Good afternoon, Seattle! Thank you for joining me as I present the 2025 State of the City. It’s my honor to welcome so many distinguished guests to Benaroya Hall: Members of the City Council and County Council, City Attorney Ann Davison and King County Prosecuting Attorney Leesa Manion, community, labor, business, and nonprofit leaders, department directors and City employees, and Seattle residents from every neighborhood in the city – thank you for being here.
I want to thank Benaroya Hall for hosting us, the Garfield High School Band for welcoming us, and Kenny Ouedraogo for introducing me. As an intern in our office, Kenny inspired me. Kenny is a young person with a positive outlook and a passion to serve our community.
A positive outlook was essential when I gave my first State of the City address three years ago! I was sitting on the 7th Floor of City Hall. There were about ten people in the room – all masked up – and I presented directly to a virtual meeting of the City Council. COVID was ongoing, parks were crowded with tents, crime hit new highs, Downtown was silent, and Seattle felt gloomier than even the grayest winter day.
But day by day, we have worked together to get our city back on the right track – restoring parks, reducing the crime rate, and getting Downtown bustling again. I think there’s a different mood in this city – a renewed spark, belief, and optimism that we are on the right trajectory.
To put that feeling into words: Seattle is on the rise.
We have more work to do, so we’re certainly not hanging the “mission accomplished” banner. Seattle has never been that way.
We will always seek new heights, new firsts, new ambitions, breakthroughs, and innovations. We will reinvent ourselves again and again with the same soul but a renewed spirit – Seattle rising.
As much as I want to simply celebrate the progress we’ve made over the last several years, we can’t talk about the state of our city without recognizing the state of our nation. As mayor, my focus has been local, generally leaving national politics to the national pundits. But, today, the other Washington casts a dark cloud over our local skies.
We are a polarized country. We have a federal administration focused on division and working every day to drive us apart.
I am not being alarmist when I say we should have grave concerns for what the Trump Administration has in store for our city and its people. The actions and rhetoric from the White House take aim at parts of our community that we value as central to who we are – our LGBTQ+ community, particularly trans individuals, our immigrant and refugee neighbors; women; working families. Unconstitutional Executive Orders and bad economic policies will mean revenue impacts and fewer resources to invest in local services that make a difference.
But I’m also not defeatist. Let me be clear: When Seattle’s local values, policies, and priorities are challenged by unlawful federal actions, we will not hesitate to do everything in our power to defend our people and our rights.
There is so much chaos coming out of the other Washington that it can be difficult to tell what’s serious and what’s spectacle.
Our office is collaborating closely with state and local government partners to provide a coordinated, appropriate, and rapid response. Attorney General Nick Brown is ensuring Washington remains at the forefront of protecting our constitutional rights. And just last week, the City announced it will join local governments from around the country in suing the Trump administration over the withholding of federal funds based on “sanctuary status.”
We reject the Trump administration’s effort to commandeer local law enforcement and defund our local safety efforts by threatening grants that support investigations into sexual assault, child exploitation, and domestic violence; services for survivors; 9-1-1 dispatch; and many other critical public safety priorities.
Before the change in administrations, I issued a mayoral directive making clear that SPD and City employees will continue to follow state and local law, serving all residents, no matter their immigration status. We continue to work with our immigrant community – making sure they know their rights and have our support.
And while some try erase the letters “DEI” from the alphabet, I’m proud that Seattle recognizes what diversity, equity, and inclusion actually mean – that giving every person a fair shot improves outcomes and that seeking a level playing field is one of the most basic principles of building a strong and just America.
I’m not the only one who thinks this – look at the voters of Washington state, who consistently elect two women to the United States Senate, who sent our first openly LGBTQ representative to Congress, who elected the largest Black legislative delegation on the West Coast. We recently selected an African American president to head the University of Washington and a female president to head Washington State University because we value their excellence and their perspective.
