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Making Progress Building One Seattle: 2024 Year In Review

Seattle – Today, Mayor Bruce Harrell released a summary report detailing his administration’s accomplishments in 2024 and committing to further progress to build a safe and thriving city in 2025.

“From passing a transportation levy shaped by community voices to reaching new milestones for downtown recovery, 2024 was a year of continued action and results to move our city forward in the right direction,” said Mayor Harrell. “While there is still work ahead, this year proves that progress is possible when we come together. In 2025, we’ll continue investing in public safety by improving response times and tackling the root causes of crime; addressing the opioid crisis with evidence-based approaches and supporting the wellness and safety of our students; creating new housing opportunities and helping those in crisis get the care they need; and fostering thriving, connected, and sustainable communities. With our One Seattle vision and values guiding us, I’m excited for all we’ll accomplish together in the year ahead.”

READ: Building One Seattle – Year Three

Building on his commitment to listen to all voices in our city, Mayor Harrell attended 209 community engagement events across Seattle last year, meeting directly with residents and neighbors to hear their priorities. The mayor continued his effective working relationship with the City Council, passing 134 bills, confirming 5 department directors, and approving the 2025-2026 budget which closed a $250 million budget deficit without reducing essential City services and maintaining investments in top priorities like public safety and affordable housing.

Additional highlights include:

Continuing progress to build a well-staffed police department: With improvements to the hiring process, digital marketing enhancements, and a new police officer contract signed by Mayor Harrell that raised rank-and-file officer wages, the Seattle Police Department received over 4,300 applications in 2024, the highest in over a decade.

Advancing public safety improvements: Mayor Harrell launched the Downtown Activation Team pilot as part of the One Seattle Restoration Framework and it delivered strong early results for public safety improvements. The cumulative projected impact in the Pike/Pine DAT treatment area is a 27% decrease in violent crime, an overall 14% decrease in emergency service calls, and a 30% decrease in emergency medical responses compared to last year.

Responding to fentanyl crisis: Mayor Harrell continues to drive urgent, innovative, and compassionate action to address the opioid and synthetic drug crisis, including tripling funding in the City’s 2025-2026 budget in health-focused approaches to save lives. The City invested opioid settlement funds in dedicated detox beds; invested $7 million in a new post-overdose recovery center and additional mobile treatment units; and launched a first-in-the-nation pilot program to allow firefighter/EMTs to administer buprenorphine in the field.

Record investments in affordable housing: Mayor Harrell’s 2025-2026 budget made a historic $342 million investment in affordable housing, building on the 5,000 affordable units that have opened over the last three years from City investments. Mayor Harrell also proposed a bold new redevelopment plan for Fort Lawton that will build 500 new units of affordable housing and preserves 22 acres of open space in Seattle’s Magnolia neighborhood.

Diversifying emergency response: The CARE department grew the community crisis responder team and expanded citywide, addressing over 1,000 events in 2024 to help people experiencing mental or behavioral health crises, freeing up officer resources for other priorities. Park Rangers also expanded staffing and de-escalated hundreds of incidents in parks citywide.

Reduced vacant building fires: Responding to an increase in vacant building fires that put the surrounding community and first responders at risk, Mayor Harrell and members of the City Council proposed legislation to give the Seattle Fire Department authority to complete demolition and remediation of unsafe vacant buildings. Enforcement of this legislation and stronger vacant building standards passed by Mayor Harrell in 2023 led to a 16% decrease in vacant building fires between 2023 and 2024.

Building a safer, more reliable transportation system: Seattle voters approved a $1.55 billion transportation levy which was proposed by Mayor Harrell and City leaders, helping maintain and modernize the city’s aging infrastructure by building sidewalks, paving streets, repairing bridges, and improving connections to transit. To boost transit access, Mayor Harrell celebrated the completion of the Madison Rapid Ride G Line project, and Seattle also received a $64.2 million award for the RapidRide J Line Project, which broke ground in October.

Boosting housing supply and diversity: Mayor Harrell proposed the One Seattle Comprehensive Plan Update to prepare Seattle for future growth, increasing zoning capacity across the city for new housing and creating walkable neighborhoods close to amenities and transit. Additionally, to increase housing diversity throughout the city, Mayor Harrell proposed new legislation to boost the production of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) in residential zones and legislation to increase the production of co-housing and micro-apartment opportunities.

Progress on downtown recovery and vibrancy: Mayor Harrell continued to implement legislation to support the Downtown Activation Plan launched in 2023, including new legislation to convert commercial buildings to residential uses and proposing a design review holiday to encourage more housing, jobs, and economic activity downtown. The waterfront also reached new milestones in 2024 with the grand opening of the Overlook Walk, creating a pedestrian connection between downtown and the waterfront.

Fostering a vibrant arts scene: To support downtown revitalization, the City worked with local partners and artists to install 30 new murals across downtown neighborhoods. Mayor Harrell also supported legislation to create a new curbside destination for live music venues to support easier loading and unloading for musicians and their crews.

Helping small businesses grow: To support BIPOC-owned small businesses, the City launched the Business Community Ownership Fund, a first-in-the-nation investment model for shared ownership of commercial spaces in Seattle which helped two businesses open. Additionally, the Liberty Project, launched by Mayor Harrell in 2023, provided business coaching and mentorship to 45 minority-owned small businesses.

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions: Mayor Harrell proposed legislation to make Seattle one of the first cruise ports in the nation to offer shore power at every berth, reducing overall emissions and supporting a greener tourism industry. The City also received a $17.2 million grant to implement the Building Emissions Performance Standard (BEPs) policy, a landmark climate policy passed by Mayor Harrell in 2023. Additionally, the City continued support transitioning homes from oil to electric heat pumps, offering $8,000 instant rebates funded by the City’s Clean Heat Program and federal incentives.

Supporting student safety and wellness: Building on the recommendations in the City’s comprehensive report on youth mental health, Mayor Harrell and Seattle Public Schools announced a $14.55 million investment to strengthen and expand student safety and mental health supports for the 2024-2025 school year. The investment includes funding for additional staff at school-based health centers, new telehealth resources, and violence prevention and interruption services. Investments in youth wellness scaled up to $19.25 million in the 2025-2026 budget.