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KUOW Blog

News, factoids, and insights from KUOW's newsroom. And maybe some peeks behind the scenes. Check back daily for updates.

Have any leads or feedback for the KUOW Blog? Contact Dyer Oxley at dyer@kuow.org.

Stories

  • Tree-sitter seeks to save 'exceptional tree' in Seattle

    A massive Western red cedar is slated to be cut down in Northeast Seattle as part of a development project. But now activists have climbed into its branches, and say they’re seeking to preserve it.

    A tree-sitter who goes by the name Droplet said he climbed the tree in the early morning hours of Friday, July 14.

    “Our plan is to maintain occupation of this tree until we receive binding protection to prevent this tree from being cut,” he said.

    “This lot was originally scheduled to develop six units of housing and keep the tree standing. But after the permit was issued, the lots were redrawn in a way that does not increase the amount of housing, but does kill the tree.”

    There’s been a community outcry over plans to cut down the double-trunked cedar in Seattle's Wedgwood neighborhood. The organization The Last 6,000, which is dedicated to preserving Seattle’s oldest and largest trees, organized a gathering on Wednesday night to mourn the tree’s potential loss.

    “This tree is not blocking development by any means,” said Andy Stewart who lives nearby. "That's what's so infuriating. And it’s really unfortunate that Seattle has politicized homelessness in such a way that people seem to think cutting that down this tree is going to have an impact on the homelessness crisis.”

    The tree sits at the edge of what is now a construction site on Northeast 88th Street, in a residential neighborhood.

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  • 'Things are looking really good' for captured orca's return to Salish Sea

    The lead veterinarian overseeing the orca known as Tokitae said she's in good clinical condition for her pending relocation from Miami to her native Washington waters.

    The move could happen by the end of the year if she remains healthy and all permits are approved.

    RELATED: Make that TWO orca calves spotted in Salish Sea

    “All of her parameters are near normal,” Dr. Tom Reidarson said in an update on the Friends of Toki website. “Things are looking really good. Her blood work continues to be stable and look nice. And she is in as good of a clinical condition as I’ve ever seen her.”

    Reidarson notes that there have been some “ups and downs” with the 57-year-old orca. Tokitae was sick in 2022, and also a month ago, but recovered well both times. She is receiving daily antibiotics for a chronic pulmonary infection.

    The nonprofit Friends of Toki also said the killer whale is slowly being introduced to a sling that will be used to load her onto a cargo plane. That plane will transport her from the Miami Seaquarium to a protected sea pen in the Salish Sea.

    RELATED: Orca taken in the 1970s to be released from captivity, returned to PNW

    “I believe once she's conditioned by the great work that’s being done by the trainers, she'll be ready,” Dr. Reidarson said.

    She's also playing with new enrichment “toys,” like artificial kelp, to help her get familiar with the waters she will eventually call home, again.

    Tokitae’s current handlers in Miami are worried she might not survive the 3,000-mile move. Nonetheless, the federal regulatory and state permitting processes are underway to return Tokitae to the Northwest.

    Tokitae is the second-oldest orca in captivity. She was taken from Puget Sound’s L Pod in 1970 and has lived at the Miami Seaquarium ever since, under the stage name “Lolita.” There has been a long effort to get the orca back to Puget Sound. The Seaquarium announced its decision to end shows with the orca in 2022.

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  • Far-right extremist group set to be at Lakewood summer festival

    The city of Lakewood says Moms for Liberty, a conservative group based in Florida, has reserved a booth at this year’s SummerFEST on Saturday. The group is known for protesting at school boards and is considered extremist by civil rights watchdogs.

    Lakewood’s SummerFEST is the city’s big, free summer party. Hosted on 350 acres at Fort Steilacoom Park, the event offers rides for kids and over 170 food trucks and other vendors.

    “Motorcycles jumping over things and through hoops, we have hot air balloons, we have a circus,” says Mary Dodsworth, director of Parks, Recreation, and Community Services for Lakewood.

