KUOW Blog
News, factoids, and insights from KUOW's newsroom. And maybe some peeks behind the scenes. Check back daily for updates.
Have any leads or feedback for the KUOW Blog? Contact Dyer Oxley at dyer@kuow.org.
Stories
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Seattle-area snow plow routes activated as first snow falls
Dozens of snow plows are at the ready in the Puget Sound region in case snow accumulates on busy roads.
The city of Seattle has 50 deicer and plow trucks fueled up and ready to hit Seattle's streets, if the snow does pile up. Bellevue has 17 trucks that can be fitted with a plow, and Bellingham has seven.
There's a chance of rain and snow every day this week.
When snow starts to accumulate, city of Seattle trucks drop granular salt and liquid magnesium chloride to help melt it. Plowing happens when there's a break in the storm, and crews only plow heavily used roads.
Seattle has three tools to monitor roads during snow:
- Routes Seattle will plow
- Real-time map of what's been plowed in Seattle
- Live cameras of city streets
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First snow of the season arrives in Seattle
The season's first snow for the Seattle-area began falling Tuesday morning. Rain Tuesday night is expected to wash it all away, but in the meantime, drivers should be mindful of icy conditions.
The National Weather Service in Seattle has issued a Winter Weather Advisory for the Western Washington lowlands, including the Seattle and Everett areas. On top of snow, high winds are expected across the Puget Sound region.
RELATED: Seattle-area snow plow routes activated as first snow falls
Predictions for how much snow will fall range from mere flurries to 4 inches in Seattle.
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Season of goodwill and food banks: Today So Far
As we head into a season of giving, food insecurity is one issue we can address in the Seattle area.
This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for November 28, 2022.
To all the regular TSF readers out there: I only half ruined the turkey. Let's just say it wasn't as much of a roast turkey as it was a steamed turkey.
It feels awkward to talk about triumphs and trials of what is essentially a feast, when our region is also dealing with significant strains on places like food banks. This is something that KUOW's Ruby de Luna has been covering for quite a while now, especially amid the pandemic. Earlier this year, Ruby reported that food insecurity in Washington has nearly tripled since the pandemic began. Inflation certainly hasn't helped. More recently, she has covered how Seattle-area food banks are trying to meet demand and adapt to challenges. This increasing strain on food banks has been going on for a while now.
Many folks might be unaware that food banks often have their own supply chains, such as grocery store donations, donations from people, and so forth. Seattle's Food Lifeline is a local organization that supplies banks with donations. Ryan Scott with Food Lifeline recently told KUOW that, "In a normal year, we have somewhere between 4-5 million pounds of food in our warehouse, moving out for distribution. Right now, we just have a little over a million.”
While talking with Seattle Now, Ruby pointed out that conditions at food banks are often early indicators of larger economic struggles. Strain at a food bank today could indicate more widespread financial strain in the months ahead. That is something Seattle's food banks have been watching for. As many pandemic-related programs ended over the past few months, food banks began bracing themselves for an anticipated increase in demand.
Looking at Seattle-area food banks, people are using them more and more as a means of supplementing their budgets — use the food bank, and then you have enough money for gas. On top of that, the banks are struggling to keep up. For example, grocery stores that often donate food have been unable to contribute as much as usual these days.
"Demand has grown, especially since the pandemic, and food banks have been terrific in trying to meet the needs of people," Ruby told Seattle Now. "But that is coming at a cost. They were able to get federal assistance through Covid emergency measures. That helped, but everybody is feeling the pinch. With retailers, they are also getting hit with supply chain issues, which is also why they are not able to donate as much to food banks like they normally have. As a result, food banks are shelling out more money in order to buy food to donate."
One food bank in Ballard recently told Ruby that their annual budget to purchase food before the pandemic was around $300,000. Last year, it was $1.5 million.
Some food banks around Seattle are set up like grocery stores. Instead of getting a bag of food, you go in and shop for what you need. Fresh food from the grocery chains helped with this. Now, Ruby says the banks are getting "creative" to get the food.
"They have worked with P-Patches or farmers who will grow some of the produce for them, and some of them are even planning on having their own gardens. There is more of a shift to providing foods that are nutritious and culturally relevant ... food banks are trying to provide what their clients are requesting, and what their clients are used to having."
