusiasm for this piece of legislation is shared with other council colleagues as well, so I wouldn't be surprised if other people wanted to add their name, but I'm just so excited about this piece of legislation and the co-sponsors.

I wanted to lift that piece up again and thank folks for your anticipated support today.

This comes after many years of work.

After five years of legislation attempting to provide basic standards for drivers in our city, we are finally making progress today.

We are putting our values into law by making sure that there's standards for workers who drive for Lyft and Uber and other transportation network companies that may come into the future.

Making sure people earn a basic minimum wage.

Making sure that there's standards for workers to be able to take a rest when they're tired.

This is critically important when we heard testimony after testimony of people working 80 plus hours a week over the last few months.

We've heard testimony of people not being able to afford their house or to be able to put food on the table for their family.

because they're just not even earning minimum wage.

Today, we are putting our values of wanting to lift up every worker and protect every worker in this city into action.

Among many of the protections that we've been working on over the last few years, I'm exceptionally excited about the work to make sure that we are not treating these gig economy workers as separate, that we are creating a level playing field for all workers in this city.

As a follow-up to last year's legislation that provided deactivation rights to drivers, this year, we heard from James Parrott and Michael Wright, who produced a study on TNC, minimum wage compensation.

This was a critical study that was really leading to our ability to take action this year.

That study put into writing much of what we already knew, but it was imperative for us to be able to point back to this well-researched body of work to make sure that we were putting action into place today.

I want to thank the mayor's office for the work that they have done on this, in addition to the Office of Labor Standards.

So thank you, Kareem Levitas from Office of Labor Standards, Kylie Rolfe and Anthony Arriama from the mayor's office for also your years of work on this.

And as we mentioned before, The research that went into this was not just a copy and paste from any other municipality.

This was Seattle specific research that led to the policy decisions today and would not be possible without Karina Bull and Amy Gore from central staff and Sajel Preak, chief of staff in my office, who put a ton of research and capacity and energy into plowing through the research that was provided to us and hearing directly from the testimony that was provided to put forward policy ideas that were well-founded, well-researched, and were going to be meaningful for the community and specifically for the drivers.

Really excited about the hard work that went into the legislation that is supported by the study and that the legislation was developed in collaboration and with feedback from those who provided public testimony.

The substitute version of the bill that we passed last week provides basic base wage standards for drivers, provides benefits like rest breaks and minimum fares, transportation to consumers, provides the opportunity to get compensated for cleaning time, at least 30 minutes for an eight hour period of driving, which is so critical, not just for COVID, but for preventing the spread of diseases into the future as well.

For those of us who sit on the Board of Health, we heard from Director Duchin that this is not just COVID-specific that we will need to change our practices and norms around what cleanliness looks like in workplaces, but it is going to be the new normal.

And that is especially important, as we heard from the University of Washington researcher, In close quarters, in places like cars, which are the workplaces for TNC drivers, it is exceptionally important for those drivers to have clean workplaces and for them to be compensated for the time that it takes to clean their places of work, which is their cars.

We're really excited about the protections that have been put into place here to have been able to learn from the experience out of New York and fortunate to have learned from the legislation and to build not off of that, but to take lessons learned that freezes utilization rates to provide stability for TNC drivers.

When this legislation is implemented, drivers will have basic standards that all other Seattle workers have fought so hard for and earned.

And this is about basic standards for all workers.

This is about equity.

This is about health.

This is about safety.

And if you know me, this is a convergence of everything I care about.

Labor protections and public health is sort of the core core drivers for me in public policy, and I'm really excited that we were able to work with all of you to get this piece of legislation over the finish line.

I've already said a bunch of thank yous to all of the folks that have been working so hard to make this piece of legislation possible, but I do want to thank The city central staff, again, Amy Gore and Karina Bull.

Karina really led the efforts on this, and Amy stepped in for a lot of the work in the summer months here.

We also want to thank Councilmember O'Brien, who led this work when he was on council, and we know that this was really critical, and so I hope he's watching while he's doing something really fun.

I hope he's watching and also proud of the work that he did to lead us to this point.

I want to thank Lyft and the Rideshare Association, Drive Forward and Uber, and the Fair Share Coalition, along with Martin Luther King County Labor Council, and the Drivers Union with Teamsters 117. Thanks to Dustin, Will, Joshua, and Leonard for all of your research and all of your support as we really tried to work with drivers to hear directly from them about what kind of impacts this legislation would have.

