KUOW Blog
News, factoids, and insights from KUOW's newsroom. And maybe some peeks behind the scenes. Check back daily for updates.
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Stories
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Gas prices back on the rise in Washington
Something for drivers to consider while idling along their Western Washington commutes: gas prices.
Gas prices had been falling for a record 14 weeks earlier this month. GasBuddy reports that trend is over, and they are on the rise.
The average price for regular gas in Washington state is $5.17 per gallon (higher than the national average of $3.78), according to AAA. That's up 52 cents from a week ago.
The Seattle/Bellevue/Everett average is $5.34, which is up about 50 cents from a week ago.
It's a similar story in Tacoma where the average is $5.26, up 63 cents from a week ago.
In short, gas is already expensive, and it's getting more expensive. Perhaps it's best to start thinking long term — lifestyle, work style, where to live — to rely less on our cars, because we're not Cruisin' anymore.
This segment on gas prices originally appeared in the Sept. 29, 2022 Today So Far newsletter.
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Getting around Seattle is no Fantastic Voyage: Today So Far
- Transportation around the Seattle area is likely to get a little rough with construction projects on the road ahead.
- 520 Bridge will be closed this weekend. Expect delays.
- Gas prices are on the rise again.
- Seattle aims to revamp Third Avenue ... again.
This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for September 29, 2022.
The Seattle area has ambitious goals when it comes to commuting, transit, and generally getting around. But let's be honest, getting around our region is no Fantastic Voyage. It's not so much Rollin' With My Homies, and more like C U When U Get There ... eventually.
While speaking with KUOW's Seattle Now, Mark Hallenbeck, director of the Washington State Transportation Center, says things in our region aren't likely to get better any time soon. We are looking at a lot of construction down the road.
“Congestion will keep happening ... We built much of our freeway system starting in the 1960s, it hasn’t done a lot of replacement of those things, so they are 20-30 years past their design life. That’s a great thing ... but the bad news is we’re going to have to do construction. Construction on major freeways often is accompanied by congestion — get used to it.”
On top of all that, our region's work habits have changed. More folks are working from home. That means the morning commute has actually gotten better, according to Hallenbeck. Basically, instead of a traffic snarl at 5:30 a.m., it now happens at 6:30 a.m. Afternoon/evening traffic, however, hasn't improved and has gotten worse in some cases. Hallenbeck says remote work is partially responsible. Folks are commuting in the morning, and some of those folks used to take the bus to work. Now, those people are looking to run errands after work, or go to dinner, etc. That means they aren't hopping on a bus, they're getting into a car in the afternoon. That volume is placing a strain on roads.
“Our trip-making behavior has changed to take advantage of this telecommuting that a lot of people are now doing …. as our work schedules kind of settle down, I think you’ll see traffic settle down, and transit will adjust to when people are going to work and not.”
Hallenbeck also notes that our region doesn’t do well when it comes to transit, which is mostly designed to get people to and from work, not so much to the store, dinner, etc. Transit also doesn’t do a good job for commuters coming in from outside Seattle (so I’m not the only one who noticed that).
“Everyone has to compromise a little bit,” Hallenbeck said. “We cannot afford to give everyone a free, fast drive from anywhere they want to live, to anywhere they want to go. There aren’t enough resources to do that, there isn’t enough space to do that. So be prepared to compromise … part of that compromising activity is mixing up our land uses. We need to make it easy for you to go from your house to a medical center to a restaurant, and that means those things need to be closer to where you live. The only way to do that is to put them closer to where you live. So try not to object too much when people put retail relatively near your housing developments … the village of old times are coming back and those are really good things.”
For more insights into our evolving traffic, and current trends, check out Hallenbeck's full conversation with Seattle Now here.
Since we're on the topic, it's probably a good time to remind drivers that the 520 Bridge over Lake Washington will be closed in both directions this weekend. As I heard KUOW's Kim Malcolm report last night, crews are realigning some lanes, which is part of the Montlake lid project. The good news is that the bike and pedestrian lane will still be open. The closure starts at 11 p.m. Friday. The lanes reopen at 5 a.m. Monday.
If you recall, the I-90 bridge across Lake Washington was down last weekend for repairs and that really snarled traffic. The I-90 bridge will be open this weekend, but with the 520 bridge down, you can expect that traffic won't be so Coolio.
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Electric history takes flight in Washington: Today So Far
- The test flight for an all-electric airplane, designed by a Western Washington company, was a success.
- Seattle Library employees will now be able to administer Narcan.
- Man gets five years in prison after scamming hundreds of thousands of dollars from Washington's unemployment department.
This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for September 27, 2022.