The antidote to the toxicity of polarization is a united effort. Seattle has the spark to do it.
The transformation of our Waterfront is perhaps the greatest recent example of what we can achieve together. Workers, Tribes, businesses, civic leaders and philanthropists are bringing to life the radical vision and incredible promise for a new Emerald City coast. I want to thank Mayor Nickels, who is here with us today, for his vision and leadership setting us on this path to change our city for the better.
Opening Overlook Walk propelled new perspectives of our city – a panoramic look at its beauty, and an outlook of optimism radiating throughout Seattle. Rare is the park that arrives as a landmark. Rare is the instant rival to the Space Needle. Rare is the infrastructure that inspires. But if you’ve been to Overlook Walk – if you’ve looked out on a clear day at the mountains, the sound, the buildings, and the people – you understand.
So, this year, 2025, we will unveil the completed Waterfront Project with all 20 acres of new public space. I couldn’t be more excited.
And while our reinvented Waterfront shows the magnitude of transformative efforts, its neighbor, Pike Place Market, can also serve as an example for enhancing cultural landmarks through common values and thoughtful dialogue.
I have a vision for our connected waterfront and Pike Place Market as one of the greatest pedestrian experiences in the country – where market patrons, visitors from out of town, and downtown residents do not have to worry about vehicle traffic. It’s one thing to weave through crowds of enthusiastic shoppers, it’s another to weave through stop-and-go automobiles.
Achieving this goal will require ingenuity – and, frankly, common sense – as we make considerations for merchants, deliveries, and ADA access. Unfortunately, we also have to look at this through another lens after the horrible vehicle attack in New Orleans. I am committed to bringing together our City departments, Market leadership, and other stakeholders to make this happen.
Nearby, at Seattle Center, we have a campus full of amazing assets that welcomed over 10.5 million visitors last year to create lifelong memories.
Well, we have new memories to make at Seattle Center, and I’m thrilled to announce that we will break ground on the new Memorial Stadium this July! A partnership between the City, Seattle Public Schools, the team at One Roof, and generous philanthropists, the new Memorial Stadium will join the ranks of top-notch Seattle entertainment facilities and sports arenas.
Beyond the stadium, Seattle Center is poised for its next great era as a cultural and civic hub – from serving as the official 2026 FIFA World Cup Fan Zone to longer term plans to revitalize public spaces and learning centers.
Preparations continue for welcoming over 750,000 guests to our city for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. A few weeks ago, we celebrated the 500-day benchmark. We’re now 478 days away – but who’s counting?
We want to make sure everyone in Seattle can safely be part of the celebration. That’s why I’ve directed City staff to stand up our World Cup Action Group and align our City departments to prioritize safety, transportation, and community activation.
We are working with partners to secure the resources and support needed for a safe and enjoyable experience and to move people in and out of Seattle efficiently, with a commitment to helping 80% of visitors navigate their trip without the use of a car. I recently chaired a meeting with other host city mayors to identify common challenges, create solutions, and secure funding.
In Seattle, we are determined to host matches in ways that reflect our values – including a Juneteenth match featuring the US Men’s National Team and a Pride week match.
This year’s One Seattle Day of Service embraces similar themes of civic pride and local values. This July 12th, we will again invite thousands of Seattleites to spend one day serving one another, just under one year out from the World Cup.
World Cup preparations also challenge us to accelerate transit investments and safety. Benaroya Hall is known nationwide as the home of the Seattle Symphony. But, locally, to thousands of transit riders, Benaroya is also known by another name – Symphony Station.
Growing our transit network with fast, reliable service is one of my highest priorities, and Sound Transit 3 is the largest transit expansion in the country. That’s why, this week, I will issue an Executive Order to make sure the City of Seattle is taking immediate action to safely and efficiently expedite delivery of light rail to West Seattle and Ballard.
Our efforts will include a newly expanded Office of Waterfront, Civic Projects & Sound Transit, led by Director Angela Brady, which will be at the center of orchestrating a surge in staff of up to 50 City employees supporting project design and engineering, station area planning, and more.
