Image description: a sketch of a Link light rail train at an elevated station with text reading: Move Redmond 12:00 to 4PM May 10th Redmond 2 Line Opening Celebration - trails 2 transit presented by Sound Transit at Downtown Redmond Station..

Opinion

A four-story historic brick apartment building with a blossoming tree out front.

More than Zoning Reform: Home in Tacoma and the Prospect of Real Change

Zoning has created urban forms that are expensive, exclusionary, and unsafe — Tacoma’s attempt to reform zoning stands to create more livable and complete neighborhoods by tackling the many secondary effects of zoning.
Two greenish copper statues frank the entrance to the theater, which flies a Danish flag at its apex.

How Copenhagen is Leading the World in Sustainability

Denmark’s capital city is committed to curbing pollution and making it easier and safer to get around by bike or foot. Copenhagen's success has made it a global climate leader with countless accolades for sustainability and livability.
A bike delivery person has a large green box with Uber Eats logo on it strapped to their back while riding down an urban streets with lots of pedestrians.

Op-Ed: Gig Worker Minimum Pay Law Makes Seattle More Livable for All 

I am a disabled gig worker in Seattle who has shown up time and again over the course of five years, advocating to the...

Op-Ed: Parks Need More Mini Soccer Pitches, Fewer Empty Lawns

Activate underused parks with soccer pitches and courts for basketball, pickleball, and tennis to bring people out and foster social cohesion. RAVE is building 26 community fields around the metro in time for the 2026 World Cup. But we shouldn't stop there.

Harrell Plans Hasty Rollout of Massive Surveillance Expansion

Mayor Harrell is seeking to quickly roll out gun-shot detectors and closed circuit cameras to feed into real-time crime center software, raising privacy concerns. Claims that this major expansion of the surveillance state will curb serious crime are largely unsubstantiated.
Steve Hobbs on the senate floor with American flags in the foreground.

Op-Ed: State Secretary Hobbs Is Wrong to Oppose Ranked Choice Voting

Secretary of State Steve Hobbs criticized House Bill 2250, which allows ranked choice voting, as inequitable, but he couldn't be further from the truth. Ranked choice increases candidate diversity, improves voter turnout, and broadens participation.

Op-Ed: Want a More Representative City Council? Pay Them More

Dismal councilmember pay is hampering local city governments across Washington State. Understandably there might be some revulsion against the suggestion to pay politicians more. The...

The Little-Known Election Urbanists Should Vote in Right Now

One of the most urbanist local elections is taking place right now and most voters have no idea. King Conservation District Supervisor Brittney Bush Bollay explains what their organization does and what's at stake in this February election.