This is not just about basic standards and protections for drivers, folks.

This is truly about the public health and safety for all of us in this community.

When we have drivers who are tired or not able to have their rest breaks and the labor standards and the clean workplaces that they need, it impacts all of us, our health and safety.

whether it's passengers in the car or pedestrians on the street or other drivers out on the roadways.

This is truly a public health measure that's in front of us and the right thing to do for labor protections.

Looking forward to having a piece of good news to pass on as we head into the fall cycle here.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Council Member Mosqueda.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Council Member Morales, please.

Yes, thank you, Council President.

Council Member Mosqueda, I am interested in co-sponsoring this legislation, and so I am moving for that you let me do that.

I think that that is very nice.

Thank you.

And well welcomed.

I am hoping that the with the council president's permission, the clerks would add the council member Morales's name and anybody else that would like to be listed as the co sponsors when the legislation gets added to the record.

Okay, yeah, in the future, if we could flag those kind of interests earlier on, and it would be helpful to dealing with the realities around the procedures that will be needed to accommodate those kind of requests.

So I'm gonna have to call on the clerks to provide me with some procedural guidance on how to accommodate additional requests for co-sponsorship on the record.

Council Member Gonzalez, this is Amelia Sanchez.

To add a co-sponsor to this bill, the Council Member must make a request to the sponsor, which is Council Member Mosqueda, and with the consent of Council Member Mosqueda, a Council Member may be added as a co-sponsor.

Okay, so I just want to be clear that I don't have to make a motion, it's just the request, and then Council Member Mosqueda as a sponsor can assent to that on the record?

Correct.

All right, so Council Member Morales has made the request and I believe I heard Council Member Mosqueda said yes.

Yes.

Are there any other requests to be added as co-sponsors?

Council Member Sawant has raised her hand.

Please, go ahead.

Thank you, President Gonzalez.

I did send a request to Council Member Mosqueda's office on Friday, I think, I believe, to add me as a co-sponsor, so if the clerk can do that, I would appreciate it.

And I also had some comments, so whenever you feel...

Why don't we go ahead and deal with your request to be added as a co-sponsor, and then we can open it up for your comments.

Council Member Mosqueda, you've gotten another request for co-sponsorship.

Yes, happy to add.

Thank you, Council Member Sawant.

We did receive your request, but wanted to make sure to do it in open public meetings, so there wasn't any concern.

Happy to have you, and thank you for adding your name.

Okay, great.

So, for the record, Council Member Morales and Council Member Sawant have, in open session, added their names to be co-sponsors of this council bill.

Council Member Sawant, the floor is yours for comments.

Thank you, and I appreciate Councilman Mosqueda and the city clerk adding the name from my office for co-sponsorship.

I'm proud to stand with the Uber and Lyft drivers and their Teamsters union in supporting this legislation.

Today's victory for drivers builds on their own courage, courageous and persistent and organized efforts in fighting mega corporations and billionaires, the ride share and taxi driver victories in New York and California, the $15 minimum wage victory, which began right here in SeaTac in Seattle.

I especially want to recognize the drivers who, for years, have endured poverty conditions and abuse from the companies, and whose tenacity and organizing and really their approach towards solidarity that has brought us to this moment.

And I have no doubt I'm going to leave out many names, but I still wanted to mention a few names.

Peter Kuhl, Lata Ahmed, Dawn Creary, Many of the drivers who spoke today in public comment, the perhaps hundreds of drivers that my office has spoken to over the years.

Thank you to all of you and your courage and persistence and especially your efforts at organizing despite having obstacles thrown in your path is really inspiring and should be inspiring for all workers.

From the first year of our Socialist Council office in 2014, Socialist Alternative, those community organizers in my office and I have worked with the drivers as they have organized and fought for basic dignity and rights against the billionaire executives of these companies who shamelessly exploit both drivers and customers.

basically working class people on both sides taking 30% of driver income for themselves and also harvesting data about both the drivers and the riders for their own private traffic.

Today's legislation is an important step forward in the long fight for driver rights.

It raises driver pay for the first time, accounting for the actual time that drivers are working, the true costs of maintaining and cleaning their vehicles, and the fact that drivers also need and deserve health and retirement benefits.

This legislation will be a model for drivers in other cities.

And yet, it is not nearly enough.

