Here are the questions we posed to those running for City Council in the upcoming election:
1. If elected, what steps would you take to ensure that neighborhood residents have a voice in development in their communities and that Seattle’s growth benefits everyone (e.g., homeless people, renters, low-wage workers)?
2. Building and preserving new housing units is key to solving our housing and homelessness crisis, but preventing the loss of the affordable housing that already exists is equally important. If elected, what would you do to preserve existing affordable / low-income housing? Please be specific about what the city can do under current law, and what changes, if any, you support in state law.
3. What would you do to ensure that parks and open spaces are safe and accessible to all people, including homeless people, families with children, nearby workers, and others? Please be specific about what, if any, changes you would make in how parks are used and regulated. (e.g.; would you modify or eliminate the parks exclusion ordinance, support limiting park hours, support funding for downtown park rangers, add or remove park seating?)
City Council, Position 1
Jean Godden, Incumbent
1. I have actively supported – and will continue to support – measures such as increased funding for low-income housing, neighborhood involvement and support for nonprofits working to give a voice to the homeless and to low-wage workers. As Seattle grows, we must approach development carefully and ensure that those affected by change have a seat at the table during planning and development stages. Community benefits should be the top priority when assessing potential development.
2. First, the city must redouble efforts to gain authority to limit condo conversions as one way to maintain affordable rental housing. Currently, state law prohibits cities from doing so. I have lobbied in Olympia in support of such legislation and in support of measures that protect renters affected by condo conversion. Additionally, I believe that the council should implement a policy that replaces public housing units affected by development with a one-to-one replacement within the area.
3. I did not support the mayor’s plan to add park rangers to last year’s budget. City parks should be open to all. I have backed reasonable park hours and the need for periodic police patrols to ensure safety. I like the idea of activating parks, such as allowing concession wagons, ice cream sales and Real Change vendors. We will all be more comfortable in parks that are kept safe, clean and accessible.
Joe Szwaja
1. I take no money from developers or those working on behalf of landlord interests (unlike my opponent) so I know they’ll never influence my vote. I advocate neighborhood sustainability councils [that] would obtain city resources while working to reduce carbon emissions and making our city more livable, neighborhood by neighborhood. I will advocate that workers, renters, homeless people and their advocates are on important boards and commissions and always included when making important decisions.
2. Currently, we can require that existing residents are provided with replacement housing at comparable rents when they are displaced due to demolition or conversion. I would immediately introduce legislation to require this throughout Seattle. I also would insist on one to one, on site replacement of threatened low-income units such as those in Yesler Terrace. Statewide, I would push to cap condo conversions as other cities around the country have done. See http://www.joeforcouncil.com/issues/housing.shtml
3. I would eliminate the parks exclusion ordinance and support funding for downtown park rangers and for increased park seating. Currently the city is supposed to require private owners who obtain city subsidies to provide public open space in exchange; often this is not enforced and people either don’t know it is public space or are pushed off by police or private security – I will work to make sure this doesn’t happen.
City Council, Position 3
Bruce Harrell
1. I want public forums where a record is made on neighborhood feedback; use of the internet to capture opinions; and a defined decision-making tree for neighborhoods to understand who makes what decision. Let’s protect single-family neighborhoods from density that make no sense. I support multi-family and smaller detached housing near business districts, arterials, and transit hubs. I prefer smaller housing designs with pedestrian accessibility. This provides housing alternatives for those who want less house.
2. I have met with experts in Affordable Housing and community leaders. I will continue to seek their input on policy and support efforts to achieve the goal of 9,500 units by 2014. I will find additional funds for the existing affordable housing fund and consider re-establishing the Growth Related Housing Fund. I will encourage structuring a Land Acquisition Fund for land banking and encourage city guarantees of land purchases specifically for this targeted population.
3. Parks must be clean and safe. I support funding for unarmed park rangers and want neighborhood input on seating/hour issues. Open spaces are not identical. I want to assure access to parks for all. Ordinances should exist for enforcement by those with authority to act on crime that put others at risk. The Park Exclusion Ordinance 118607 attempted to provide this oversight but I don’t want to punish the homeless; I want to help them.
Venus Velázquez
1. I will respect the current neighborhood plans. For those neighborhoods without them, I will work with the respective neighborhood groups to develop a clear roadmap for involving residents at the beginning of each project. We will then work together to refine the involvement process as projects move along.
To ensure that Seattle’s growth benefits all residents, I will ask for a neighborhood impact analysis of each proposed major project, program or plan.
2. • Ensure onsite, 1:1 replacement of low-income housing for any federal redevelopment, such as Yesler Terrace.
• Support a “right of first refusal” ordinance that includes a waiver for a portion of the real estate excise taxes for owners who sell property to nonprofit developers to preserve low-income housing.
