Seattle’s courts face a simple challenge: the number of cases far exceeds available courtroom hours. Night court could help move cases more efficiently, improve access to justice, and ensure compliance with Washington’s strict speedy-trial requirements.
John Burbank argues Governor Bob Ferguson should call a special session to ensure universal health care and child care in the face of Trump’s devastating federal cuts. Taxing corporate oligarchs could provide the revenue necessary.
Amtrak's $300 million expansion of its SoDo trainyard hit the 50% complete mark this month and is on budget and on track to open in 2027. Officials welcomed local media for a tour of the facility on Thursday.
Seattle's Mount Baker light rail station opened in 2009, but two sites that Sound Transit acquired for construction staging are finally moving forward with redevelopment plans that could add hundreds of homes.
Public records obtained by The Urbanist show strong pushback from a cadre of Capitol Hill landlords and business owners to siting a King County crisis care center on Broadway. That resistance nearly succeeded in derailing the project after bending the ear of former Mayor Bruce Harrell.
Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson and Tukwila Mayor Thomas McLeod have been sticking up for a pair of infill light rail stations that have been on the books for a long time, with a clear goal of making sure they don't fall through the cracks as Sound Transit makes budget cuts.
Join The Urbanist and other grassroots organizations for an April filled with advocacy and social hours! Among our events: the Save Ballard Rail march on April 19, our Seattle social on April 23, and our Redmond meetup April 30.
Join The Urbanist and Complete Communities Coalition for a housing rally on April 6, pushing for a bolder Seattle Comprehensive Plan that promotes affordability and abundance.
Join The Urbanist for our March socials, including riding the 2 Line across the lake with us on March 28th!
The Urbanist is hosting social meetups on February 19 (in Seattle) and February 26 (in Redmond). We’re also hosting a talk on the Seattle Waterlines Project on March 3 in Capitol Hill.
As one of the region's most exclusive cities, 3,000-resident Medina's building code is already very restrictive about what can be built. The new regulations add setback requirements and fully eliminate a height bonus program that had existed for years, all in the name of improving "bulk and scale."
Since 2010, Mercer Island has added just 549 housing units in its "Town Center" on the doorstep of a brand new light rail station opening this weekend. State intervention could force more housing to get built, but a big opportunity has been missed so far.
Under threat of state sanctions, Mercer Island is set to upzone its relatively dense Town Center area to eight stories, along with new provisions intended to create affordable housing. But a broader zoning overhaul that would fully optimize the city's light rail connection is still years away.
When it opens in 2028, the S3 rapid bus line will provide riders across Bothell, Kenmore, Lake Forest Park, and Shoreline with a more frequent, reliable transit option and extend the reach of Sound Transit’s light rail network.
While the upgrades wouldn’t happen all at once, and would only go in as other maintenance work occurs, the proposed concept sets a strong baseline for one of the state’s most dangerous surface highways.
On the whole, there were bright spots for urbanist candidates all around the region, with major gains seen in Burien, Redmond, and Tacoma. There was also some backsliding in places like Sammamish and Bainbridge Island.
Pierce County is set to consider an ordinance on March 24 that would prohibit a new ICE detention facility within its unincorporated areas. On March 3, King County passed just such an emergency ordinance. Advocates hope officials can do more to block illegal detentions.
A new lawsuit against the Northwest ICE detention center in Tacoma underscores the abusive conditions detainees face. Meanwhile, some local cities are seeking to block ICE’s plans to expand detention facilities in the region.
The Pierce Transit Board is considering a ballot measure in November 2026 that would boost funding to expand bus service, make routes more frequent, and create new connections to light rail. Two advocacy leaders make the case for this measure.
The Urbanist newsroom discusses the big opening day for Sound Transit's crosslake 2 Line, how we got here, and what it means for the future of light rail expansion in the Seattle region.
The Urbanist's Ryan Packer, Amy Sundberg, and Doug Trumm discussed recent news out of Olympia, candidate campaign rollouts, and King County transportation funding woes.
In this podcast episode, The Urbanist’s newsroom dives into recent headlines including Katie Wilson’s State of the City speech, which bills are moving and which are dying at the Washington State Legislation, and the Seattle Social Housing Developer’s latest moves.
