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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Mayor Harrell proposes $38M for city cleanup, homeless camp removal in Seattle
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell wants to spend more money next year to clean up the city and manage, or remove, tent encampments.
Harrell's plan is part of his 2023-24 budget proposal, which is under review by the City Council. The mayor proposes to spend $38 million on litter removal, cleanup initiatives, and what he calls encampment resolution and RV remediation. That refers to directing people who are unhoused away from tent encampments and into city services when they're available.
That work falls under the city's new Unified Care Team. The budget proposal calls for 150% increase in staff who will work with "stakeholders, services providers, the (Regional Housing Authority) and unhoused residents to facilitate connections to community resources and city services," according to the Mayor's Office.
Thousands of people live unhoused in Seattle.
“As long as people live in parks and on sidewalks and sleep in tents and on benches, we refuse to be complacent,” Mayor Harrell said in a statement. “Our administration’s immediate priority has been to stand up a better system and act with urgency and compassion to address the impacts of homelessness – helping people off the streets and into shelter while we also work to make sidewalks, parks, and open spaces accessible to all. My proposed budget reflects our plan to draw from lessons learned, build on this early work, and develop a more swift, effective, and sustainable City response.”
Harrell's proposal has the support of the King County Regional Homelessness Authority, Friends of Little Saigon, and the local YWCA.
The Seattle City Council will determine if this funding, and other elements of the mayor's budget proposal, move forward.
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Seattle school calendar updated to make up for teacher strike days
Seattle Public Schools has added five days to the school calendar to cover the time students missed during last month's teachers strike.
Students will make up those days on Feb. 2, and then from June 27-30.
High school graduation dates will also be rescheduled. The district says it will announce those details by Friday, Oct 21.
If we get any snow days this winter, the school year could be pushed out to as late as July 6. (Potential snow makeup dates are July 3, 5, and 6.)
The start of the 2022-23 school year in Seattle was delayed while teachers went on strike in early September. Teachers were demanding higher pay, mental health staff for students, and better student/teacher ratios. After a week, the district and the union came to a tentative agreement and teachers went back into their classrooms.
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Should parking officers return to the Seattle Police Department?
The Seattle City Council will decide by November whether to return dozens of parking enforcement officers to the Seattle Police Department, reversing its action taken in 2021.
Parking enforcement duties were moved out of SPD last year and placed with the Seattle Department of Transportation. The move was in response to calls to shrink the city's police department. Now, Mayor Bruce Harrell's proposed 2023-24 budget aims to shift all parking officers back to SPD.
Senior Deputy Mayor Monisha Harrell says the change has created problems. She also points to a survey that states nearly 80% of parking enforcement officers want to return to SPD.
“That came from their membership because they had so many members, so many of their staff, who were threatening, quite candidly, to leave," Harrell said.
There are $4.5 million in parking tickets that the city had to refund after the transfer, Harrell notes. When making the move, the officers were not given the legal authority to issue the tickets. They were therefore invalid.
According to Mayor Harrell's budget proposal summary:
"The budget includes a transfer of Parking Enforcement Officers (PEOs) from the Department of Transportation (SDOT) to SPD. This transfer reverses a decision from 2020 to relocate the PEOs out of SPD, after recognizing that operational and administrative efficiencies would be better realized under SPD. This move would allow access to law enforcement databases, would eliminate the basis for PEOs unfair labor practice (ULP) complaints and SPDs disciplinary system (Office of Police Accountability) would provide full access to information needed for misconduct investigations. Additionally, this move will save $5.5 million in functional overhead and overtime expenses and eliminate annual special commission requirements for PEOs and allows PEOs to continue utilizing SPD facilities and resources for regular work assignments."
Council members said the previous mayoral administration failed to give them adequate information at the time the decision to move the officers was made. The proposal to move the officers back will be up for discussion as the council considers the the 2023-24 budget.
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New omicron variants emerging in the Northwest
The health officer for Public Health – Seattle & King County says that new variants "are now on the radar" in the Northwest, as omicron continues to evolve.
In a recent tweet, Dr. Jeffrey Duchin said: "Multiple new variants now on radar for PNW. Unclear which ones will emerge as dominant but best to prepare now: get updated booster, improve indoor air, high-quality masks for indoor public spaces, test & isolate w/symptoms or +, get treated if eligible."
RELATED: Tips for finding an omicron booster shot in Western Washington
The CDC's latest data for Oct. 9-15 shows BA.5 (the omicron variant common over the past few months) is giving way to a handful of newer variants — particularly BA.4.6, but also BQ.1, BQ.1.1, and BF.7.