Even with these new compensation rates, drivers will still not be paid enough to live in Seattle.

Today, with average rents in Seattle over $2,000 a month, and with corporate landlords snapping up and gentrifying entire neighborhoods in our city, it is becoming nearly impossible for drivers, most of whom are from working-class immigrant communities, to live in Seattle.

They're being forced to commute longer and longer distances just to get into the city where most of the rides are.

That's why in addition to raising pay for workers such as these drivers, it is important that we build a fight for rent control without loopholes, further expansion of taxes on big business like the Amazon tax that we just won to fund permanently affordable social housing.

and expanding tenants' rights fully, and most immediately, a cancellation of rent, mortgage, and utility payments for those who have been hit majorly by loss of income or loss of job in the pandemic and the recession.

So many drivers, as with other workers, have lost income due to this pandemic and the recession.

And we know that the current eviction moratorium is crucial, and that was fought for by workers and renters themselves.

And it's providing crucial protection.

But we know it is only putting off the coming eviction tsunami, as even many mainstream newspapers have reported.

So I really urge the drivers, their Teamsters Union, and all of the supporters to join my office, the Tenants Union of Washington State, and the renters' rights movement in demanding that rents and mortgages be canceled for workers who have lost income due to COVID.

We also know that the fight against Uber and Lyft executives does not end today.

In fact, it should escalate based on this really important step forward.

The executives will doubtless fight this legislation in court.

They may even try to force a referendum.

Just look at what these greedy billionaires are doing in California, where they have poured a record $181 million to try and repeal AB5, the new state law that gives drivers additional rights, including collective bargaining rights.

As a Los Angeles Times columnist recently noted in relation to the fight in California, quote, what's really at stake here?

The quest for profit, unquote.

So we should be under no illusions.

These companies are in the business to make money and exploit both customers and They are drivers not to help either.

So I just wanted to send a message of congratulations to all the drivers and to let them know that our office is ready to do whatever it takes to help continue this struggle.

And also, once again, a message of congratulations and solidarity to the Teamsters Union and the entire labor movement in defeating the corporate challenge.

And good luck to defeating the corporate challenge that we know will come after today's vote.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Council Member Sawant, are there any additional comments on the bill?

Council Member Herbold, please.

Thank you so much.

Just a few more notes to add of congratulations.

Of course, I want to congratulate Council Member Mosqueda for her and her staff's work on bringing this legislation forward.

Really appreciate your leadership.

The fact that we are all interested in co-sponsorship is an indication of how this legislation is really history making.

It's been in the making for a long time.

And according to studies that have been done, this legislation will increase wages for drivers by 30%.

I really appreciate as well all of the workers who have engaged in this conversation by meeting with me in my office hours, and as well as sending us a petition from drivers with over 1600 signatures for increasing the per mile rate providing transparency and fairness on company commissions, and raising the minimum pay per trip to $5.

I want to just address some of the concerns that I've heard about this legislation, that somehow there's something wrong with legislation that benefits full-time workers with the livable wage.

For decades, cities across the country have regulated the total number of, for instance, taxi medallions and licenses available specifically in the name of protecting worker earnings.

This is no different, and we should continue to do so.

Flooding the market with drivers pushes down the cost to the customer, but it does so at the expense of workers.

This is much like other gig businesses as well, where the costs of providing the service are passed on to the workers in the form of reduced earnings and benefits.

In this case, TNCs are repackaged services that have been historically provided, but it seems to be cheaper because the businesses have hired their workers as consultants.

And at the end of the day, the workers lose out.

They pay more taxes.

They don't have benefits and are not subject to the minimum wage.

Our efforts here in Seattle indicate that we are not going to allow contract workers in our city to be treated this way.

I hope in the future we can work on similar legislation for other drivers, drivers who do not move people, but move goods such as delivery drivers of packages, as well as delivery drivers of meals and food.

I really, again, appreciate the work of Councilmember Mosqueda in collaboration with the Teamsters and drivers throughout the city.

And really, I'm proud to have been able to have the opportunity to participate in the deliberations on this legislation.

Thank you.

Thank you, Councilmember Herbold.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Hearing no additional comments on the bill, I will go ahead and close out debate and ask the clerk to please call the roll on the passage of the bill.

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Yes.

Peterson?

Yes.

Sawant?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herbold?

Yes.

Juarez?

Aye.

