COVID-19 crisis reinforces need for universal broadband access and adoption to address inequities Reinvigorating efforts to pursue universal access to the internet, the City Council approved today the “Internet for All” resolution introduced by Council President M. Lorena Gonzalez (Position 9, Citywide), Councilmember Alex Pedersen (District 4), and Councilmember Debora Juarez (District 5). The COVID-19 […]

Councilmember Lisa Herbold (District 1 – West Seattle/South Park) and Councilmember Alex Pedersen (District 4 – Northeast Seattle and Chair of Transportation & Utilities Committee) issued the following statement regarding the civil emergency proclamation and order issued by Mayor Durkan today for the West Seattle Bridge “to apply for any and all available and eligible […]

I am hopeful you and your neighbors will get to decide whether to renew the Seattle Transportation Benefit District (STBD) at the November 2020 election. I’m honored to chair the City Council Committee on STBD that will be considering it this month. WHAT IS STBD? STBD is the Seattle Transportation Benefit District. It’s another way […]

On Monday, July 6, 2020, your Seattle City Council voted 7-2 to approve a new tax on large Seattle employers (Council Bill 119810).  This new tax will be in addition to the Business & Occupation (B&O) taxes, property taxes, sales taxes, and business license fees paid by Seattle employers.  This new tax must be paid […]

A small, but concrete piece for re-imagining public safety that can respond effectively to true community needs Most of my June 2020 newsletter was dedicated to addressing police accountability issues in the wake of the protests following the police killings of George Floyd and the painfully long history of misconduct and institutional racism negatively impacting […]

Newsletter: Special Edition on Taxes As the Councilmember representing our District 4, I typically enjoy organizing topics into groups of 4 to explore. But this group of 4 is more daunting. As we are painfully aware, our city is facing 4 epic challenges: COVID: The pandemic continues to take lives even though we moved into […]

Follows Recommendation from Reentry Workgroup to Repeal Prostitution Loitering Ordinance City Council unanimously repealed from the Seattle Municipal Code (SMC) the problematic ordinance regarding “prostitution loitering,” as requested by Councilmember Alex Pedersen (District 4), Councilmember Tammy J. Morales (District 2), and Councilmember Andrew J. Lewis (District 7).  The tragic killing by Minneapolis police of George […]

Monthly Newsletter: Protests and Public Safety, Budget Deficits, COVID Updates, Bridges, and More Photo by Xena Goldman Friends and Neighbors, While this month’s newsletter discusses the COVID-19 public health crisis, the resulting economic downturn, our sudden $300 million budget deficit, and the need to fix the West Seattle Bridge impacting 100,000 residents, the priority I’ve heard […]

Monthly Newsletter: Protests and Public Safety, Budget Deficits, COVID Updates, Bridges, and More Photo by Xena Goldman Friends and Neighbors, While this month’s newsletter discusses the COVID-19 public health crisis, the resulting economic downturn, our sudden $300 million budget deficit, and the need to fix the West Seattle Bridge impacting 100,000 residents, the priority I’ve heard […]

Bill repeals ‘war on drugs’ policy disproportionately impacting communities of color SEATTLE – Seattle City Councilmember Andrew J. Lewis (District 7, Magnolia to Pioneer Square) and Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes introduced legislation today to repeal a relic from the failed “War on Drugs,” Seattle’s Drug Traffic Loitering law. The Drug Traffic Loitering law was adopted in the […]