Mayor Harrell presents plan to crack down on drugs and crime in Seattle
Mayor Harrell presents plan to crack down on drugs and crime in Seattle
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell announced an executive order to crack down on drug crimes, help people suffering with addiction and revitalize business in an effort to bring life back into the downtown area.
SEATTLE - Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell announced an executive order to crack down on drug crimes, help people suffering with addiction and revitalize business in an effort to bring life back into the downtown area.
Downtown Seattle is littered with drug issues, crime and vacant storefronts. It has been a problem for years.
On Monday, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell addressed the issue and introduced a plan to fix it.
"If our downtown doesn’t feel safe, and it isn’t safe, we will fail as a city," said Harrell.
According to city data, 589 people died due to overdoses in Seattle in 2022—the majority attributed to fentanyl and meth.
Officials with the Downtown Seattle Association say since the pandemic, 500 businesses closed.
The mayor’s executive orders states it is directing city departments to build, invest, and expand public health infrastructure.
The order includes Seattle Fire launching a pilot expansion for an overdose response unit dedicated toward getting people to accept treatment. The plan also includes providing low-dollar gift cards to incentivize addicts to get treatment, and creating more resources for people dealing with addiction.
Seattle Police will also prioritize going after drug dealers to the fullest extent possible.
Additional action items for revitalization include cleaning up litter and graffiti downtown, attracting local artists and entrepreneurs to fill up to 20 vacant storefronts by the summer, and creating more community events in the heart of downtown.
"Getting it revitalized, starting with public safety, dealing with fentanyl; these are good first steps to get our downtown going again and draw more people back," said Jon Scholes.
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Scholes is the President and CEO of the Downtown Seattle Association. He says he sees significant policy changes in the mayor’s plan, and is hopeful these ideas will lead to changes.