Lewis?

Yes.

President Gonzalez?

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

Thank you.

The bill passes and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation?

Okay folks, item number 17. Will the clerk please read the short title of item 17 into the record?

At agenda item 17, Council Bill 119890, relating to the transfer of city real property for housing development, transferring the jurisdiction of a one-foot strip of a property from the office of housing to the Department of Transportation for subway purposes.

The committee recommends the bill pass.

Thank you so much, Madam Clerk.

Council Member Mosqueda, as chair of the committee, you're recognized in order to provide the committee report.

Thank you very much, Madam President.

This is a small but very exciting piece of policy that we are now able to put into action that builds on the work that we began years ago.

Actually, in my first year at City Council, we passed legislation to allow for community and housing advocates to be able to acquire city owned land or utility owned property that could be transferred to the city at no cost for the creation of affordable housing.

And here we are putting that policy concept into action.

We know that the price of land in Seattle has significantly increased over the last decade, with greater competition on available land, making it much more expensive to build housing and to especially build affordable housing in our community.

We need to take every opportunity that there is to acquire or to maintain city-owned land in city hands or to transfer it to those who have the value of the city's commitment to ensuring affordable housing and core public services in our community have the opportunity to build on that property and to create housing and strong community opportunities such as community centers and child care.

In 2018, in partnership with our friends at the state legislature, we passed legislation that I sponsored to update the Seattle disposition policies to put into place the newly granted state authorization to make sure that we were prioritizing affordable housing for surplus lands and to embed an equitable development lens into that process.

Last year, we authorized the first no-cost transfer to the Office of Housing for Affordable Home Ownership for the Loyal Heights property following that piece of legislation.

And this year, this piece of legislation follows up on all of those steps to enable the department to transfer the Loyal Heights site to actually create the permanent affordable housing that's been desired on this site for so long.

This will result in affordable first-time home ownership opportunities for the first time in this area, creating things like three-bedroom townhouses that will be built by Habitat for Humanity on the site, along with preservation of trees.

We've long said that building affordable housing and creating community-led development does not have to be in competition with trees, and here's a great example of where we're creating back offsets and we're creating opportunities for trees to remain in place and to be planted.

I want to thank the Office of Housing and Habitat for Humanity for putting this project together and very much look forward to seeing families move into this site.

Really excited about the opportunities that this provides for us.

This project has received the permits and the homes should be turnkey ready and for families to move in within the next year, November 2021st at the latest.

Thank you so much to all the folks, especially in community who worked on this and in my office, Erin House, for her ongoing stewardship of these types of issues and our partners at the Office of Housing.

Really excited to see this finally move forward.

Thank you so much.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Council Member Strauss, please.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you Councilman Mosqueda.

I'm glad and thankful to see this bill come forward.

We know that housing in the Laurel Heights neighborhood of North Ballard in the 1970s was worth about $30,000.

In the 1980s, it was about $100,000.

Today, as it stands, one of the lowest priced houses in the area is at $650,000, many over a million.

I am still a renter today because I can't buy into the neighborhood in which I grew up in.

And this is an opportunity to welcome new neighbors who We're able to buy into the neighborhood for the many decades previous to the last run on our real estate market.

So I'm very, very excited to welcome these new neighbors.

Just a couple of comments about the sites, the site specifically in regards to trees.

I'm thankful that the Office of Housing was able to preserve the trees along the perimeter.

We know that trees provide an economic value and will be easier to cool and to keep warm the units of housing there, as well as it's just nice to look at them.

Unfortunately, the trees that I used to walk by when I was walking home from middle school along 28th, the cherry trees were cut down a number of years ago.

Again, beautiful, beautiful trees that I wish were still in the neighborhood.

I'm glad that we've been able to retain the trees along the perimeter.

Again, highlighting the note from committee, which is that By preserving these trees along the perimeter, we reduced the number of units on the lot by one.

And so while we'll have seven neighbors, we could have had eight.

That's the cost benefit analysis that we have to do in regards to units of housing.

I have also heard some concerns about the need for green space in the area and that this could have been used for green space.

I will just highlight that we had Loyal Heights Elementary School a couple blocks away, Loyal Heights Community Center a number of blocks further.

Sunset Hill Park is very close by and Golden Gardens.

And hopefully, as it looks, because of the great work of neighbors, the P-Patch, the Valley P-Patch is looking like it will still remain just a quarter mile away.