We will propose new pieces of legislation to ease the permitting process – maintaining essential safety protections while reducing burdens and barriers to shorten project schedules. This work could save more than a year of project time.
Our region is clamoring for light rail expansion – this Executive Order represents the City’s pledge to do our part to get it done as quickly as possible.
Last year, Seattle voters overwhelmingly approved an unprecedented investment in making our city’s transportation system more safe, connected, and reliable through the Keep Seattle Moving Transportation Levy. Everyone in this room should be proud of that.
I recently appointed Jessyn Farrell to be Deputy Mayor and Adiam Emery to serve as Director of the Seattle Department of Transportation. Deputy Mayor Farrell is hitting the ground running on our transportation, parks, and climate portfolio. And, Director Emery, having spent nearly 30 years at SDOT – as an intern, engineer, and now director – is the best person equipped to deliver our plan of action.
We know the transportation sector is the biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in Seattle, which is why transit expansion and our transportation levy are critical elements in our fight against climate change.
Look, we know the federal government’s agenda on climate change, also known as, “Let’s close our eyes, pour fuel on the fire, and pretend it’s not happening.” That approach is destined to fail, and cities need to step up and take action in their place.
Our administration led by passing a nation-leading Building Emissions Performance Standard and by supporting electrification in new buildings and heat pumps in homes.
With a focus on transportation, next month, I will issue an Executive Order to update our 2013 Climate Action Plan to reduce emissions, build resilience, and grow a green economy through good, union jobs.
Together, the improvements we are delivering – from the Waterfront to Pike Place, the World Cup to Sound Transit, climate and transportation action – will shape Seattle for generations. A more inviting, walkable, sustainable – and fun! – Seattle.
I want to take a moment to again thank the team at Benaroya, including Acting CEO Maria Yang, symphony staff, and the professionals with IATSE Local 15 who have helped make this event possible. Last week, I met Seattle Symphony’s newest music director Xian Zhang.
We share a deep appreciation for Benaroya as a cultural hub for Downtown, for Seattle, and for the entire Pacific Northwest. Benaroya’s efforts are aligned with the vision laid out in our Downtown Activation Plan – a city center that goes beyond a Monday-to-Friday pitstop and instead serves as a dynamic Sunday-to-Sunday neighborhood.
Our Downtown efforts are bolstered by improvements in more safe and welcoming conditions just down the street from where we are now. Working with partners like DSA, Purpose Dignity Action, REACH, and We Deliver Care, our Downtown Activation Team is conducting scheduled restoration actions. Downtown and in the CID, these actions provide robust and coordinated cleaning, safety operations, and targeted activations.
In the 5 months since we launched this pilot, priority 1 calls are down over 50% and EMS dispatches are down 15%. Violent Crime is down 14% across Downtown with a projected 20% decrease along 3rd Avenue in the Pike Pine Core.
We’ve also ramped up operations in Little Saigon, where we’re seeing early progress resetting norms and creating a more inviting atmosphere.
I look forward to further building on this progress with help from Chief Shon Barnes. Under tragic circumstances, the nation received its introduction to Chief Barnes after the appalling shooting at Abundant Life Christian School in Madison, Wisconsin. Now, Seattle is getting to know him one community at a time.
This year, Chief Barnes will begin implementing the stratified policing initiative, an evidence-based approach aimed at addressing some of Seattle’s most pressing challenges. Stratified policing focuses on identifying and tackling crime and disorder issues by analyzing immediate, short-, and long-term patterns, and addressing them swiftly, effectively, and collaboratively with an emphasis on community partnerships.
We’re also seeing the tide change on police recruitment – applications, retention, and recruits are on the rise. In 2024, for the first time in half a decade, the City hired more officers than it lost, along with a 10-year high in applications. We have momentum: This January alone, we hired 19 officers, compared to 6 in the same time frame last year.