Electric vehicle history was made in Washington state this week. An electric airplane named Alice made its maiden flight out of Moses Lake on Tuesday. Electric aircraft have flown before, but this plane is designed for commercial use by a Washington-based company. In other words, Alice is meant to carry passengers from place-to-place.
The all-electric flight is impressive, especially considering the shift to electric vehicles we are in the midst of. But there is still more work to be done before you can buy a ticket. Eviation is the Western Washington-based company that makes Alice. It's waiting for a few advancements in battery technology to get a 200-mile range out of the plane. It also carries nine passengers. So this plane will be good for trips between Seattle and Portland. Think of this plane like Sandpiper Air in the 1990s hit sitcom "Wings" (kids, "Wings" was like a prequel to "Monk").
As Tom Banse reports, this is a significant step in our evolving travel infrastructure, but it won't likely be the only one. Biofuels, for example, are also being looked at as a more climate-friendly option (compared to jet fuels) for air travel. Remember when I wrote about Washington's potential to grow sugar kelp? Kelp can also be used to make biofuels. Read the full story on this evolution here.
Staff at Seattle Public Libraries will now be allowed to administer Narcan to patrons suspected of overdosing on opioids. As KUOW's Diana Opong reports, the library had a previous policy barring staff from using the overdose-reversing drug. Instead, they were instructed to call 911. After staff prompted officials to review the policy (and someone looked into the legal liability of it all), staff will now be allowed to take action themselves. Read more here.
One final thing: Remember how scammers pounced on Washington's Unemployment Security Department in the early days of the pandemic? They got away with millions. One such person just got five years in prison for the scam, among other crimes. Abidemi Rufai, 45, is a Nigerian citizen who pleaded guilty to federal charges of wire fraud and aggravated identity theft in the spring. Rufai used stolen identities to file fraudulent applications for economic relief when disasters struck the USA. The Department of Justice says he did the same con after Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma. He hit up Washington state for unemployment relief when Covid struck and got more than $350,000. Read more here.
AS SEEN ON KUOW
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BIPOC homeownership would have to increase by 140K in Washington to reach parity, report says
A new report says the home ownership gap in Washington state is so large that Black, Indigenous and people of color would have to purchase more than 140,000 houses to achieve parity with white homeowners.
Breaking it down by county: 49,494 homes would have to be purchased in King County, 9,645 homes in Snohomish County, and 17,550 in Pierce County.
“This report is key to starting the process of removing barriers and improving access to homeownership. And, there is more work to be done," said Dr. Karen A. Johnson, director of the Washington state Office of Equity. "Now is the time for action. Every individual who plays a role in the homeownership process has work to do to achieve equity and justice for all.”
Among the findings that the Homeownership Disparities Work Group found over its 10-month lifespan is that the homeownership gap between Black and white households is worse today than it was in the 60s.
The report states:
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Proposed city budget emphasizes safety, affordability, and homelessness
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell has provided a first look at his 2023-24 budget plan. He told city workers Tuesday that one big focus of the $7.4 billion proposal is public safety.
"Too often, residents feel unsafe on the streets," Harrell said. "So I believe that in One Seattle, every person has an absolute right to safety, no matter where you live, where you go to school, who you are."
RELATED: King County leaders propose a tax levy for behavioral health clinics
Mayor Harrell spoke about forming a third public safety department, but didn't offer many details. He did say that he plans to return traffic enforcement duties to the Seattle Police Department. Those duties were previously shifted to the city's transportation department after the 2020 summer protests against police brutality.
Harrell also aims to reestablish the park ranger program to help maintain parks.
Other points outlined in the budget proposal:
- Quarter of a billion dollar investment for affordable housing.
- $88 million for regional homelessness authority.
- $5 million to support bonuses for child-care workers in the city.
- $8 million for Vision Zero projects.
- Funding for tiny homes and safe lots.
- $17 million in small businesses support and economic revitalization programs.
Harrell introduced his proposed budget Tuesday while speaking at Seattle's Charles Street Vehicle Maintenance Facility.
The full city council will vote on the proposal in November. There will be three public meetings prior to that vote.
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On a low tide, two stories collide: Reporter's Notebook
It’s funny how stories collide sometimes.
I was out covering a joyous, muddy gathering that was hand-building a traditional “clam garden” — likely the first to be built in the United States in nearly two centuries — on the Swinomish Reservation. On that sunny summer day, one of the year’s lowest tides exposed acres of tideflats, making it possible for air-breathing, rubber-booted humans to build the garden and give local seafood production a boost.
While I was recording people schlepping boulders to revive an ancient Swinomish tradition, that same low tide was creating trouble for a Swinomish fishing boat just 6 miles away.