    Also possible at the park this year: Moms for Liberty, a far-right conservative group known for protesting teachers and schools.

    Moms for Liberty opposes students learning Black history and studying LGBTQ+ themes. They’ve worked to ban some books from schools including in Florida.

    Last month, the Southern Poverty Law Center added Moms for Liberty to their list of extremist groups.

    In Arlington, the group is protesting the city's upcoming Pride celebrations.

    Dodsworth says Moms for Liberty has a First Amendment right to be at SummerFEST.

    “We can't really discriminate on public property between groups that might have a message or a political ideology that we agree or don't agree with,” Dodworth said.

    She says Moms for Liberty paid the $30 fee for a booth and submitted an application in time, but there’s no guarantee that the group will be there on Saturday. However, Dodsworth says she has seen the group around in the area.

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  • Seattle, and solar, and bears! Oh my! Today So Far
    • The bears are back in town.
    • Where can Washington put all this solar energy?
    • What unique and unexpected Seattle sights would you show visitors?

    This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for July 13, 2023.

    Quick hits

    To the average Seattleite, a bear sighting might merely be something that happens on Capitol Hill. But for many others in our region, it means some other fuzzy Northwest residents are hungry and sniffing around their neighborhood.

    Black bear sightings are up in Washington state, but as Cpt. Jennifer Maurstad with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife recently told KUOW, this doesn't necessarily mean there are more of them around. Rather, there are more of us around to see them. Washington's population has grown considerably, which means there is increased potential for interactions.

    Last month, a bear ate a goat in Bellevue's Bridle Trails neighborhood. A local pet rabbit and some chickens have also become dinner recently.

    "This is the time of year when bears are out and about, and their number one goal is looking for food," Maurstad said.

    So this is your annual reminder to keep any potential food source out of the open. That means trash, even bird feeders, and yes, pets too. Read more here.

    Renewable energy. We all want it. We all need it. But not everybody wants to look at it.

    That's just one issue that can arise when new solar projects go into Washington state: objections from neighbors who might have come to the area for the scenic landscape. It's probably the one you hear about most. But there are also other conflicts that snarl such efforts, such as farms and ranches, and potential effects to wildlife. So where can we put solar power? Well, now, there's a map for that.

    A project out of Washington State University recently developed a map, with a focus on "natural habitat, productive farmlands and ranchlands, and tribal rights and cultural resources." It probably won't solve all the issues for residential neighbors, but it could help fast track solar projects by avoiding conflicts with farms or conservation land in advance. Of course, there's always more to a story. Northwest News Network reports more here.

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  • Fake tombstone and Trump flag renew questions about Seattle police culture

    The mother of a man who died in an encounter with Seattle police said she hopes the city will “get to the bottom” of why a fake tombstone with her son's name turned up in a recently released body-cam video. Meanwhile, the city’s Community Police Commission says SPD Chief Adrian Diaz has agreed to attend the group’s meeting next Wednesday to answer questions about the 2021 video, which showed the tombstone and a Trump 2020 banner in a police break room.

    Stephanie Butts is the mother of Damarius Butts, the 19-year-old who died after exchanging gunfire with Seattle police six years ago. The exchange also left one police officer seriously injured. Stephanie Butts said she’s appreciated the memorials to people like her son who died in police encounters, which have been organized by Black Lives Matter and other movements since the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer in 2020.

    “I like the acknowledgement, people showing that they care, and that the people matter to somebody,” Butts said.

    But she said she was hurt and baffled when she saw a video this week showing a fake tombstone with her son’s name on it — likely left from one of those protests — in a different context: sitting on a shelf in the Seattle Police East Precinct break room.

    Butts said she could only wonder how and why the tombstone ended up there.

    “What made somebody think to want to do something like that, you know?" she asked. "I know they’re saying that they don’t know who put it there, but it didn’t just walk in there.”

    The body-cam video was recorded two years ago and came to light as a result of a separate lawsuit. It also showed a Trump 2020 flag on the wall of a room where officers were on break before heading to a call.