According to Dr. Cyrus Shahpar, the White House's Covid-19 data director, these emerging variants are all considered "omicron," but are distinct.
CDC data states that BA.5 omicron remains the dominant variant spreading in the Northwest region, adding up to 79% of cases, while emerging BF.7 is 6.5% of cases and BA.4.6 is 5.8%.
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Return of the booster: Today So Far
Initial Covid vaccines were like "Star Wars: A New Hope." Omicron's arrival was like "The Empire Strikes Back." The new booster shots are like "Return of the Jedi," all the gumption of the first release with some fancy new tricks.
This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for October 13, 2022.
I think we need to call the latest Covid booster shot the "Awesome Shot," or "Awesomecron," or maybe "Crystal Pepsi" ... "Booster 2: Electric Boogaloo?" — any marketing gimmick that spurs folks to give it a try while sending the message that this updated Covid booster not only covers the original virus, but also the pesky omicron strain. It's the most up-to-date and has arrived just ahead of the worst time of the year.
I dunno, maybe we can get some TikTok influencers on it too. Calling it a "bivalent booster" doesn't seem to be packing the punch needed to get folks to pull up their sleeves. Last week, KUOW reported that about 10% of eligible people in King County have gotten the new booster.
I covered this issue a little bit yesterday, but I feel it's significant enough to give it an extra boost — pun!
Initial vaccines were like "Star Wars: A New Hope." Then omicron arrived, which was like "The Empire Strikes Back," but we learned some important information from it. The new booster shots are like "Return of the Jedi," all the gumption of the first release with some fancy new tricks.
The new Covid booster shot is a good precaution going into fall and winter. Federal officials are bracing for another rise in cases over the next few months. Covid trends in Europe always seem to be ahead of the USA by a few weeks, and cases in Europe are already inching higher.
"I hope people are ... thinking about the looming holidays coming up, with Thanksgiving, and wanting to gather with friends and family and thinking about protecting themselves and protecting their family," Dr. Shireesha Dhanireddy with UW Medicine told KUOW's Seattle Now this morning.
Dr. Dhanireddy doesn't blame people for being fatigued after the past couple years, and she understands that it's a very different phase of the pandemic these days.
"We go out now, you cannot even tell there is a pandemic going on. People are living their lives. Children are back in school. People are going out to dinner. This is a very different time we are in ... I want to remind people that we are here because of the vaccine, and we are here because they have had a significant impact on decreasing hospitalizations and deaths."
Dr. Dhanireddy says it's time to start thinking about the Covid vaccine like other shots we commonly get, from the flu to tetanus — regular things you do to take care of yourself.
The problem is not just slow uptake. People who do want a shot are finding it challenging to get an appointment. Washington state doesn't have enough supply for the overall demand right now. There are a few reasons for this. I was just chatting with a Washington State Department of Health spokesperson who noted that Moderna is behind on its production quotas and that is causing supplies to lag. That means you're most likely to find Pfizer available around the state.
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PNW bird populations are on the decline, report says
A new report shows bird populations are declining around the Pacific Northwest.
“What the State of the Birds report is showing is if the Earth is our coal mine, let's take a look at what the birds are doing so we can understand how we can make sure that our coal mine remains healthy," Klamath Bird Observatory's John Alexander told Jefferson Public Radio.
The report states that climate change, drought, and a century of forest mismanagement are to blame for the decline, especially in the western United States.
Alexander is trying to secure more federal funding to help improve forest health and bird populations.
While birds in more arid regions are on the decline, since 1970, there have been population gains in wetland habitats.
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service helped compile the State of the Birds report.
Read the full story from Jefferson Public Radio here.
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UW professor gets MacArthur honor for work with nuanced, ethical AI
A University of Washington professor has been named one of this year's 25 MacArthur Fellows.
Yejin Choi uses natural language processing, not logic or probability, to develop artificial intelligence that has the ability to reason and understand implied meanings. It has broad potential of applying ethics to technology.
Earlier this year, Choi told KUOW's Soundside about one of her projects called "Ask Delphi." It's a prototype designed to make AI more ethically informed.
"The Delphi is a system where you can ask simple questions in natural language and the model will do its best to guess about what the correct answer might be," Choi said.
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Abortion becomes big issue in senate race between Patty Murray and Tiffany Smiley
Election Day is less than a month away and one of the big issues driving voters to the polls, that has emerged within the past year, is the abortion debate.