This has been hard work. Seattle is not alone in addressing the law enforcement staffing shortage. I’m grateful that Governor Ferguson has acknowledged this issue as a priority for the state.
A new report from the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office shows gun violence levels are trending downward for the first time since 2018. Together, we are strengthening programs to reduce youth gun violence, taking action to hold gun traffickers accountable, and advocating for reforms to keep deadly weapons out of the wrong hands.
Public safety is my highest priority as mayor, and I believe every community member should trust that when 9-1-1 is called, they will receive the most effective and most appropriate response for their needs. Our CARE department is making that possible through both 9-1-1 dispatch and behavioral health crisis care responders.
Just two years ago, I announced during this speech the establishment of the CARE Department, and only a year and a half ago, our first team of six responders turned this notion into reality.
Since then, CARE Responders have deployed to more than 1,400 calls, with a focus on issues related to behavioral health and providing support that didn’t previously exist to those suffering on our streets.
Now staffed with 24 responders, CARE is helping people beyond Downtown, with responders on both the North End and on Capitol Hill. Over the next two months, we will finish our citywide deployment of CARE on the South End and in West Seattle.
With Chief Barden’s leadership, we are creating a new paradigm in public safety. Seattle is the largest city in the nation to embrace and advance this model and this is the first program in the state dispatched via 9-1-1 as a true diversified response. We continue to innovate and refine every day to provide the best public safety service to our residents.
Public safety concerns are often confused for public health needs, including the devastation wrought by fentanyl. This year, we are tripling our spending on public health toward addressing that crisis – funding treatment beds, new methods of services and medication, an overdose recovery center, and an expanded post-overdose response team, while arresting traffickers and those causing the most harm.
Our Seattle Fire Fighters and EMTs are on the frontlines of this battle – and under Chief Harold Scoggins, we are the first city in the country where firefighter EMTs can administer buprenorphine – a lifesaving medicine that can serve as the first step on a path to recovery.
In partnership with service providers and King County, this is working. In 2024, fatal overdoses fell 25% in Seattle, outpacing the county as a whole. This is progress, but as long as people are dying on our streets and in our communities, there’s more to do.
2024 saw continued progress addressing encampments in public spaces. Our Unified Care Team’s verified tent count fell to its lowest number since I took office, with a 58% decrease from 2023 to 2024, and a nearly 80% decrease since 2022. Similarly, the number of RVs at encampments fell 35% from 2023, reflecting a more than 50% decrease from 2022.
This matters because it is paired with 1,800 individuals accepting a referral into shelter in 2024. While not every person will say ‘yes’ and come indoors this time, we will continue to ask and create spaces for people to recover. Because ‘no,’ just means, ‘not now’ and because we believe everyone deserves shelter.
Seattle is home to nearly 85% of all Tiny Homes in King County, and we will look to stand up additional non-congregate shelter this year. However, Seattle alone cannot provide enough shelter to serve all of King County.
That’s why I’m grateful for CEO Dr. Kelly Kinnison’s leadership at the King County Regional Homelessness Authority. And why I’m pleased that the more streamlined governance structure we proposed is already providing improved clarity and cooperation.
But, as you have heard me say before: The solution to homelessness is housing.
I want Seattle to be an affordable city that anyone can call home, and a livable city that everyone can enjoy calling home. A place with housing for your kids and my kids, for seniors, for people coming out of homelessness, for working families.
Under my administration, we have made the largest investments toward affordable housing in Seattle’s history. These investments have helped open more than 5,100 units of affordable housing, including nearly 1,500 units of permanent supportive housing, since 2022.
Perhaps no project better represents the opportunity of affordable housing than our Fort Lawton proposal.
Our plan would transform 34 currently underutilized acres into up to 500 homes and 22 acres of open space, recreation, parkland, and wildlife conservation area, next to the iconic Discovery Park. This will be the single largest expansion of greenspace and parkland in Seattle in the past 25 years. We worked diligently to highlight this plan with the Biden-Harris Administration, hosting multiple visits by federal officials.