That boat, the Aleutian Isle, would sink 24 hours later.
The Aleutian Isle, a purse seiner about to join a tribal fishery for sockeye salmon, was leaving a marina in Anacortes on that super-low (-2.6 foot) tide when it apparently ran aground.
Eyewitness Brit Reese was meeting a friend on the docks and saw the whole thing, including a smaller boat having to tow the Aleutian Isle to deeper water. It’s unknown what damage, if any, the incident did to the Aleutian Isle.
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Dan Newhouse does not regret impeachment vote 'at all,' but rejects electoral count reform bill
Washington Congressman Dan Newhouse is one of only two U.S. House Republicans who survived after voting to impeach former President Trump. The other GOP representatives either retired or lost their primary races.
KUOW caught up with Newhouse at the Yakima Sunfair Parade on Saturday, Sept. 24 where he was campaigning for re-election.
Asked if he now regrets his impeachment vote: “Not at all,” he said.
“There are times when you have to make decisions based on what’s good for the country,” Newhouse said.
But his impeachment vote did provoke a backlash. Several Republican challengers jumped into the primary to try and knock him off the ballot, including Trump-backed election denier Loren Culp. All failed, and Newhouse moved on to face Democrat Doug White in the November general election.
Now some Trump loyalists say they won't support Newhouse in the race for the 4th Congressional District.
“There's still a lot of people that are upset about it and angry about it. But I think it was the right thing to do, and I would do it again," Newhouse said.
It’s not clear if he has to worry about the upcoming November election. Residents in his district vote more Republican than any other congressional district in Washington state.
Meanwhile, Newhouse opposed an electoral count reform bill that passed in the U.S. House last week, mostly along partisan lines. The bill is supposed to stop efforts to subvert presidential election results in the future.
In contrast, Washington Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Buetler supported the vote count reform bill. And like Newhouse, she is a Republican who voted to impeach Trump. But unlike Newhouse, Herrera Buetler lost her primary battle to Trump-backed challenger Joe Kent and Democrat Marie Gluesenkamp Pérez.
Want to know more about the voting records and issue positions of candidates? Use the VoteSmart tool below to find out more.
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Seattle Library will allow staff to administer opioid overdose reversing Narcan
Note: This story has been edited to more accurately reflect the number of overdoses in or near Seattle libraries.
For months, the Seattle Public Library has been looking into whether to allow employees to carry and administer Narcan, an opioid overdose treatment, and they’ve reached a decision: Library staff will be allowed to administer Narcan to potential overdose victims.
"Staff members who agree to administer Narcan would take library health training, and use library provided medicine," said Rick Sheridan with Seattle Public Library.
RELATED: Free Narcan vending machines in Pierce County
RELATED: Seattle! You can get free Narcan delivered to you
Narcan, also known by its generic name, naloxone, is a nasal spray drug that can reverse an opioid overdose. The library's decision reverses long-standing guidance advising employees against using the drug to treat patrons who may have overdosed.
According to the library, no doses of naloxone are available to staff yet. The library will make an order for the drug which will be placed in first-aid kits. The drug will be administered entirely on a volunteer basis. Trainings for staff who want to volunteer to be able to administer Narcan will be available. The library expects change in this policy to take a few months.
Availability of the drug will be based on how many staff have volunteered to administer it at a given site. As the library puts it: "In other words, there is no guarantee that a patron who overdoses on Library grounds will receive naloxone."
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Retired Seattle cop arrested after five-hour standoff in Mount Vernon, Wash.
A retired Seattle police officer surrendered in Mount Vernon on Tuesday morning after a five-hour standoff with police at a single-family residence there.
Eugene Louis Schubeck III, the retired Seattle officer involved in the standoff, is infamous in Seattle police circles. In 2009, Schubeck was acting as a hostage negotiator when he shot the man he was speaking with in the jaw.
The man, Nathaniel Caylor, survived but underwent multiple jaw surgeries and later received nearly $2 million as part of a settlement with the City of Seattle, a record amount at the time.
According to court records, Schubeck and another officer had gone to check on Caylor at an apartment in Seattle’s Greenwood neighborhood after a relative called 911, concerned that Caylor was suicidal while caring for his toddler son.
On Monday, roughly a year after retiring, Schubeck, 57, was on the other side of the crisis negotiation. At 9:26 p.m., a woman called Skagit 911 to report that her estranged husband had threatened to kill her son.
According to a statement from Lieutenant Mike Moore, of Mount Vernon Police, “a 57-year-old Mount Vernon resident had pointed a handgun at an adult male family member and threatened to kill him.”