It's a top issue in Washington's U.S. Senate race. Republican challenger Tiffany Smiley has been running an ad that tries to stake out a middle ground, following a series of other ads from incumbent Patty Murray that puts abortion center stage.
"I'm pro-life, but I oppose a federal abortion ban," Smiley says in her new ad.
Incumbent Democratic Sen. Patty Murray is accusing Smiley of flip-flopping on the issue. She points to a tweet that Smiley liked in 2017. The tweet came from Washington Congressmember Cathy McMorris Rodgers and advocated for a federal abortion ban after 20 weeks of pregnancy.
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Tips for finding an omicron booster shot in Western Washington
Finding an appointment in Western Washington to get the new *Covid booster shot can be difficult. As KUOW's Eilis O'Neill reports, the state currently does not have enough of the new boosters for the demand, and some people are not finding options locally.
*All current Covid booster shots in Washington state are "bivalent boosters," which target the original virus and are also updated for the omicron variant.
Here are a few tips for finding an omicron booster shot in Western Washington:
- Check Washington state's vaccine locator website. This website shows you places that are administering the vaccine, and will link you to their websites. It does not make an appointment for you. Rather, you have to follow the links to the providers and make an appointment directly with them. You can also try calling Washington's vaccine hotline: 1-833-VAX-HELP (833-829-4357).
- Contact your health-care provider directly. Many doctor's offices are not listed on the state's vaccine locator website and have doses available for patients.
- Washington State Department of Health's "Care-a-Van" is a mobile vaccine clinic with stops scheduled throughout October across the state.
- Use crowdsourced social media, like this Facebook group for people seeking vaccine appointments. These groups often report what they've learned through their own searches, places with open appointments, and other tips. They can also be places to ask questions about what other people know.
- Road trip? As of this post's publishing, KUOW reports that central and eastern Washington pharmacies have more open appointments than locations around Puget Sound. Vaccine availability can change, so it is best to always check ahead and make an appointment.
Check directly with your local county health department
County health departments often hold their own vaccine clinics, or have information on local options. They also have vaccine appointments that may not be listed on the state's vaccine locator.
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Transported 'by land, by sea, by air,' endangered kokanee salmon released into Lake Sammamish
"We have now transported these little fish by land, by sea, by air," said King County Executive Dow Constantine to a large crowd gathered along the shore of Lake Sammamish on Wednesday evening.
Earlier this year, small planes carried roughly 12,000 offspring of Lake Sammamish kokanee salmon from a hatchery on Orcas island. There, they were protected from potentially hazardous conditions like warming waters.
After a brief celebration, Snoqualmie tribal members, Lake Sammamish Kokanee Work Group members, and officials from King County departed in three boats to release the endangered juvenile kokanee into the middle of Lake Sammamish at sunset.
“Ensuring the survival of native salmon requires persistence and ingenuity," Constantine said. “We’re seeing hopeful signs for the future of ‘the little red fish’ that has been part of tribal lifeways since time immemorial, and this is a moment to celebrate that progress."
Before the end of the year, roughly 14,200 kokanee will be released into in Lake Sammamish, including nearly 8,000 in October.
Snoqualmie tribal elder Lois Sweet Dorman hoped for a successful return of the fish. "To me, it's urgent," she said. "There are sacred cycles that need to be honored and this is one of those."
Sweet Dorman said that remembering how close the "amazing little red fish" came to extinction made the celebration feel bittersweet.
"We will be here; other people will come and go. We will be here and we will be fighting for the little red fish because the little red fish are us."
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A new group of voters is active for the 2022 November election
The August 2022 primaries and the upcoming November midterm elections are the first times many people in Washington will have the ability to cast a ballot after the right to vote was restored for formerly incarcerated people in the state.
"Part of mass incarceration in the United States is this permanent othering of folks who have been incarcerated," said Christopher Poulos, director of person-centered services with Washington's Department of Corrections.
Poulos spoke with KUOW's Seattle Now about the recent changes to Washington's voting laws.
"Rather than being welcomed home, we often face this of scarlet letter type situation, where we're prohibited from renting apartments, prohibited from volunteering in kids' schools, prohibited from securing employment that is meaningful, sustainable and at a living wage," he said, adding that restoring the right to vote is a big step away from that barrier.
"And it's actually conducive to successful re-entry, because when we feel like we are part of the community, when we feel we are included, we tend to respond in kind," Poulos said. "It creates pro-social behavior and therefore reduces crime, reduces recidivism."
For Poulos, it's personal. He served three years in prison on a federal drug conviction. Despite being incarcerated in Pennsylvania, he was a resident of Maine, which allowed felons to vote. He says the experience of receiving a ballot was positive and made him feel like he was a part of the community.