Check out Ruby's full conversation with Seattle Now here.
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One year after the Nooksack River flooded Sumas
It has been a year since the great Sumas flood hit Whatcom County and British Columbia. The flood was extra destructive because it sent a section of the Nooksack River north into Canada, over dry land that is now occupied by homes, farms, churches, and businesses.
Paula Harris is Whatcom County’s river and flood manager. She says that flood opened people up to change. Local leaders have supported her plan to demolish 39 homes in the flood path, and raise 29 others onto taller foundations.
“For the first time in my career here, I can see maybe a vision that could move forward to a final solution," Harris said. "And I really hope we can maintain the focus and we can have a safer community, and I can sleep good when it rains again.”
Climate change has made the Nooksack less predictable, as glaciers on Mount Baker recede, exposing more sediment to erosion.
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Starbucks closing Capitol Hill store, the first union location in Seattle
Starbucks will close a store located at Broadway and Denny in Capitol Hill on Dec. 9.
The location happens to be the first Starbucks to unionize in Seattle, and some employees are alleging that the closure is "blatant retaliation" and a union-busting tactic.
Workers United, the employees' union, points out that the closure is scheduled on the anniversary of the union's formation last year. It also says that the Capitol Hill store is the fourth unionized Seattle location to close (along with Olive Way, First and Pike, and Holman Road).
Starbucks says the reasons for the Capitol Hill closure are "safety and security incidents." A Starbucks spokesperson says the company tried to resolve the issues at the store to no avail, and now, the company believes that closing it is the best way to keep staff and customers safe.
"At Starbucks, we make every effort to ensure our partners feel safe and supported at work so they can focus on providing our customers the safe, welcoming experience they’ve come to love and expect. Unfortunately, despite several mitigating efforts, safety and security incidents at our Broadway and Denny store have continued to escalate. As a result, we will be closing our Broadway and Denny store to customers on December 9, 2022.”
The spokesperson adds that the company routinely reviews "partner and customer experience" at its stores, and if it chooses to close a location because of safety concerns it will "work with partners to help them relocate to other stores, when possible." They also say that "we will bargain with the union in good faith to discuss the impact of this decision on our partners."
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Seattle's ranked-choice voting system won't go into effect until 2027
Seattle voters have decided they want a ranked-choice voting system for future elections of mayoral and city council candidates.
Stephanie Houghton is the managing director of Fair Vote Washington, which campaigned for ranked-choice voting.
"Ranked-choice voting is a straightforward, easy improvement to the way that we vote right now," Houghton said. "That's been proven in places across the country, whether you're talking about Alaska, or Maine, New York City."
The latest election results show that 51% of Seattle voters want to see the system changed. Among the options put to voters for such a change, ranked-choice voting is strongly preferred (over the other option of approval voting).
Opponents of the shift argued it will be confusing, and that the current political culture is not a time to experiment with elections.
Houghton says that Seattle voters will have a few years to get ready for the change. Seattle's ranked-choice voting system won't go into effect until 2027.
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Bird flu suspected of killing at least 400 geese in Washington state last week
More than 400 geese in Whatcom County have been found sick or dead along Wiser Lake in Lynden.
The Cascadia Daily News reports that Fish and Wildlife workers believe they got infected with the bird flu and started dying off en masse last week. Crews pulled several birds from the water Tuesday.
The number of dead birds is expected to grow because the geese flock together as they look for food in the cold weather.
RELATED: The first human case of avian flu in the U.S. is reported in Colorado
Thousands of wild and domestic birds also got infected with the virus over the summer. A fish and wildlife spokesperson told Cascadia that this year's virus is affecting more species of birds and is spreading faster. But it appears to be less lethal.
Washington's Department of Agriculture warned in September that the region could see an uptick in bird flu cases this fall as migrations began. The department knew of 34 infected flocks at that time.
The bird flu is spread through bird droppings and other secretions.
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Racist email sent to WWU students via school's online learning platform
Officials at Western Washington University are investigating another case of bigotry on campus.
University officials sent a letter to families Monday, notifying them of racist threats made toward Black students last weekend. The school added that there is no immediate threat. The letter states:
"On Saturday, students in three courses received a racist email encouraging violence against Black students. The message is deeply offensive and strikes at the heart of our values and community. Police and Information Technology are investigating how and by whom that message was sent. We are relieved to share that there are no other indicators of an elevated risk of racially-targeted violence on campus."