I’m excited to share that last month, before President Biden and HUD Secretary Todman left office, a significant portion of the City of Seattle’s application for the 2025 Fort Lawton Redevelopment Plan was approved. While there are still steps ahead of us, this is perhaps the most substantial development in our efforts to redevelop Fort Lawton in fifteen years.
This spring, we will submit our updated Fort Lawton plan to the City Council for their approval and unite organizations and community members to move this project forward.
Responding to Seattle’s affordability crisis requires going beyond homes developed for affordable housing providers. Our One Seattle Housing Agenda takes a multifaceted approach to a multifaceted problem.
Zoning is part of the equation. Our proposal for the One Seattle Comprehensive Plan will double our zoning capacity and create at least 120,000 homes. This is the most ambitious comprehensive plan update in our city’s history, and it is also the most necessary to deliver needed housing diversity and capacity at a scale that will make a difference.
If you surveyed one hundred people, you would get one hundred different opinions on how we ought to zone Seattle – we know because we’ve heard from over 20,000 people throughout this process.
We worked to layer that feedback with new state laws and what the data says is the right approach for the needs of our growing city. Our plan is focused on lowering housing costs, ensuring Seattle is a great place for families, and creating livable neighborhoods. Seattle is a city of neighborhoods – they are unique and deserve to stay that way, even as we welcome new residents and create opportunities for our kids today to continue to call Seattle home.
But for Seattle to continue to rise, our neighborhoods can’t stay stagnant. That’s why we must envision a new kind of neighborhood along Aurora Avenue North. For too long, despite caring and involved neighbors, our dominant vision of Aurora has consisted of strip malls, car dealerships, and illicit activities. The community deserves a neighborhood that inspires them, with a built environment and an energy to match.
Later this year, we will announce the Northern Lights Project – an effort to redefine this area and optimize great, already existing assets, Bus Rapid Transit, parks like Bitter Lake Playfield, and fantastic restaurants and small businesses. We will be seeking input from the community on what they would like to see.
The City must further cut red tape. Over time, the administrative processes for building housing have become too cumbersome and complicated at the expense of actually building housing.
Where we’ve already taken action – like SEPA exemptions and design review holidays – we’ve seen huge results, including shaving 500 to 700 days off of production. That means opening thousands of new units as much as two years faster. And, since I took office, over 33,000 units of housing have opened in our city.
Take a project at 1120 John Street – the location of the old Seattle Times building. Because of these exemptions, we provided certainty to a developer who changed an office project into a residential one, eliminating two to three years of permitting, and are now on track to create 800 new residential units.
Or, consider these in combination with our Downtown Activation Plan legislation promoting housing, and you have the possibility of a project led by Rick Yoder to add 1,000 units of affordable housing along 3rd Avenue above Wild Ginger.
In the coming weeks, I will send to the City Council legislation to streamline design review for projects of all kinds – reducing timelines by up to 50% to make it easier to build without sacrificing building safety or aesthetics.
I’ll also soon issue an Executive Order to improve the permitting process – adding accountability, transparency, and consistency. This effort will create the Permitting And Customer service Team – PACT – as a first step in creating an Executive Office to oversee permitting and solve bottlenecks.
PACT will go beyond just housing, it will also reform permitting for small businesses.
Seattle wouldn’t be Seattle without small businesses. But right now, far too many small businesses are struggling.
I hear from small businesses all the time about rising costs, public safety issues, and the reality that it’s hard to operate a small business in Seattle. I want more small businesses in this city – and the small businesses that are here I want to be successful and sustainable.
So, in the weeks ahead, I’ll be sharing a suite of actions to help make it easier and more affordable to operate a small business. This holistic approach will focus on cost relief, targeted public safety efforts, permitting and processing improvements, and state and county advocacy. It also means the reintroduction of the popular storefront repair fund and an innovative new marketing campaign.