So again, this provides access to generational wealth in the Loyal Heights neighborhood and an opportunity to buy into the neighborhood.

And I'm glad to welcome our new neighbors.

Thank you very much, Council President and Council Member Mosqueda.

Thank you, Council Member Strauss.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Hearing no additional comments on the bill, will the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill?

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Yes.

Peterson?

Yes.

Sawant?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herbold?

Yes.

Juarez?

Yes.

Lewis?

Yes.

President Gonzalez?

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

The bill passes and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation.

Report of the Land Use and Neighborhoods Committee, item 18. Will the clerk please read the title of item 18 into the record?

Section of item 18, Council Bill 119838, relating to land use and zoning.

amending the Seattle comprehensive plan to incorporate changes for code as part of the 2019 through 2020 comprehensive plan annual amendments process.

The committee recommends the bill passes amended.

Thank you so much.

Council Member Strauss as chair of the committee you are recognized in order to provide the committee report.

Thank you, Council President.

State law allows the city to make amendments to our comprehensive plan once a year with limited exceptions.

This legislation is the annual round of amendments to our comprehensive plan based on proposals that were docketed for consideration last year.

This year, we are making two amendments to the comprehensive plan.

First, amendments to expand the boundaries of the West Seattle Hub Urban Village to include a portion of the campus of Providence Mount, St. Vincent, or the Mount.

Providence is seeking to renovate and expand the current uses on the property, including building additional senior housing and service space.

City staff conducted public engagement before proposing these changes, and we heard support from the West Seattle community members at the public hearing.

The second amendment amends the Delridge Neighborhood Plan based on the recommendations in the North Delridge Action Plan.

The Action Plan is the result of many years of engagement with the Delridge community, and was promoted by several factors, including planning for the Delridge Multimodal Corridor Project, and planning for Sound Transit 3, and the community support for changes to the Neighborhood Plan.

This legislation will amend the Comprehensive Plan and should not be confused with our next resolution, which sets the docket of potential amendments that we should consider for next year's Comprehensive Plan.

Thank you, Council President.

Council Member Strauss, are there any additional comments on the bill?

Council Member Sawant, please.

Thank you.

I will be voting yes on this year's comprehensive plan amendments because I don't oppose what is included, but I did want to mentioned specifically what's been left out of the bill, which I do find objectionable.

In particular, there is no mention of developer impact fees.

Developer impact fees can only be passed into law after they are put into the city's comprehensive plan, and the comprehensive plan is amended only once each year.

So the fact that developer impact fees are not included in this bill means that there will be another year's wait at least to make big developers pay for the impacts they have on our city infrastructure.

And of course, we have to be clear, just amending the comprehensive plan to that effect is hardly the end of the fight.

We've seen for over six years, I've observed that developer impact fees have been opposed by to the nail by big developers and so making it happen actually will require a housing justice movement to fight for it but I did want to mention that that is missing through the in these updates and we know that there is a long and bureaucratic process for establishing developer impact fees before they can be passed.

They need to be in the comprehensive plan.

And before they can be put in the comprehensive plan, they need to be studied under the State Environmental Protection Act.

And I do find it unacceptable that even though developer impact fees were included in the resolution, The council passed last year listing the issues that should be discussed for this, sorry, studied for this year's comprehensive plan.

Mayor Durkin has refused to do that study.

If we had developer impact fees available this year, we could have raised the funds to reverse all the cuts to Metro buses.

So as I said, I will vote yes, but also note that this leaves missing something extremely crucial.

Thank you.

Thank you, Council Member Sawant.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Council Member Herbold.

I want to speak to the things that I believe are in the bill and my support for the bill because of their inclusion.

I want to thank Council Member Strauss for making sure that we added additional language to section B, requesting that SDOT work with SDCI.

and OPCD to review changes that could be made to the comp plan due to the closure of the West Seattle Bridge.

Of course, also including the Delridge neighborhood plan inclusion, appreciate that.

And then finally, appreciate inclusion of the request to the executive to study the designation of the South Park Urban Village.

I know all that's in there, and I'm pretty sure, Council Member Strauss, correct me if I'm wrong, I'm pretty sure that we actually did include the impact fee amendments so that we can actually make progress in implementing them in 2021.

Checking with staff right now, because as my comments just before I wrapped up, my comments was this bill should not be confused with the next bill, which sets the comprehensive plan documents for next year.