The emails were specifically sent through WWU Canvas online learning system, which is accessed by students and staff. IT investigators are attempting to find out how the message was sent in that system.
The Bellingham Herald reports that the student government president said on social media that a racist caricature of Black people was recently drawn in chalk at the university's Red Square.
WWU has experience such racist incidents before. Last month, students found anti-Semitic and white supremacist graffiti on a message board at the student center. In 2018, school officials were responding to similar incidents of racist graffiti on campus. In 2017, more antisemitic incidents occurred on campus. In 2016, swastikas appeared on campus. During this time, the university formed an antisemitism task force to address the incidents.
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What are you celebrating this week?: Today So Far
There are a lot of non-holiday holidays coming up. Do any stand out for you? And what do you celebrate?
This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for November 23, 2022.
Coming up is Thanksgiving, and Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, and Cyber Monday. After all that, we get around to giving on Giving Tuesday.
Friday is also Native American Heritage Day, and while we're at it, Thursday is also D.B. Cooper Day as well as National Day of Mourning, Saturday is Good Grief Day for Charlie Brown fans, and next Tuesday is Chadwick Boseman Day. And apparently, today is DrinksGiving, as well as Women Led Wednesday, and Local Comic Shop Day. We got a lot of days happening.
RELATED: Here comes sickness (Today So Far)
I lean into the Small Business Saturday. Partially because there are fewer hordes of suburbanites stampeding into big box stores on Saturday, but also because I've come to appreciate a fair amount of small shops and others who don't have Walmart's marketing budget. On a very personal level, I like to say that I "support my local geekonomy," which is filled with DIY crafters and creatives who speak my language, which is sometimes Vulcan. For example, GeekCraft Expo is in Seattle this weekend, but there's also Dave Ryan Pop Art in Pike Place Market, or Outsider Comics in Fremont, or Distant World's Coffee in Roosevelt. I could go on and on, but these are the types of businesses I want year-round, and a dollar goes further with them.
Amanda Winterhalter, KUOW's institutional giving officer, says she favors the #optoutside mentality on Black Friday. That's the marketing campaign REI started a few years back. She says, "getting outdoors instead of in stores or online feels pretty dang good and grounding."
Within that spirit, Gina Kilbridge, KUOW's philanthropy officer, points out that state parks are free on Friday. Gina adds that she tunes into Urban Craft Uprising events as a way "to find unique, handmade gifts" noting that it "serves as an accessible marketplace for many makers just getting their businesses off the ground."
I feel like this is an opportune time to point out that I work at a nonprofit station driven by listener donations. What is the TSF community doing over the next week? Let me know at dyer@kuow.org.
I like the idea of targeting your dollars, because right now, it's pretty tough in Seattle. Zillow recently noted that a person would have to work 56.3 hours to make rent in the city, which is up from just a year ago. That's taking into account Seattle's "typical" rent and wages. The real estate company further notes that rent has increased by 29% in Seattle over the past five years, yet the average wage has only risen 12%.
This tough situation extends to homebuyers. Another local real estate company, Redfin, reports that a person should earn $205,000 if they want to afford a home in Seattle. That's up from last year's figure of approximately $141,000. In fact, $141,000 is the earning figure you now need to afford a home in Tacoma (last year it was $99,000). These are significant jumps for just a single year.
As we enter the season of goodwill and giving, targeting our dollars is one more thing we can do to spread that positive energy.
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Here comes sickness: Today So Far
After a couple years of pandemic precautions, viruses like the flu and RSV are expected to surge, on top of an expected rise in Covid cases. That has hospitals worried.
This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for November 22, 2022.
All our Covid precautions over the past couple of years have had a side effect — other viruses were also kept away. That mask, and all that distancing, or working from home, kept the flu and RSV out of our lives. But all that is about to change. Here comes sickness, walking up your street.
We have mostly emerged from our pandemic precautions and are slated to start partying like it's 2019 — holiday dinners, concerts, reunions, travel, your relative forcing you to sit down and watch a photo collage detailing the past year's activities like you're in some sort of family-photo "Clockwork Orange" experiment. These indoor gatherings are breeding grounds for viruses that we haven't had to think about for a while, on top of Covid.
