A massive bronze carp outside the Seattle Chinese Garden. (Nick Walker)

While we spend a lot of thought and effort on the words that go into The Urbanist‘s articles, the internet is still a visual medium. Some 1,600 images went through the publication over the last 12 months. They tell a story of a weird year. The memories of highs and rollicking events. The passing of moments that went too quickly or not quickly enough. The reminder of foods engorged. Good times. Here’s some of the snaps that we liked the most in 2023.

Our Favorites: January through March

Four people on scooters zip across the plaza with a glass tower and older midrise brick buildings along Pacific Avenue in the background.
Tolleson Plaza is more of shortcut than a place. (Doug Trumm)
Sacre Coeur, Paris. (Nathan Vass)
Waste destined for a landfill accumulates at a transfer station in King County. (Ashli Blow)
A railroad crossing sign marks the spot next to some shrubs.
A person on a bike navigates the official railroad crossing between gravel pits just before passing under the Ballard Bridge. (Doug Trumm)
The gym could easily accommodate more chairs, but the planners didn’t plan ahead. (Ryan DiRaimo)
Microhousing building next to a single family home. Blue sky overhead and sunset lighting.
Microhousing in Seattle (Natalie Bicknell Argerious)
Left to right, DESC’s Daniel Malone, Bellwether Housing’s Susan Boyd, SMR’s Doug Ito, and Office of Housing Director Maiko Winkler-Chin round out the panel. (Doug Trumm)
Jackson Street with two pedestrians crossing at 5th Avenue next to the protected bike lane. The Chinatown station is in the background.
Sound Transit’s headquarters is right next to Chinatown-International District Station, but that hasn’t help smooth its expansion decision in the neighborhood. (Doug Trumm)
The vampiro is Birrieira Tijuana’s specialty item. (Natalie Bicknell Argerious)
Stop the Sweeps Seattle protests the reopening of Ballard Commons. March 11, 2023 (Ray Dubicki)

Our Favorites: April through June

In an effort to experience urbanism in all forms, an upcoming article will review this month’s Phish show, whose tickets were acquired because of our writing about the renovated Climate Pledge Arena. This was a Very Important social event, vital to the life of the city, and an upcoming column will cover the specifics. (Ray Dubicki)
The Blanchard Street “opportunity site” (at left) sits vacant as the new roadway providing quick travel through Belltown is prepared for opening soon. (Ryan Packer)
Washington Bikes was one organization pushing the state to adopt the 0.05 BAC standard, restrict right on red, and improved driver’s education requirements. Vicky Clark, policy director at WA Bikes, speaks to a cycling rally. (Ryan Packer)
Two parallel escalators were out-of-service at U District Station one April day. (Stephen Fesler)
New housing near rapid transit could be in jeopardy if SB 5466 passes with a poison pill. (Doug Trumm)
Body cam footage appears to show an SPD SWAT officer firing chemical agents from a 40mm weapon on Pine Street near the Paramount Theater. (via Kent PD Public Records Disclosure)
Editing means loneliness as you dismantle other people’s work and tell them how to do it better. My constant companion has been a Squishmallow named Mango. Here they are preparing lunch, in much the same way as I edit. (Ray Dubicki)
For three years in a row, Seattle has experienced heatwaves. Photo by the author during the 2022 heatwave. (Ashli Blow)
Garfield High School students protested the lack of action to prevent gun violence, which led the school to go online on June 1 and 2. (Chloe Collyer)
Reconnect South Park models to visitors how highways have divided their communities. (Ashli Blow)

Our Favorites July through September

Bicycle with saddlebags barely fits on the 3.5 foot Warren Avenue Bridge crossing.
Currently, the Warren Avenue Bridge pedestrian/bicycle crossing width is 3.5 feet wide. (Travis Merrigan)
With a $25 million allocation from the state legislature, Bremerton wants to make the Warren Avenue Bridge, which dates to 1958, more welcoming to people walking and rolling. (Ryan Packer)
A dark light rail platform at SeaTac Airport during a service disruption.
Passengers wait at Airport Station during an unscheduled service disruption on July 12, 2023 with incorrect information displayed on arrival screens. (Doug Trumm)
Looking through a discussion bubble frame at the Block Party activities with the skyline behind.
A public activation frame at the 2023 Seattle Design Festival Block Party in Lake Union Park. (Clifford Heberden)
Fishtown rowhouses abut the elevated guideway. Nearby new apartment construction projects show the popularity of living near a Metro station. (Doug Trumm)
In May, a Seattle Neighborhood Greenways bike tour examined the progress at Pier 62, where the Seattle Aquarium and Overlook Walk are under construction. (Doug Trumm)
Ray Dubicki spends time on a boat. (G. Dubicki)
Seattle’s 2015 transportation levy is nearing the end of its lifespan. Will we be able to decide what comes next without fully grappling with its legacy? (Ryan Packer)
Sunlight filters through fog fathered over a stand of Sitka spruce on a bluff overlooking the Dungeness Spit.
The foggy Salish Sea viewed from the Dungeness Spit in Sequim. (Doug Trumm)
Seattle Central Library interior. (Linda Hanlon)