The statement continued that Schubeck “had indicated that he was not going to be arrested and was armed with numerous other weapons available to him.”
Crisis negotiators spoke with Schubeck by phone. After five hours, Schubeck surrendered “without incident.” Several firearms were taken as evidence, according to the statement.
Schubeck was booked into the Skagit County Jail on Monday morning on two counts, including assault in the first degree, threats to kill. Mount Vernon Police investigators have asked witnesses or those with knowledge to call.
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Resistance is futile, the future is remote: Today So Far
According to one expert, "the realities of 21st century working" is that remote work is the way of doing things from here on out. This shift will take time. But are there naysayers out there?
This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for September 26, 2022.
If you're a Seattle-area company struggling with the evolution to remote and hybrid work, there is a message you need to hear: This is going to take time, so be patient. But you should probably make peace with the sobering fact that this is the way of working life from here on out.
"These are the realities of 21st century working," Anne Helen Petersen told KUOW's Seattle Now. "You can vote for the future, or you can try to hold on to those old ways of working from the past, and then pay a consulting company in five years to tell you to get with the future. Those are your options."
Petersen is the co-author of "Out of Office: The Big Problem and Bigger Promise of Working from Home."
It's hard to discuss this issue without addressing an elephant in the room — managers. Anyone who has worked in an office has their own management horror stories. Whether it's a manager who is more of a babysitter lacking any faith a job can be done without them hovering, or a manager who is a textbook case of the Peter Principle.
I don't have any evidence to back this up (aside from my own anecdotal experience through years of office work), but I have a feeling that it's managers like the ones mentioned above (and other higher ups) who are hesitant to evolve into remote work. To such managers out there: Is the job getting done, or is your ego just taking a hit when you can't physically tour around cubicles with a coffee mug, reminding people to put cover sheets on their TPS reports? Or ask yourself: Are you good at your job, or is it that you cannot adapt?
There is evidence, however, to show that this remote/hybrid evolution is growing, especially in our area. The Seattle Times reports that Seattle ranks second in the nation when it comes to remote workers. In fact, the cities that rank high on the Times' list of top remote workers align with other lists of the largest U.S. tech hubs. After a couple years shifting to remote work, there are indications that productivity has not been harmed, and has actually been improved.
"I think Seattle is really interesting test case, because you have a bunch of things going ton that you will not find in a lot of other cities," Petersen said. "First of all, you have the high concentration of tech workers, and tech companies who are very amenable to flexible work solutions, even before the pandemic."
Among other reasons Seattle can be so remote-friendly is because we don't have an option in many cases. Petersen further notes that "there have just been a number of catastrophes, for lack of a better word, with Seattle transit, and roadways, and waterways."
Such as the two-year absence of the West Seattle Bridge, or the struggles with the Washington State Ferry fleet, or how taking mass transit can take hours for simple trips. When you put that up against a commuting workforce, moving to a desk in the other room is far more efficient than losing hours en route to an office.
"It's just harder to make the case to come into the office," Pertersen said, adding that if your company is dead set on bringing people into the office, then it should also be very supportive of better mass transit.
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No more vaccine requirement for travelers entering Canada next month
This Saturday, Canada is dropping its Covid vaccination requirement for travelers wanting to enter the country.
Travelers will also no longer have to upload their vaccination information to the Arrive CAN app starting Oct. 1. They also won't have to wear masks on planes, trains, and cruise ships.
Canadian officials made the official announcement Monday after reports surfaced about the pending changes.
The Associated Press reports that Canadian officials made the decision after data indicated the country has passed the peak of the Omicron wave, along with high vaccination rates and new boosters.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Covid vaccination mandate for foreign nationals entering the country is staying in place for now.
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Youth rally to protect salmon in the Snake River
Everyone must come together to protect salmon. That’s the message from teens at a salmon youth rally on the banks of the Snake River in Lewiston, Idaho.
At the rally, teens with the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation Youth Council asked that politicians protect salmon by removing the four Lower Snake River dams. The four dams in southeastern Washington make it harder for endangered salmon to reach spawning grounds in Idaho.
Nizhonia Toledo is the president of the youth council. The 18-year-old says the council is fighting for indigenous people. It’s also fighting for the large salmon runs that tribal elders remember.
“This is the generation we’re growing up in, where we as youth have to stand up and fight for what we used to have," Toledo said.
The dams also provide key services, including allowing barges to reach the Port of Lewiston, providing farmers with access to irrigation, and generating carbon-free energy.
U.S. Sen. Patty Murray and Washington Gov. Jay Inslee have said these benefits must be replaced before the dams can be removed.
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