Seattle has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to improve public safety outcomes by civilianizing more tasks and focusing police on major crime. That’s what mayoral candidate Katie Wilson’s public safety platform proposes, which Bryan Kirschner argues would be anti-bad guy, pro-good cop, and taxpayer-friendly. The post Op-Ed: Katie Wilson’s Civilian Safety Plan Would Unlock More Effective Police Department first appeared on The Urbanist.| The Urbanist
"It's never been more important to have a movement mayor," Seattle mayoral candidate Katie Wilson told supporters Sunday. Multiple speakers portrayed Wilson as a bottom-up, people-powered coalition-builder, who stands in sharp contrast to incumbent Bruce Harrell, who they see as a top-down establishment leader lacking vision for the city. The post Progressives Rally Behind Katie Wilson in Home Stretch to Mayoral Election first appeared on The Urbanist.| The Urbanist
# Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell and progressive challenger Katie Wilson have debated many times over the course of the general election, and one of the most recent was at Seattle University and co-sponsored by KOMO. Seeking to make up ground after finishing a distant second in the primary, Harrell continued to harangue Wilson for a perceived| The Urbanist » Advocacy journalism for better cities.
# Mayor Bruce Harrell has pledged to complete labor negotiations with the Seattle Police Officers Guild before the end of the year. But facing a tough reelection fight, he might not be around to sign the deal, which challenger Katie Wilson may want to renegotiate anyway.| The Urbanist » Advocacy journalism for better cities.
# The race for Seattle Mayor is heating up, with progressive challenger Katie Wilson securing new labor support and incumbent Bruce Harrell ramping up fundraising and attacks on his opponent. Harrell also called in an endorsement from a national Democratic Party leader via Pete Buttigieg.| The Urbanist » Advocacy journalism for better cities.
# In Mayor Bruce Harrell’s 2026 budget proposal unveiled Tuesday, the Seattle Police Department was the big winner, seeing a $34.5 million increase. The mayor would use a new 0.1% “public safety” sales tax increase and a business tax overhaul to close a $122 million deficit and fund new investments.| The Urbanist » Advocacy journalism for better cities.
# Friday's ballot count was very friendly to Seattle progressives, with mayoral challenger Katie Wilson exceeding the 50% mark with the boost. The election dynamics favor a progressive wave. Here's why.| The Urbanist » Advocacy journalism for better cities.
# Five major bike safety projects are all opening within a few months of each other, filling in critical gaps in Seattle's network. But most of the credit for ensuring that Hot Bike Summer happened in the first place goes to previous city leaders.| The Urbanist » Advocacy journalism for better cities.
# Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell has shrunk the dimensions of eight neighborhood centers and six urban center expansions he proposed last year. The move chops dozens of blocks off the growth centers, limiting opportunities for apartments and affordable homebuilding and drawing criticism from housing advocates.| The Urbanist » Advocacy journalism for better cities.