Just double checking.

I do know that the study was conducted and that currently we are waiting on the hearing examiner's ruling.

So just one second, and I'll be right back with you.

Yeah, I'm sorry.

I might be confusing the bills too.

Madam President, if it's okay, may I confirm, are we on agenda item number 18?

Yes, we are on agenda item 18, which is the bill related to the amendments to the comprehensive plan.

Excellent, thank you very much.

Council Member Sawant, please.

Yeah, I just wanted to clarify that the next bill does have it, and yeah, I think we're confusing the bills.

This one doesn't, as far as I understand.

Yes, go ahead, Council Member Strauss.

Thank you.

Just to clarify, yes, it is included in the following bill for further analysis as requested by the committee.

Excellent.

Any other comments or questions on the bill?

Council Member Verbal.

Just that I think all of the comments I just made for number 18, I won't repeat them, transfer them to number 19.

Awesome.

All right.

Any additional comments on this bill?

Council Member Mosqueda, please.

I just want to say thank you to the Chair of Land Use and Neighborhoods.

Thank you, Councilmember Strauss, for shepherding us through this process.

It's been really incredible for our office to be able to work with your office and with you directly on trying to get in as many components as we possibly could into this piece of legislation.

Obviously, I'll talk about in the next bill a piece that we're looking forward to and continuing to push on, but I really appreciate the way in which you have been inclusive of community comments.

I know you've spent a lot of time not only in public comment but also individually meeting with various constituents across the city on these issues that are of utmost importance to those who are calling in and testifying and you're spending a lot of time outside of these public meetings meeting with folks on a one on one basis too.

So thank you for that work.

I know it takes a lot of time and this is something that people are very invested in.

So It is imperative that we have your leadership on this and you have done a tremendous job on this effort and look forward to working with you in the future years as we continue to advance these priorities that you've gotten into this legislation.

It's been a pleasure for our office to work with you, so thank you.

Thank you, Council Member Mosqueda.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Okay, looks like we are ready.

I will go ahead and ask that the clerk please call the roll on the passage of the bill.

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Yes.

Peterson?

Yes.

Sawant?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herbold?

Yes.

Juarez?

Yes.

Lewis?

Yes.

President Gonzalez?

Yes.

Nine in favor, none opposed.

The bill passes and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation.

Item 19, will the clerk please read the title of the now very well-introduced item 19 into the record.

Item 19. resolution 31970, identifying proposed comprehensive plan amendments to be considered for possible adoption in 2021, and requesting that the Office of Planning and Community Development and the Seattle Planning Commission review and make recommendations about proposed amendments.

The committee recommends the resolution be adopted.

Thank you so much, Madam Clerk.

Council Member Strauss, you are the chair of the committee and are recognized in order to provide the committee report.

Thank you, Council.

President, as just discussed, this is the Annual Comprehensive Plan Docket Setting Resolution, which identifies amendments that should be considered in the 2021 cycle.

To develop the docket, potential amendments are submitted by the public, city departments, or council members, and they are evaluated against a set of criteria included in Resolution 31807. By docketing a potential amendment, Council is agreeing that it meets the criteria for further discussions and consideration, and is asking OPCB and the Planning Commission to review and make recommendations for the action in 2021. There are six potential amendments included on the docket that Council is requesting OPCB review.

including expanding the boundary of the University District Urban Center, to include west of 15th Avenue Northeast between 56th Avenue and Northeast Riverna Boulevard, reviewing policies in the comprehensive plan to determine whether changes are needed due to the failure of the West Seattle Bridge, review the goals and policies related to trees, adjusting the title of single-family zoning to a more appropriate title such as neighborhood residential, preliminary changes related to the station area around future 140th Street light rail station, to the new industrial lands maritime strategy should that work move forward this year.

Additionally, the executive identified four potential items that were reviewed, additional review, including whether South Park meets the criteria for an urban village, completing the planning work around the 130th street station, including possible urban village designation, amendments related to reducing the impact of fossil fuel production and storage, and further changes resulting from the industrial maritime strategies.

Finally, the resolution also recognizes that further analysis is needed to implement impact fees, which were previously docketed, and that council is leading in that analysis.

There were several other amendments submitted that I was interested in acting on, but did not ultimately fit within the comprehensive plan.

criteria at this time.