Our Favorites October through December

Connecting between the bus mall on Third Avenue and the Link station below is made more difficult by Benaroya Hall’s decision to close its elevator most of the day. (Doug Trumm)
Midway through the concourse connecting the north mezzanine and 2nd Avenue at University Street station is a pair of elevators (Exit A2) meant to lift riders to street level at 3rd Avenue. The concourse also does a poor job of calling out the elevators. (Stephen Fesler)
International Fountain continues to be a central feature of Seattle Center, even as newer attractions like Climate Pledge Arena have taken up shop next door. (Doug Trumm)
An e-bicyclist riding past the Waiting for the Interurban sculpture in Fremont. (Andrew Engelson)
Yes. Purchases were made at Buc-ee’s. (Jordan Billingsley)
Smith Tower in the evening. (Ryan Packer)
Trees in fall colors with the International Fountain and the Space Needle.
The Seattle Center International Fountain and Space Needle are reminders that the Seattle Center was the site of Seattle’s 1962 World’s Fair. (Ryan Packer)
Wallingford neighborhood art depicts area landmarks. (Linda Hanlon)
A line out the door at the Southcenter Jolibee
A line out the door at the Southcenter Jollibee (Shaun Kuo)
Seattle Central is the crown jewel of Seattle Public Library. (Doug Trumm)

Special Recognition: Photo Essays

Every year, we get a couple of really good photo essays and 2023 was no exception. From a new art space in Ballard to a new convention center Downtown, The Urbanist‘s reporters had a lot of places to explore. Here are four of our favorites.

Inside Look at Seattle’s New Convention Center Expansion, by Ryan Packer and Ray Dubicki – January 29, 2023

View from The Hillclimb main staircase in the Summit convention center expansion. (Ryan Packer)

Seattle Street Ends: West Seattle to South Park, by John Feit – March 30, 2023

Water access is a key benefit of street ends, and the boat ramp at South Michigan (Street End #28) supports deploying vessels of all sizes. (John Feit)

Into the Slop: A New Type of Music and Art Space Opens in Ballard, by Ray Dubicki – April 3, 2023

Graffiti art featuring work by the MRSA crew: Guido, Due, Dotcom, Creature Panic, Vid Kid. Slop Gallery. (Ray Dubicki)

Photo Tour: Discovery Park in Its Full Summer Glory, by Doug Trumm – July 2, 2023

Now that’s a view: Magnolia Bluffs with wildflowers and Elliott Bay in the distance. (Doug Trumm)

Illustrations

Finally, there are times that pictures and words don’t combine to get the exact image that’s required for a story. So we have to put in some effort to illustrate it. The Urbanist does frequently share the skilled work of architects and designers who use graphics to round out their own reports. Sometimes we have to try and keep up with them to make an illustration in-house. Or make a new illustration to cut through the gobbledygook they’re shoveling. Here are a few from the year.

Dividing metropolitan King County into five municipal collections results in stronger jurisdictions that could better stand up for strong development. (King County GIS, edited)
Six additional tail tracks could be constructed on adjacent property to OMF Central and connect to existing tracks to offer more storage space for Link cars. (Stephen Fesler / Google Maps)
NEOM The Line illustrated on the city of Seattle. This width would be approximately 2% of the overall structure. (Illustration by Ray Dubicki on Google Earth)
Wouldn’t Lake Union Park be more active if it had a playground and rec courts for pickleball, basketball and soccer? (Google Earth illustrated by Ryan DiRaimo)
Father’s Phone is Claimed By The Sea. Digital illustration by G. Dubicki.
Girmay is a Black man in a dark suit and smiles in this campaign photo. The graphic has a city skyline as the background with The Urbanist logo.
The Urbanist endorses Girmay Zahilay for King County Council in District 2. (Graphic by Hannah Sabio-Howell)
A slightly fuller Amtrak Cascades schedule. (Stephen Fesler)
King County Boeing Field Airport Redevelopment Concept. (Google Maps/Ray Dubicki)
The Urbanist’s Year in Pictures 2022
Article Author
Ray Dubicki
Website

Ray Dubicki is a stay-at-home dad and parent-on-call for taking care of general school and neighborhood tasks around Ballard. This lets him see how urbanism works (or doesn’t) during the hours most people are locked in their office. He is an attorney and urbanist by training, with soup-to-nuts planning experience from code enforcement to university development to writing zoning ordinances. He enjoys using PowerPoint, but only because it’s no longer a weekly obligation.