New Mayor Katie Wilson acts on housing and transit
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Mayor Katie Wilson addresses reporters after announcing new executive orders. Photo: Christine Clarridge/Axios
Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson announced two executive orders Thursday: one aimed at accelerating the city's response to homelessness and the other at prioritizing bus service on Denny Way.
Why it matters: The moves mark Wilson's first major policy actions since taking office, signaling action on campaign promises tied to two of Seattle residents' most pressing concerns: housing instability and transportation.
What's inside: One executive order creates a new interdepartmental team tasked with speeding up the expansion of shelter and housing.
- The team is directed to identify incentives, permitting changes, policy barriers and publicly owned land that could accelerate new openings.
- The order also calls for stronger regional coordination and identifying best practices to support people with mental health and substance use disorders.
- Wilson said the city needs to move quickly to bring more people indoors, pointing to the World Cup this spring as a near-term deadline.
State of play: Wilson's order comes a day after she decided to delay the removal of a homeless encampment in Ballard.
- She said Thursday that the people living at the encampment want help, and she wants to take the time to connect them to the services they need.
The second executive order Wilson announced Thursday directs SDOT to prioritize transit on Denny Way — including adding bus lanes and other improvements to make service faster and more reliable.
- The order targets Route 8, one of Seattle's highest-ridership and least reliable bus routes.
- Wilson, a frequent bus rider, said she knows "the feeling of sitting on the bus knowing that you could be walking up that hill faster."
- She is tasking SDOT with developing a plan, including scope, timeline, and details, and reporting back by spring.
What's next: Wilson said both orders are meant to move city departments quickly from planning to execution, with more actions to follow in the coming weeks as her administration sets timelines ahead of the World Cup and beyond.
- "This is the beginning," she said.