We’ll continue to invest in services to help small businesses get off the ground with a positive trajectory that allows them to rise. Our Office of Economic Development under Director Markham McIntyre is providing real support and resources to get small businesses where they need to go.
Jamila Conley with We Rise Wines is a great example. Jamila has an MBA and worked for years as an executive at F5, but when she decided to follow her dream and start a wine bar Downtown, she found the process to be difficult and all-consuming.
Because the city provided individualized consulting services, Jamila was able to launch We Rise Wines, the city’s first bar and restaurant focused on uplifting women and BIPOC winemakers. While there’s only one Jamila, we want more people with big dreams for small business in our city.
To Jamila, to new entrepreneurs, and to all of our Seattle small businesses – we’ve been listening and we’re going to do more to support your success.
I know there are some future leaders and entrepreneurs here today, and I want to again thank the Garfield Band, Director Sessink, Conductor Saunders, and all the students and parents here today. The Garfield music program and the Garfield Jazz ensemble are nationally renowned, and we are lucky to see them perform at a location that is up to their standards.
I also want to wish the Jazz Ensemble good luck at the Essentially Ellington Jazz Band Festival in a few months – along with the Roosevelt High School Jazz program – go Bulldogs and go Rough Riders!
There is one Bulldog I want to call out specifically: Senior Miles Hemphill. Miles is advancing to the state tournament this week in wrestling and is also a member of the band as a drummer. Often, when Miles finishes wrestling practice, he will take out his drum sticks to play in the band and motivate the basketball team. On weekends he waits tables at Geraldine’s in Columbia City, where we happened to talk last Sunday.
Like Miles and Kenny, our students and young people inspire me every day. We owe them a city that provides every opportunity for success. To make this a reality and to make sure our city welcomes – and keeps – families in our neighborhoods I’ll announce details of my proposed renewal of Seattle’s Families, Education, Preschool, and Promise Levy in March.
This levy has changed and adapted over the years, which it should. The name is now a lot of words to describe a simple vision: to make this a city that embraces and supports young people – from cradle to career.
The investments I’ll announce will put an even greater focus on childcare – a cost burden for families in a city that is already too expensive for too many. We’ll add more hours of childcare and more after-school care, in and near Seattle elementary schools. We’ll focus more on the summer programs needed to keep kids engaged and learning.
A decade ago, we crafted a preschool program that is now nationally recognized and serves 2500 kids across 98 classrooms. We must bring that same boldness to childcare. Seattle can be a national leader in this regard – to get kids off on the right foot, support working families, and keep Seattle on the rise with a new generation.
We’ll do more to open doors for young people to enter well paying jobs in trades and public service. And we’re going to keep kids safer – in school and on their way to school – by providing additional staffing and violence prevention.
Our proposal will continue the work Seattle has led to stand up additional in-school health centers and provide culturally competent, accessible mental health support to students and young people across our city.
We’re going to make Seattle the safest, most supportive city in America for kids and families.
I can’t help but think of what Anya Peterson, a sophomore at Nathan Hale High School and a Seattle Youth Commission Member, shared with me recently. She spoke about the lingering trauma of the pandemic, and how so many students are still working to recover. But she also spoke of how students use resources like these to empower, build resilience, and grow toward a brighter future.
To Anya, Kenny, Miles – and all the young people in our city – please know that I hear you. As a father of young adults looking to find their place in a changing world, and as a grandfather to kids excited to learn and grow, I know the challenges we face as a city – and as a nation. Please know that I wake up every day ready to seize the opportunity to do right by you and the next generation.
While we are making great progress, I know we still have real challenges in front of us – but through smart policy, targeted investments, and programs that work, we are rising. Take it not just from the mayor, but from a former Garfield High School student: The State of our City is on the rise.
Thank you again for being here. Together, we are building One Seattle.