For example, when it was proposed to change the target date at which the city will meet its tree canopy goals, that date should be evaluated in the context of the urban forestry management plan and a new tree ordinance rather than now, which I had requested to see if that could be possible to just move up the date, the target date for the city to meet its canopy goals.

It has been, I've been instructed we need to hear back from the urban forestry about the urban forestry management plan and the new tree ordinance before doing so.

And while some of these topics did not fit within the comprehensive plan specifically, I do look forward to continuing to work to address items in code changes, city budgets, or other means.

I want to thank Dave Mooring for putting forward the tree amendment in which I modified to fit within the criteria.

And Chris Lehman, thank you for our conversation.

outside of committee last week.

I do look forward to working with everyone moving forward.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you so much, Council Member Strauss.

Are there any additional comments on the resolution?

Council Member Peterson, please, and then Council Member Mosqueda.

Thank you, Council President.

Thank you, Chair Strauss, for shepherding this through.

And I really appreciate your comments about Dave Mooring, Chris Lehman, and others who have good ideas for us to consider.

This legislation is really complex.

And with the COVID pandemic and other things that were occupying my time, I know that I'll be more prepared next year to engage earlier in this process.

And I know others will be looking forward to that, too.

So thank you for your leadership.

getting us through, and thank you to Council Member Sawant for raising the real estate developer impact fee issue.

I'm glad to see that it is in here.

There are several ways that those funds could be used if we were to agree on a program.

Council Member Swatt mentioned transit.

There's also a possibility to use it for bridge maintenance or a combination thereof, either through GMA or through Transportation Benefit District at some point.

So thank you for raising that, Council Member Swatt.

Thank you so much, Council Member Peterson, Council Member Mosqueda, and then Council Member Morales.

Thank you very much, Madam President, and thank you again to Councilmember Strauss for your leadership on this.

I asked during the last bill to clarify which item we were on because I too was about to make comments on agenda item number 19, so I'm glad that I held off.

I did want to underscore my appreciation again for everything that you were able to get into.

agenda item number 18 and here in agenda item number 19. I do want to note for the record my concern that I brought up during the committee meeting, noting as well that I will be supporting this bill and voting yes today.

But I wanted to note the importance of the conversation around single family zoning and thank again Council Member Strauss for including the name change for single family zoning in this year's docketing resolution.

Given the single-family name is inaccurate, rooted in exclusion, and as we discussed during the committee meeting, does not reflect the diverse and multi-generational housing that exists throughout our city, we had a robust conversation about how it is past time for us to update this terminology to create a more inclusive and accurate name, such as Neighborhood Residential.

In fact, Seattle's single-family zones have expanded year after year, and as they have expanded, they've encompassed multifamily structures.

They've encompassed old apartment buildings, duplexes, triplexes that are throughout the city, including in the neighborhood I used to live in in Queen Anne that is zoned for single-family use but was an apartment building surrounded by other duplexes and triplexes.

And it's really important that we have a name that is inclusive of the actual fabric of our city.

We requested OPCD to study the name change in 2018 in the MHA companion resolution.

We again requested this during the comprehensive plan annual docketing process in 2019. So that's why there's a sense of frustration, I think, and if you go back and look at the tape from the committee meeting, there's frustration that this name change has been recommended as well by the Planning Commission and has been called on from housing advocates.

Yet, unfortunately, it was not included in the piece of legislation that was transmitted to us this year in 2020. And because it wasn't already studied, we therefore cannot ask for it to be included in this year's update.

It's frustrating and yet we are again including it for docketing for the third time through this piece of legislation for consideration as an amendment to next year's comp plan update.

So my hope is that the third time will be the charm and that this minor change could go into place and that this minor change truly would be.

an effort that would go far in updating how we talk about housing in Seattle to be more inclusive and equitable, and change that squarely fits within the priorities that have already been studied by other entities, have been called for for many years, and it's truly a minor update.

We should not wait until the next comp plan update in 2024. So thanks again to Central South and OPCD to make sure that we follow up on this language in this legislation regarding this study.

And so that we don't have another year go by without changing single-family zone to hopefully residential, neighborhood residential.

Thank you, Council Member Mosqueda for those comments.

Council Member Morales, please.

Thank you, Council President.

I am not part of the Land Use Committee, so I wasn't part of the ongoing conversation, but I'm happy to see that this resolution is here because I have a lot of questions.

