December 2018

2018 Year in Review: Seattle Environment News by the Numbers

2018 Year in Review: Seattle Environment News by the Numbers

We banned straws, made tree cutters pay and sweated through another smoky, hot summer in Seattle

This article appears in print in the December 2018 issue, as part of the Year in Review feature. Click here to subscribe. Zero The amount of treated or untreated gallons of vessel sewage now allowed in Puget Sound; the waters were designated a “no dump zone” by the Washington State Department of Ecology in May. 1,429 The number of…

2018 Year in Review: The Waffling Ways of Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan

2018 Year in Review: The Waffling Ways of Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan

From signing the head tax into law, and then signing its repeal weeks later, to wavering on the new police chief search, our mayor just couldn't make up her mind

This article appears in print in the December 2018 issue, as part of the Year in Review feature. Click here to subscribe. Off with its headIn a series of moves that manages to anger most of the city, Mayor Jenny Durkan signs into law a head tax on large Seattle companies passed by the Seattle City Council—then signs the…

Will Congestion Pricing Help Seattle's Traffic Mess?

Will Congestion Pricing Help Seattle’s Traffic Mess?

The ‘period of maximum constraint’ is just around the corner, and even when it’s over, traffic downtown is likely to be worse than it is today. Can we toll our way out of this mess?

STOPPED UP: Today, traffic barely moves through downtown on Fifth Avenue during rush hour. Could congestion pricing help?

2018 Year in Review: Seattle Big Businesses Make Power Moves

2018 Year in Review: Seattle Big Businesses Make Power Moves

Amazon, Starbucks, Boeing, REI and Costco are keeping busy

This article appears in print in the December 2018 issue, as part of the Year in Review feature. Click here to subscribe. Push BackAmazon, Starbucks and other companies outspend proponents of the head tax 2 to 1 (while complaining about how much it would cost to pay it). Beta TestingStarbucks tries out a pilot program for cashless stores at…

Seattle Opera Debuts Its New Civic Center

Seattle Opera Debuts Its New Civic Center

The center's grand opening is slated for December 15

The Seattle Opera’s new 200-seat performance space

2018 Year in Review: Seattle Supports the Arts

2018 Year in Review: Seattle Supports the Arts

In spite of growing pains and rising costs, Seattle showed its creative side with a number of contributions to the cultural scene

This article appears in print in the December 2018 issue, as part of the Year in Review feature. Click here to subscribe. Photo by Will Wilson Art History, ReframedIn recognition of Seattle photographer Edward Curtis’ 150th birthday, Seattle Art Museum stages a group show that pairs his iconic images with work by contemporary indigenous artists, yielding new perspectives Photo…

2018 Year in Review: Seattle’s Homelessness Epidemic Grows

2018 Year in Review: Seattle’s Homelessness Epidemic Grows

This year, stories from the homelessness epidemic took center stage like never before

IT TAKES A VILLAGE: Whittier Heights Village in North Seattle

31 Local Events to Get You in the Holiday Spirit

31 Local Events to Get You in the Holiday Spirit

The best bets for holiday entertainment this month

Pacific Northwest Ballet dancers in the “Waltz of the Snowflakes” from George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker

2018 Year in Review: Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson Has Been Busy

2018 Year in Review: Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson Has Been Busy

We crunch the numbers on lawsuit filings, wins, losses and more

This article appears in print in the December 2018 issue, as part of the Year in Review feature. Click here to subscribe. Since Donald Trump took office in 2017, Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson has been busy filing lawsuits against the administration on everything from the original travel ban to preserving net neutrality. Here’s how the numbers look…

2018 Year in Review: Seattle’s Growing Pains

2018 Year in Review: Seattle’s Growing Pains

From development to transportation, our city grew quickly in 2018

This article appears in print in the December 2018 issue, as part of the Year in Review feature. Click here to subscribe. Development From permanently preserving the ‘Up’ house to a downturn in the real estate market, the fortunes of our city saw some big fluctuations.  For the third year in a row, Seattle remains the country’s crane capital,…

2018 Year in Review: Seattle’s Highs and Lows

2018 Year in Review: Seattle’s Highs and Lows

It's been a year of ups and downs

This article appears in print in the December 2018 issue, as part of the Year in Review feature. Click here to subscribe. Law EnforcementHIGH: Seattle Police Department meets the lip-sync challenge from Virginia police with awesome video set to Macklemore’s “Downtown,” featuring rapping cops, flying fish and the Mariner Moose.LOW: A plainclothes King County sheriff’s detective pulls a gun on…

2018 Year in Review: Seattle’s Bike-Share Program Is Having “A Year”

2018 Year in Review: Seattle’s Bike-Share Program Is Having “A Year”

After rolling into town last year, the city’s many pilot bike-share companies cycled through an awkward testing phase. Here is our abridged review

This article appears in print in the December 2018 issue, as part of the Year in Review feature. Click here to subscribe. The Pile UpCity sidewalks become littered—literally—with fluorescent orange (Spin), yellow (Ofo) and green (Lime) bikes, annoying pedestrians, businesses and homeowners—and posing serious problems for visually impaired and disabled pedestrians. Nonetheless, Bellevue, Kirkland and Mercer Island get in…