“That’s going to be laid upon the RSV epidemic," Dr. Jeff Duchin with Public Health Seattle & King County told KUOW. "Don’t yet know what Covid will do, although it does like gatherings. We know it spreads more effectively when people come together, all of these viruses spread more effectively when people come together.”
National experts are warning of a "tripledemic" staring with the upcoming holiday. In a way, we are about to intensely experience a new angle on an old phenomenon.
"If you remember, before Covid, every time we gathered for the holidays, somebody got the flu," Dr. Helen Chu told Seattle Now. "I think we are back in that time; viruses are seasonal and they tend to peak in the winter months, when people gather. So we are going to see it ... it is inevitable and you do what you can to keep the vulnerable from getting sick."
"This holiday season is the first season we've had since a lot of pandemic mitigation measures have been lifted. People are traveling more, they are not masking as much indoors, and I think people are more likely to have colds and coughs and go to school and work with those colds and coughs. So what is happening now is all those viruses we didn't see over the past two years — flu and RSV, and all the other respiratory viruses — have now come back. Those numbers are really, really high."
Dr. Chu adds that Seattle Children's Hospital, as well as other regional hospitals, are at capacity because of surges in these viruses. A director at Seattle Children's said recently that its facilities are at "crisis mode" because of RSV. This is of concern for doctors like Chu who know that a lot more cases are on the way. This means emergency services flooded with illnesses on top of that heart attack, or car crash, or overdose, etc.
All these viruses we're talking about are similar — you get a cough, maybe a bit of a cold or a fever. But they affect people differently. Different age groups do better or worse depending on the virus. What do we do? Learn from our recent past. None of this is new. Stay home if you are sick. Mask up if conditions are too cozy. Wash your hands. Keep hand sanitizer ready.
"Those are the things that are going to keep these viruses from spreading, and particularly from causing very young children and older adults from getting very sick with them," Chu said.
To be clear, Dr. Chu said people should "definitely try to gather this year," and that it is important to bring such aspects of our lives back. Rather, be aware of the settings you are in, and be safe. Take extra care and precautions for older adults and children.
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Council committee favors returning Seattle parking officers to SPD
The Seattle City Council budget committee has voted to return parking enforcement duties to the Seattle Police Department.
The full council will vote next week on this proposal, as well as the entire amended budget for the next two years.
This unit was shifted to the city's Department of Transportation under former Mayor Jenny Durkan, who was responding to calls made in 2020 to shrink the police department.
A special task force will meet next year to determine if the switch back to the SPD should be permanent. Opponents argue the move would cost the city millions of dollars in officer salaries and expenses; supporters say the opposite, arguing that the change would free up millions of dollars for the city's emergency reserves.
Mayor Bruce Harrell originally proposed returning parking enforcement to SPD in his budget proposal. The proposal comes after the move from the police department to SDOT did not go smoothly. The city was forced to refund $4.5 million in parking tickets following the shift to SDOT, because Seattle did not officially give the officers the legal authority under the Department of Transportation to issue tickets. And city surveys state that about 80% of parking enforcement officers favor returning to SPD.
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Longest November dry spell on record for Seattle area
As rain arrives in Western Washington Tuesday, it ends the longest November dry spell on record for the region.
Monday marked 14 straight days with no rain in November for the Seattle area. It breaks the previous record set in 2000. November is usually the wettest month of the year for the region.
The Seattle area normally gets slightly more than six inches of rain during this time, but as of Monday, Nov. 21, it's only received 1.67 inches.
The National Weather Service in Seattle noted that Nov. 19 is statistically the wettest day of the year, but this year was dry.
The lack of rain, and cloud cover, also meant that overnight temperatures dipped lower than usual. The weather service further noted some new low records, such as the Olympia Airport, which recorded a new low of 17 degrees on Nov. 18, beating the previous record of 19 degrees set in 2014.
After Monday's rain, the region is forecasted to receive more rain Thursday, Thanksgiving night.
The weather system that's bringing rain to the Puget Sound region for the first time in two weeks will drop more snow on the mountains. A winter weather advisory will be in place until early Wednesday morning. Areas above 3,000 feet could get between 1 to 12 inches of rain. Drivers should be aware and prepared around the passes. Freezing rain could be a factor.
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