I think we all know that our comp plan is designed to guide the future actions of a community.

It presents a vision for the future and long-range goals and objectives.

And our plan here in Seattle includes a focus on a growth strategy, the environment, and importantly, on community well-being.

So I'm really thankful that the Land Use Committee has included, again, these specific elements in the resolution asking for the analysis to be conducted.

Excuse me.

If we want to move in a direction that advances a clean environment, public health, that allows for the Vision Zero investments that lead to walkable 15-minute neighborhoods, then we need the analysis of impact fees, a discussion of zoning and other issues that will allow us to make the critical changes that we need to make for the vision that we have of Seattle.

That's how we plan for the seventh generation.

That's how we repair the harm done to black and brown communities.

So I am hoping, as Council Member Mosqueda said, that the third time's a charm and that we get the analysis completed, we need in order to make these decisions.

Thank you.

Thank you so much, Council Member Morales.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Council Member Lewis, please.

Thank you so much, Madam President.

I similarly just wanted to echo the comments from Council Members Sawant and Peterson regarding the docketing of impact fees as a potential source of revenue for transportation-related projects in the future.

As we have seen this year, and in a recent editorial actually in Publicola by the Transportation Choices Coalition Director, We continue to struggle with finding sufficient revenue options and revenue resources to underwrite infrastructure and support for transit.

Impact fees, particularly through the Transportation Benefit District, could offer an interesting path to explore, and I appreciate that we've docketed that today and look forward to working over the course of the next year on that as a strategy and follow many of our neighbors in King County that have for years used impact fees for certain infrastructure improvements.

So with that, I look forward to voting for this today and look forward to working on those docketed priorities over the course of it.

Thank you so much, Council Member Lewis.

Are there any additional comments on the bill?

Hearing none, will the clerk please call the roll on the adoption of the resolution?

Morales.

Yes.

Mosqueda.

Yes.

Peterson.

Yes.

Sawant.

Yes.

Strauss.

Yes.

Herbold.

Yes.

Juarez.

Yes.

Lewis.

Yes.

President Gonzalez.

Yes.

Nine in favor, nine opposed.

The resolution is adopted, and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation?

Adoption of other resolutions, item 20. Will the clerk please read the title of item 20 into the record?

Agenda item 20, resolution 31972. Setting the time and place for a hearing on the appeal of Eugene Eliaferras and hearing examiner case number CWS-002.

and the findings and recommendations report of the hearing seminar on the final assessment role for local improvement district number 6751. I'm directing the city clerk to provide any required notice of the hearing in the matter required by law.

Thank you so much.

I move to adopt resolution 31972. Is there a second?

Second.

I thought we were gonna be done there for a minute, folks.

All right, okay.

It's been moved and seconded to adopt the resolution.

Council Member Juarez, you are the sponsor and are recognized in order to address this item.

Thank you.

So as I shared this morning, this is the second appeal, so colleagues expect a few more coming down the pike, and we will be doing the same requirement in process.

Again, this bill sets the time and place for hearing on the appeal by Eugene and Leah Burris of the Hearing Examiner's Findings and Recommendations Report other waterfront lid, or the local improvement district number 6751. This resolution sets the hearing for December 1st, 2020, and the Public Assets and Native Communities Committee.

To meet the requirements of the quasi-judicial rules, council must take action this week via this resolution, and this is a mandatory and procedural matter.

I recommend council confirm resolution 31972. Thank you.

Thank you, Council Member Juarez.

Are there any additional comments on the resolution?

Hearing no additional comments on the resolution, will the clerk please call the roll on the adoption of the resolution?

Morales?

Yes.

Mosqueda?

Yes.

Peterson?

Yes.

Sawant?

Yes.

Strauss?

Yes.

Herbold?

Yes.

Juarez?

Yes.

Lewis?

Yes.

President Gonzalez?

Yes.

Nine in favor, nine opposed.

The resolution is adopted and the chair will sign it.

Will the clerk please affix my signature to the legislation?

Colleagues, other business, is there any further business to come before the council?

Hearing no further business to come before the council, we are set to adjourn.

Colleagues, this does conclude the items of business on today's agenda.

Our next regularly scheduled city council meeting is on Monday, October 5th, 2020 at two o'clock p.m.

I hope that you all have a wonderful afternoon and evening.

We are adjourned.

Thank you.