After serving time, he went to school and eventually graduated cum laude from the University of Maine School of Law.
In 2021, Washington's Legislature passed a new law that restores the right to vote for formerly incarcerated people. It went into effect Jan. 1, 2022. That means this November will be the first time many such residents will have the chance to vote in an election. This affects a group of about 12,000 to 15,000 people.
When the Legislature approved the change to the state's voting law, Poulos met with a group of others like himself at a Tacoma park. They had food and celebrated the move.
"It was all about community, as fellow human beings," he said. "That's where I'm hoping we are headed as a state, breaking down the us versus them and truly welcoming folks home when they get released."
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Here comes the rain again ... eventually: Today So Far
- Rain is — finally — on the horizon for Washington ... eventually.
- Health experts are concerned about the flu season ahead.
- Spoiler alert: Prices are still high.
This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for October 12, 2022.
Rain is — finally — on the horizon for Washington ... eventually. The region has just experienced its driest summer on record, parts of the state have dipped back into drought conditions, and smoky air from wildfires continues to linger, so rain has been eagerly awaited. The National Weather Service's latest outlook for Oct. 19-25 shows above-average precipitation. In other words, a lot of rain.
The temperatures, however, are expected to remain quite warm considering this time of year. The end of October is looking to be warm and rainy. Read more here.
Maybe the warmer temperatures will help stave off flu season a little longer? OK, that's a twisted attempt at a silver lining, but I mention it because health experts are concerned about the flu season ahead. By now, we know that Covid pandemic measures, like masking and social distancing, basically knocked down flu cases. Now, the flu is slated for a comeback.
Seattle just announced that it is ending its emergency orders for the pandemic at the end of this month — another sign that conditions have eased up quite a bit and folks are moving on past the pandemic. Washington is ending its state-level orders at the same time. This is all happening as colder, wetter weather usually arrives, causing people to be more indoors, mingling with others. Add all of that up, and conditions are apt for the flu (and Covid). It's a good time to get an updated flu vaccine.
It's also a good time to find a Covid booster shot that is updated for Omicron. KUOW's Eilis O'Neill reports that finding booster shots around Seattle is proving to be difficult with pharmacies booked up. Outside the city, however, it could be a bit easier. Anecdotally, I live south of Seattle and I was able to get an omicron booster without any issues. When I showed up, there was no line. I actually got there early, so they just took me in and I was out before I was even scheduled to show up. (For another anecdotal side note: I now have had the J&J vaccine, a Moderna booster, and a Pfizer omicron booster. For me, the Pfizer booster was a cakewalk, while the other vaccines had me running hot and cold. Pfizer just made me tired the next day. But again, that's my experience.)
If you want an omicron booster, try consulting the state's vaccine locator website. O'Neill reports that Central and Eastern Washington pharmacies have more open appointments than locations around Puget Sound. Also, some county vaccine websites may have more info than the state's vaccine database. There are also pop-up vaccine clinics starting to emerge, such as pop-ups on Oct. 17 and Nov. 3-4 at the University of Washington.
It's Wednesday, which means it's time for me to check on gas prices throughout the region. Spoiler alert: Prices are still high. A couple weeks ago, Washington was at an average of $5.17 per gallon; last week it was $5.35.
The average gas price for a gallon of regular gas in Washington state is currently $5.38, according to AAA. While that seems like more than last week (it is), it's actually a slight decline from prices earlier this week. In the Seattle/Bellevue/Everett area, the average is $5.57, about a penny cheaper than yesterday. One year ago in King County, the average was $4.
Washington's rising gas prices echo the national trend. GasBuddy reports that the recent move by OPEC+ to cut down on oil production has influenced gas prices, keeping them high. This comes despite some refineries coming back online after a brief absence, which is helping alleviate some strain.
“With OPEC+ deciding to cut oil production by two million barrels a day, we’ve seen oil prices surge 20%, which is the primary factor in the national average rising for the third straight week,” said analyst Patrick De Haan on GasBuddy's blog. “Some of the refinery snags that have caused prices to surge in the West and Great Lakes appear to be improving, with prices in those two regions likely to inch down, even with OPEC’s decision, as the drop in wholesale prices has offset the rise due to the production cut. But where gas prices didn’t jump because of refinery issues, they will rise a total of 10-30 cents due to oil’s rise, and some areas are certainly seeing the jump already. For now, I don’t expect much improvement in prices for most of the country, with California and the Great Lakes as the exception, with downdrafts likely in the days and weeks ahead.”
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