    SPD said in a statement that both items have been removed and “have no place in a city facility.” The Office of Police Accountability is now investigating how those objects came to be there.

    SPD said it has pledged “our full support to ensure OPA has all it needs for a thorough and complete record. We are reviewing our policies and procedures with respect to the maintenance and use of our facilities and will engage with OPA, OIG, and the CPC to ensure our policies are clear.”

    The statement continued, “Much has changed in 2 ½ years since this footage was recorded, including a renewed commitment to relational policing and proactive engagement across all of Seattle’s diverse communities, but we know that it takes time to build trust, that trust is fragile, and that incidents like this are entirely self-inflicted wounds that set us back in those efforts and undermine the dedicated work of our members to promote the safety and wellbeing of our city.”

    Adrien Leavitt is an attorney with the King County Department of Public Defense. He represented the Butts family in the county’s inquest proceeding, in which jurors found the police use of deadly force justified in Butts’ case. Leavitt said he’s dismayed by SPD’s initial statement when the video was disclosed by the Seattle Times this week.

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  • Seattle's popular restaurant Canlis sued for wage theft

    The prestigious Canlis restaurant in Seattle is being sued for wage theft.

    The class action suit, which was first reported by the Seattle Times, alleges the fine dining restaurant has violated Seattle’s Wage Theft Ordinance.

    The suit states that Canlis has been collecting a 20% service charge, with a disclosure that the fee would be distributed to staff. But two former workers say the money went to the restaurant instead. Last summer, the disclosure was amended, saying the service charge is retained by Canlis.

    The former workers also noted that restaurant didn’t pay for training and required work off the clock without compensation.

    Seattle's Wage Theft Ordinance took effect April 2015. It establishes requirements for employers to pay workers wages and tips, including service charges added to a customer’s bill.

    Canlis did not respond to KUOW’s request for comment. Canlis is the latest restaurant to be sued for wage theft. In March, Ballard restaurant Hamdi was accused of wage and tip theft by former workers.

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  • Seriously, how geeky is Seattle? Today So Far
    • The primary election is right around the corner. Who will vote?
    • Overall crime rates rose across Washington state in 2022.
    • What do you think? Is Seattle "geeky?"

    This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for July 12, 2023.

    Quick hits

    The election season has really snuck up on us. The primary election is Aug. 1, which means that ballots will soon hit mailboxes across the state. In Seattle, there is potential for considerable change on the dais as seven out of nine council seats are up for a vote. There are also a couple King County seats on the ballot, as well as school board elections from Seattle to Federal Way. In Pierce County, there are a lot of school district seats up for a vote, and Tacoma has a couple council district elections.

    Still, turnout for this primary is expected to be quite low. There's some good news and bad news around that expectation. As KUOW's David Hyde reports, primary elections generally draw low numbers of voters, so this is not really new. Yet Washington's primary low is higher than other states. So while there is room for improvement, at least we're not Oklahoma. Read more here.

    Overall crime rates rose across Washington state in 2022. This is according to the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, which is like a trade association of the state's law enforcement leaders spanning tribal police to state troopers, and everything in between.

    KUOW's Ruby de Luna has the full story here, but one takeaway is that there were 394 murders reported in 2022, which is nearly a 17% rise over 2021, and the highest level of murders the association has documented since 1980 (when it started monitoring crime data). Other stats showed declines, such as reported hate crimes and arrests for drugs and narcotics.

    It's no secret that our region is quite nerdy (at least it's no secret if you read this newsletter and put up with me hyping geek culture). So when I heard that someone crunched some numbers to come up with 2023's geekiest cities in the USA, of course I looked it up ... and Seattle was 14th!?

    I laid out a few points about how metrics can be stretched, and there can be nuance in numbers. In this case, the cities that top the list generally have higher populations spread across larger areas, and the lowest-ranking cities seem to have smaller areas and smaller populations. The rankings also focus on cities, and don't take a holistic account of a community. In our case, let's be honest, it's not just about Seattle, it's about this entire region. It's about our regional culture. While I would argue that Seattle alone has a lot more nerd cred than is represented in this ranking, our region really is one of the geekiest corners of the country.

