Sincerely,


GREG NICKELS
Mayor of Seattle

The good news is that Seattle’s crime rate hit a 40-year low in 2007, with major crimes down by 14 percent compared to 2006. The crime rate per 1,000 people for 2007 was 64, the lowest it has been since 1968 when it was 62 crimes per 1,000. In 2007, Seattle had the fewest violent crimes and the lowest violent crime rate in the last 10 years. But that’s just numbers. About the same time we received the good news, we became painfully aware that there is still much to do after we were faced with the shooting deaths of two Seattle teenagers, and violent attacks on three others. Seattle is a safe city, and there are steps we can take to make it safer. But when it comes to gun and youth violence, we need the entire community -- neighborhoods, churches, schools – to join forces and work together toward a solution that gives all of our children a chance to build a better life.
Read the press release
Watch the press conference

When 1811 Eastlake opened its doors in January 2006, there was a lot of skepticism about residents being allowed to consume alcohol in these homes provided through the Housing First program. The program helps people whose lives have been shattered by homelessness, mental illness and addiction, by providing rapid access to low-cost apartments, with on-site medical, mental health and other support services. Now two years later, studies of two Housing First projects show that it works. Preliminary findings show an estimated $3.2 million savings because of fewer visits by these chronically homeless individuals to Harborview Medical Center, the Dutch Schisler Sobering Center, and other crisis treatment services. This is a tremendous start. With every new building, we take another step toward ending homelessness in our community.
Read the news release
Watch the press conference

Climate change is an issue that spans generations and we’re all doing our part to leave this planet in the best shape possible for our children and their children. It seems only fitting that if we wanted to design a calendar or T-shirt to carry forth our message, who better to turn to than our children? With a theme of "what can you do everyday to be part of the solution to climate change?," we asked Seattle public school students to submit their ideas. The art of Charity Gage, a senior at Ballard High School, will grace the T-shirt and the calendar cover will feature the art of Melissa Carter, a seventh grader at Washington Middle School. The artwork of 12 other students, ranging from kindergarten through 12th grade, is featured in the calendar. Watch the Seattle CAN Web site for a downloadable calendar.
For more information, visit Seattle Climate Action Now

With the dedication of the Joint Training Facility (JTF), the largest Fire Levy project completed to date, we now have an efficient, sustainable, and economical facility that meets the training requirements of our Fire, Transportation and Public Utilities Departments. Until the development of the JTF, the Fire Department lacked adequate training facilities, using Fire Station 14 in SoDo even though it failed to meet national training standards, or sending firefighters to the state’s burn facility in North Bend. The JTF is an important part of making Seattle the most prepared city in America.
Find out more about the Fire Levy

After a successful one-year pilot in which we installed red-light cameras at four intersections in Seattle, we are now installing 24 more cameras at 19 of our worst intersections in the city. One of those is the intersection of Northeast 45th and Union Bay Place Northeast in Laurelhurst, which had 31 accidents in a three-year period. Results from the pilot show that red-light cameras seem to make streets safer for pedestrians and drivers. The frequency of red-light running dropped by 50 percent at the intersections with cameras, and there was a decline in the number of injury accidents and the number of people injured. Here’s how it works: a red-light runner triggers a camera that takes a picture of the license plate. Seattle Police then determine whether to issue a ticket, which will cost the driver about $100. Lives are at stake and the only way to keep intersections safe for pedestrians and drivers is to make sure everyone follows the law.
Read the news release
Watch the press conference

Every month I appear on Seattle Channel’s "Ask the Mayor," and I look forward to answering questions from viewers asking about city issues affecting them. Many call in live, but we also receive questions via e-mail -- and those can come in advance. On January’s show, I responded to three e-mail questions. Stacy in West Seattle asked about instituting more "scrambles" (where pedestrians are allowed to cross all ways at an intersection). I like scrambles like the ones in West Seattle and at First and Pike and they work very well. It does avoid pedestrian accidents, and we’ll want to analyze whether it’s a benefit for moving people and traffic. In response to another e-mail about parking in conjunction with a surface replacement for the viaduct, I said we’re not at that point yet. We’re still looking at how we can create capacity without replacing the freeway with another freeway. And an e-mail from Ken asked about preserving community icons, such as Sunset Bowl in Ballard. I think new development in our city is great, creating jobs, economic opportunity, and confidence in our city. But there are special places that we need to preserve and so we’re going to look very aggressively at how we do that.

To ask a question, via email, send your questions anytime before the show is broadcast to askthemayor@seattle.gov

"Ask the Mayor" puts you on TV with Mayor Nickels. Tune in the second Wednesday of every month at 7 p.m. to the award-winning Seattle Channel for a chance to ask the Mayor your questions. Dial (206) 684-8821 during the show or send your questions any time via e-mail.