• Expand the multifamily tax abatement program.
3. • Parks and open space are amenities to be enjoyed by all. They must also be safe for everyone. Access, safety and maintenance will be my top priorities.
• I support reviewing, with measurable outcomes, the impact of the Parks Exclusion Ordinance.
• I support funding for downtown park rangers.
• I do not support limiting park hours any further.
City Council, Position 5
Tom Rasmussen, Incumbent
1. As Seattle grows, I will continue to expect and require that City departments and private developers work with communities as they plan new projects. I have supported City policies to carry out this commitment and will continue to do so.
2. I will continue to support “one-for-one” housing replacement policies.I have and will continue to oppose the demolition of publicly owned housing, especially when it is practical and feasible to provide it for low-income or homeless people.
3. I support policies that allow everyone the right to use our parks for respite and recreation. Parks have, at times, been the sites of violence, alcohol consumption, and drug sales resulting in conduct that is harmful or frightening to users. All people should be held to the same standards of conduct that are there to ensure that our parks are safe and welcoming to individuals and families regardless of economic or housing status.
City Council, Position 7
David Della, Incumbent
1. We need to be to be a city of opportunity by providing Seattle families and individuals with affordable home choices and places to live living wage jobs so they can continue to enjoy what our city has to offer- which isn’t the case today. Open forums with citizens, the city and developers are needed in order to keep Seattle’s growth one that benefits all. My parents came here with little and were able to own a home—we can’t price out our working families.
2. My plan to do this includes working with developers to create more mixed income communities like New Holly. We also need to make sure that we work with apartment owners to allow affordable rent for those who can’t afford to buy a home or are saving to do so. Lastly, our city needs to continue to be a city of opportunity so I will work with businesses so that workers can have a living wage.
3. While on the council, I consistently voted to fund police officers. Our parks are gems in our city and contribute to our quality of life, so we need to keep them safe and accessible for all our residents. As chair of the committee that oversees Parks, I made sure we put safety measures in our funding packages. Growing up my family used parks as places to relax, we should not take away this valuable recreation venue.Tim Burgess
1. I would make certain that land-use planning remains as much as possible at the grassroots level in our neighborhoods, not shifted to City Hall as has been recently proposed. I’ve been a neighborhood activist for 20 years, last year organizing nearly 2,000 neighbors to fight an out-of-scale retail development that would have eliminated 11 units of affordable housing and a locally owned union grocer. Responsible development values mixed uses, integration of all income levels, and sustainability.
2. Lack of affordable housing has reached a crisis point in our city. We should adopt a fast-track option for building affordable units that reduces the current 18-20 month permit delay to 90 days or less, extend and expand the low-income housing levy, work with private employers to develop employee home-purchase financing plans, and lobby the legislature for a temporary apartment-to-condo local option conversion moratorium.
3. I have been endorsed by all of the environmental groups and most park and open-space leaders in our city. Our parks should be accessible for every person living in or visiting the city. Safe parks help make Seattle a great city. I favor hiring additional police officers to address the staffing shortfall existing today; I would not change the exclusion ordinance substantially; and, I would not favor removing park seating.
City Council, Position 9
Sally Clark, Incumbent
1. Seattle’s growth clearly doesn’t benefit everyone, but I am committed to minimizing the negative impacts of our “success.” If re-elected I will work to create/preserve education, training, housing and support services for low-income people. I am a strong proponent of community-driven neighborhood planning and am a leader on the Council for community-driven updates to the existing 38 neighborhood plans. I will keep working to ensure the updates are truly community driven with all voices present.
2. I support continued use of state and local dollars to purchase buildings for rehab and preservation as low-income units. I support increased funding for the State Housing Trust Fund. Given the high rate of condo conversions, I support changes in state law giving the city authority to prevent or delay conversion of units serving low-income residents. I also support increasing the amount of notice and relocation assistance provided when rental units are converted.
3. Parks are for everyone and everyone should be safe and welcome in them. I am open to reviewing the parks exclusion ordinance. I support limiting park hours. I understand this is linked to issues of insufficient affordable housing capacity, but we should deal with that issue directly. I voted against funding the rangers proposal last year. I support upgrading downtown parks and making them safe for ALL users, including homeless users.
Judy Fenton
1. The neighborhood councils are set up to plan growth in 38 areas of Seattle. This is an excellent tool for planning. All community residents are welcome to attend these meetings and be part of the decision-making process.
2. I agree that there is a crisis with affordable apartments in the city. This is largely a result of many condo conversions. I think we need to seek solutions. Working with builders who would like to make low-cost rental units or building with a mixture of more expensive units and some low-cost units would be helpful. Perhaps we could reduce the myriad of regulations the builder needs to deal with, in order to reduce construction costs.