    I made my argument around this in KUOW's blog (a pop culture convention nearly every month, local geek company HQs, MoPOP, a lot of cosplayers, a guy who puts up Mr. Spock art around Seattle, Soundside's "No Spoilers" segment). But I'd like to hear what TSF readers have to say. Am I wrong? Do I spend too much time thinking about this? What would your argument be for why Seattle, and/or the region, is so geeky? Let me know at dyer@kuow.org.

    AS SEEN ON KUOW

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  • Washington's GOP isn't finished battling against the WA Cares Fund


    A group of Republican lawmakers is working on a bill that proposes to change Washington state's new long-term care law. Deductions for the WA Cares Act started July 1.

    Workers in Washington who don't already have a long-term care policy in place are now required to contribute 58 cents for every $100 they earn to the new WA Cares Fund. But state Sen. John Braun of Centralia says that he and his fellow Republicans plan to present a bill that would make the program optional.

    RELATED: What you need to know about the WA Cares Fund

    "If you don't want to participate, you don't have to explain why. [The bill] also allows, if you're opting out now, before the end of the year, you could get a refund while you're waiting for your exemption to go through," Braun said.

    During a press conference, Braun further admitted that the op-out option could lead to the downfall of the WA Cares Fund. He argues that the issue of long-term care is a "real problem" that "deserves serious thought," but the WA Cares Fund will ultimately be "woefully inadequate."

    "This proposal doesn't fit the bill. People don't like it. It doesn't work," he said. "It doesn't provide significant benefit to most of the folks who participate. In fact, if you look at total benefit available, $36,500, even in today's market, it's not nearly enough."

    Exemptions are currently available for those who've purchased private insurance plans, military spouses, and out-of-state workers.

    Sen. Braun says the GOP group expects to have the new bill finished within the coming weeks. They hope to present it during a special session or during the next legislative session, which begins January 2024.

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  • Former U.S. Attorney Nick Brown challenges state Sen. Manka Dhingra in race for WA attorney general

    Former U.S. Attorney Nick Brown is throwing his hat in the ring to become Washington state's next attorney general.

    Last month, Brown resigned from his job as the U.S. attorney for Western Washington. Now he's announced his bid to become the state's next attorney general. He previously served as general counsel for Gov. Jay Inslee.

    "That leadership experience, I think, is important for me and is hopefully something that will give people confidence that I can do the job," Brown told Northwest News Network.

    Brown was appointed to his role as U.S. attorney by the Biden administration in October 2021. He focused on civil rights issues, the drug crisis, public safety, and gun crime. Brown stepped down from the job in June, saying that he was "grateful for the opportunity" and that he hoped "to return to public service in the future." He was the first Black U.S. attorney for the Western District of Washington.

    He also previously worked for Seattle-based Pacifica Law Group, was an assistant attorney for the Western District of Washington before that, and was an attorney in the Army. In 2001, he was a contestant on the second season of "Survivor," which took place in the Australian Outback.

    In his first campaign video, "Give a Damn," Brown emphasizes his upbringing in Steilacoom, Wash. and time in the military.

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  • West Pierce Fire has already put out as many brush fires as it did in all of 2022

    The brush and wildfire season is just getting started in Western Washington, but West Pierce Fire and Rescue says it has already put out nearly the same number of fires so far this year as crews did in all of 2022.

    The fire district covers Lakewood, Steilacoom, and University Place. It reports that there were 137 brush fires last season, and at last check, West Pierce firefighters have already responded to 135 in 2023.

    The fire district also says that a rising issue it faces is "wildland/urban interface" — areas common in Western Washington, where the woods sit adjacent to residential neighborhoods. This dynamic requires different equipment, such as smaller trucks for forested areas than would traditionally be used in urban settings. The district is using a $400,000 federal grant to pay for equipment and training for this scenario.

