(The Center Square) – Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson delivered her first State of the City address on Tuesday, taking on such hot-button issues as public safety, homelessness and affordability.
Wilson, who narrowly defeated incumbent Mayor Bruce Harrell in November, has taken over the executive branch of government at a time when the city faces significant crime concerns, a major homelessness problem and a persistently high cost of living.
The mayor didn’t shy away from the reality of violent crime in Seattle.
“And I want to start by acknowledging one of the hardest things that has happened this year in Seattle: the loss of the two Rainier Beach High School students late last month who were shot and killed while waiting for the bus after school,” Wilson said from the Langston Hughes Performing Institute in downtown Seattle.
Two students – Traveiah Houfmuse, 17, and Tyion Stewart, 18 – were shot and killed in a targeted attack at a Seattle bus stop near Rainier Avenue South and South Henderson Street on Jan. 30. The suspect, who exited a King County Metro bus and opened fire around 4 p.m., has not been caught.
“After the tragedy in Rainier Beach, we quickly coordinated with the Seattle Police Department and Seattle Public Schools to ensure an increased security presence during the times when people are traveling to and from the school,” Wilson said.
The mayor laid out concrete actions that are being taken in the aftermath of the shooting deaths.
“My office is implementing an intensive stabilization plan through the end of this school year to reduce conflict and prevent retaliation,” Wilson explained. “In the Chinatown International District, SPD [Seattle Police Department] will restore a late night presence that was effective before it was discontinued last year.”
Wilson announced the city is considering legal action against owners of persistently problematic properties that endanger neighbors and local businesses.
Dealing with gun violence will also be a focus of the city’s efforts to combat crime.
“My office is working to develop a robust and multi-pronged gun violence strategy that will involve collaboration across city departments, county partners and community experts, including those who have lost loved ones to gun violence,” Wilson said.
She continued: “And in the coming days, my office will convene a panel of local and national experts who will develop and launch a strategy that is grounded in a clear understanding of Seattle’s gun violence problem and is tailored to the needs of our neighborhoods and our communities.”
Earlier this month, SPD Chief Shon Barnes, in his first Year in Review address, touted dropping crime rates in the city.
Wilson addressed another vexing problem in the Emerald City: homelessness.
Based on the 2024 Point-in-Time count, there were more than 4,000 people living unsheltered in Seattle on any given day, she said.
Wilson’s speech came just days after the city cleared a large homeless encampment in Ballard near the Burke-Gilman Trail.
“And the conversations that I had there at the site really underscored the reality that we simply do not have enough housing, shelter and services for everyone who is living unsheltered,” Wilson said.
She admitted the city’s overall approach to homelessness is not working.
“We can’t get so used to the way things are that we start to feel it’s natural for so many people to be left to sleep outside every night,” the mayor said. “We have to make sure that everyone can access and enjoy our parks, trails, sidewalks and other public spaces.”
Her plans to combat homelessness via continuing and improving efforts to keep public spaces open and accessible by prioritizing encampment removals and moving rapidly to expand shelter with supportive services, including looking at parcels of city land that could site tiny houses and micro modular shelters.
“So, in the coming weeks, my administration will also be introducing legislation to city council to fund shelter expansion and make it faster and easier to build shelter in our city,” Wilson said.
The mayor provided some specific goals, including adding “1,000 new units this year, with services matched to people’s needs, and we are on our way to reach this goal.”
The mayor also touched on affordability.
“You should not need a six-figure income to live here,” Wilson observed. “You shouldn’t need a half-million dollars to buy a house and have some stability in your life. And you shouldn’t need to be a millionaire to afford to raise a child.”
According to the Council for Community and Economic Research Cost of Living Index, Seattle consistently ranks among the top 10 most expensive U.S. cities. The overall cost of living is over 40% higher than the national average, driven primarily by housing costs, which are more than 100% above the U.S. average.
“So today, I am launching my affordability agenda,” she announced, with a focus on permanently affordable social housing, establishing universal childcare, ensuring access to healthy food and supporting small businesses through economic revitalization.
Wilson herself noted she didn’t provide much in the way of spending figures when it comes to her agenda.
“You may have noticed I didn’t put budgetary price tags on a lot of the items I mentioned today,” she said. “And I appreciate that this year’s budget is going to be challenging. My team is hard at work on that already.
“So you can expect to hear a lot more about budgets and revenue in the months ahead. But I think there’s a lot more to be gained by starting that conversation by looking at what we need, and where we want to be, and then figuring out how to get there.”