3. I was glad to see that the mayor is adding “park rangers” to his budget for 2008. It is important that public open spaces are used in appropriate ways, to keep them safe and sanitary for all the public.
To Vote in this Election, You Must Be:
- A citizen of the United States
- At least 18 years of age
- A resident of Washington State
- A registered voter
How to vote…
In person:
If you go to the polls to vote, make sure you find out your polling location before Election Day. You can find out your polling location on your voter registration card, or you can check the King County elections website or contact them by phone: www.metrokc.gov/elections or (206) 296-VOTE.
Polls are open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day, Tues., Nov. 6.
By mail:
If you are an absentee voter that means that you get your ballot in the mail before Election Day. To send your ballot in the mail, you must use a standard first class stamp and your ballot must be postmarked on or before Election Day. You can also hand-deliver your ballot to any poll site, the County Elections Office, or another ballot drop site designated by your county auditor.
If you lost your absentee ballot or didn’t receive it, or if you can’t make it to your designated polling place, you can still vote. Go to any polling station and ask for a “provisional ballot.”
Your ballot must be postmarked or dropped off at a designated location on or before 8 p.m. on Election Day, Nov. 6.
Don’t forget to bring identification
If you vote at the polls, you may need to show a copy of one of the following documents with your name and current Washington address:
- Photo ID, such as a driver’s license, state ID card, student ID card, or tribal ID
- Voter registration card
- Utility bill
- Bank statement
- Paycheck
- Government check
- Other government document
If you do not have any of the above forms of ID, you can still vote! Go to a polling station and ask for a “provisional ballot.”
How to vote at the polls if you are homeless:
1) Pick up your voter registration form at the King County Administration building, or any library or fire station (forms are also available at some social service agencies). Bring either a photo ID, a paycheck, or a government document with your name.
2) Where it says, “Address where you live,” write “homeless”; indicate the city or town you spend most of your time. If you live in Seattle, the King County Administration building will be your address; if you live in another city or town, your address will be the city hall in that town. This “address” will be used to determine where you vote.
3) Sign and mail in your voter registration form — or hand it in if you’re registering in person.
4) Go to your designated polling station to vote. If you don’t have ID, ask for a “provisional ballot.”
How to vote by mail if you are homeless:
1) Follow steps 1 and 2 above.
2) Indicate where you receive mail in the box marked “address where you get your mail.”
3) Check the “Ongoing Absentee Request” box; your ballot will be mailed to you.
4) Fill out and return your ballot by 8 p.m. election day.
If you encounter any problems with voting because of your housing status, please contact Real Change at [email protected] or
206-441-3247 ext. 201.
Common Questions
Do I have to vote on everything on the ballot?
No, you can choose to vote only on the candidates and issues you want to. For any candidate or issue you are undecided on, you can leave your choice blank.
Do I have to choose a political party to vote in the election?
No, you do not have to choose a political party to vote in the General Election.
What is a provisional ballot and how do I vote with one?
A provisional ballot is a regular ballot given to a person under the following circumstances:
1) The name of the voter does not appear in the poll book;
2) The poll book indicates the voter was sent an absentee ballot, but the voter wants to vote at the polls;
3) The voter does not have required identification;
4) Other circumstances as determined by the precinct election official.
What’s an incumbent?
An incumbent candidate is the person who holds the office right now.
When can I expect to get my absentee ballot?
The county begins mailing ballots 20 days before Election Day. If you have not received your ballot one week before Election Day, contact your county election’s department: (206) 296-VOTE.
Can I still register to vote?
Yes. You can register to vote by mail up to 30 days before the election, so if you register by mail now, you will not be able to vote in this year’s general election. However, you can register in person at the County Elections office through Oct. 22 (15 days before the election).
If you need direct assistance with your ballot or voting procedures or to register in person, contact:
King County Auditor/Election Office
King County Admin. building #553
500 Fourth Ave.
Seattle, WA 98104
Phone: (206) 296-VOTE
www.metrokc.gov/elections
Don’t Be Turned Away!
If you are registered to vote and meet the qualifications to vote, you cannot be turned away at the polls, even if your name does not appear in the poll book. Ask the poll worker for a “provisional ballot.” (RCW 29A.04.008).
Voting Rights For Ex-Felons
The state Supreme Court recently upheld its decision to require that ex-felons pay the financial fees associated with their sentencing before being allowed to vote. Current law requires a felon to complete all requirements of a felony sentence, including payment of financial obligations, and obtainment of a certificate of discharge, in order to get the right to vote restored (RCW 9.94A.637).
If you are an ex-felon and would like to learn more or want to know how to get your voting rights back, please contact Poverty Action at 1-866-789-7726.
Preceding information provided by Statewide Poverty Action Network