    The risk of wildfires and brush fires is particularly high this summer. In June, Northwest climatologists warned that the region was reaching "peak dryness" much sooner than usual for the year. This is when the region dries out from all the winter and spring rain. It usually happens toward the middle or end of summer. This prompted concerns over increased fire dangers.

    Washington State Climatologist Nick Bond told KUOW in June that, "It could be another one of those summers in which we have more fires than we used to have or, at least, larger fires." He also said the rest of summer was expected to have above normal temperatures.

    Fourth of July fireworks added to concerns. At least two building fires in Seattle were set by fireworks (fireworks are banned in Seattle). It wasn't clear how many brush fires were set by fireworks in the city, but the Seattle Fire Department responded to 67 brush fires from July 1 to July 5, the majority of which happened after July 4.

    During this same time, Western Washington's air quality dove into hazardous and unhealthy categories, due to local wildfire and firework smoke.

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  • Why are we seeing more black bears in King County these days?

    It's that time of year when black bears are wandering into local neighborhoods looking for food and water.

    Some have recently set their sights on backyard animals, adding to the recent uptick in bear activity around King County.

    In late June, a bear killed and ate a goat that was kept in the Bridle Trails neighborhood in Bellevue. Cpt. Jennifer Maurstad with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife told KUOW's Angela King that a pet rabbit and some chickens have also been killed in the area recently.

    This may seem unusual, but Maurstad said it's really not.

    "We're definitely no stranger to bear sightings and bear encounters throughout Washington state and, specifically, in King County where there's several if not hundreds of sightings every year," she said. "This is the time of year when bears are out and about, and their number one goal is looking for food."

    They're not exactly picky.

    Anything from garbage and compost to bird feeders and, yes, pets could attract them, especially if they've found food in an area before.

    "They have really long memories," Maurstad said. "If they found a food source somewhere last year, they're going to go back this year."

    The best thing people can do to prevent unwanted visitors is to put those food sources away, bring pets inside, and protect farm animals with electric fencing.

    Maurstad said there hasn't exactly been an uptick in bear encounters recently, though there have been more sightings. That's not because of an increase in activity or bear population, though — it's more likely because of the rising human population.

    "A lot of it is there's just more cameras and more people," she said. "Just about everybody has some type of a camera on their house."

    "A lot of people are working from home. Obviously, there are just more people in our state in general. And that is what leads to more sightings."

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  • The future of Seattle is on the line, but few are expected to vote

    Local races that could shape the future of Seattle and other places in King County are on the line as ballots get mailed out Wednesday for the August primary. But turnout is not expected to knock anyone’s socks off.

    King County Council elections officials are forecasting only around 35% of registered voters will return ballots. Nothing special, as usual, especially for local primary elections.

    “The bar is so low. It's about what turnout was in the 2021 primary election,” said Jake Grumbach, a professor of political science who studies elections and voting at the University of Washington.

    Despite the forecast for another round of anemic turnout, there’s still room for some civic pride.

    “That’s unfortunately somewhat better than primaries in other states. Washington is a relatively high turnout state,” Grumbach added.

    Grumbach said the state’s relatively high turnout compared to other places is because lawmakers have done a better job making it easier to vote in Washington. He cites innovations like vote-by-mail and same-day voter registration.

    But Grumbach said there's still a lot of room for improvement compared to other countries.

    “The U.S. system of elections, where you have many different elections in odd years for different levels of government is what keeps turnout quite low,” Grumbach said.

    In contrast, in many countries all elections are held on the same day. Grumbach said that it focuses the campaign’s messaging and media coverage which, in turn, helps juice turnout.

    “So, there's not the staggered elections across different times and months and odd years and even years with some low-level offices, and some elections and some national offices,” Grumbach said.

    There have been proposals to make such changes here, but shifting elections to a single voting day in the U.S. would be extremely difficult politically, Grumbach said.

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