The Seattle City Council has prepared more than 200 amendments to Mayor Jenny Durkan’s 2022 budget proposal.
Among them are amendments that would initiate work to reform design review, increase outreach staffing to address Seattle’s inequitable zoning, and rededicate JumpStart funding to its original intent when the council passed it.
The first batch was released this morning in advance of budget committee sessions tomorrow and would impact agencies such as the the Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections (SDCI), the Office of Planning and Community Development (OPCD), and the Office of Sustainability and Environment (OSE). Other major departments will go later in the week. The hearing for the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) will be Thursday, for example, while the Office of Housing, Seattle Police Department (SPD), Homelessness Response, and Seattle Parks have Wednesday sessions. Watch out for later coverage of SDOT and SPD amendments.
Those later sessions could shows lines of contention. The Mayor has proposed hiring 125 new police officers next year, and the City Council may not see eye to eye on that. She has also added $2.4 million to restart the Center City streetcar project that she keeps pausing and undermining, which has already gotten flagged by some councilmembers.
SDCI amendments tackle design review delays and tree protections
Councilmembers have brought 11 amendments affecting SDCI’s budget.
