School could start Thursday if the teachers union ratifies the new tentative agreement.
School could start Thursday if teacher union members ratify a new tentative agreement reached this morning. Kelly O

Teacher and School District Bargaining Teams Reached a Tentative Agreement at 6:50 This Morning: The Seattle Education Association (SEA) Facebook page says that the strike will continue until the SEA board and assembly can review the agreement later today. At a press conference this morning, Seattle Public Schools spokesperson Stacy Howard said that the hope is to start school Thursday. (They need some time to deal with transportation and meal logistics issues.) No details about the tentative agreement have been released.

The bargaining teams reportedly pulled all-nighters last night, too.

The City Council Supports the Teachers: A resolution passed by the council on Monday declares this week "Seattle Educators Week" in support of the teachers on strike. Council Member Kshama Sawant, who donated $500 to the strike fund, also said this: "If the union wins it will be a huge step forward for the students and educators who make up Seattle Public Schools."

Mayor Ed Murray Met with the Seattle Public Schools Superintendent and SEA President Separately: "As I’ve said since the strike began, I stand ready to assist should my help be requested," Murray said in a statement. "I also asked that, should the strike continue, they again meet with me at the end of the week. In the meantime, the City remains committed to doing what it can to support families impacted by the strike."

And Everything You Ought to Know About the Strike So Far: Can be found here.

Choking off the route for crude oil trains across the Swinomish reservation could significantly cut bomb train traffic through Seattle.
Choking off the route for crude oil trains across the Swinomish reservation could significantly cut "bomb" train traffic through Seattle. The Stranger

A Federal Judge Is Letting the Swinomish Oil Train Lawsuit Against BNSF Move Forward: The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community sued BNSF earlier this year, alleging that the number of oil trains moving across their land violated an easement agreement from 1991. The agreement limits the number of trains to two, and just 25 cars each. If the Swinomish win and hold BNSF to the easement agreement, the outcome could greatly reduce the rate of oil trains moving through downtown Seattle.

City Hires Consultants to Review Over-Budget Seawall Replacement Project: In April, the Elliott Bay Seawall replacement project was supposed to be doing just fine. In August, city officials revealed they needed an extra $71 million—in addition to the budgeted $339.2 million—to finish the job. Now the city's hiring outside consultants for $200,000 to review the project's financing.

University of Washington Interim President Says She Has "Grave Reservations" About Faculty Unionizing: President Ana Marie Cauce and Interim Provost Jerry Baldasty sent a letter to faculty last week warning that a union could impact "freedom we as faculty enjoy to pursue excellence in teaching, research and scholarship." A group of UW professors has been leading organizing efforts since the spring.

There Are Too Many Dudes at Amazon and Not Enough Bathrooms: That's according to a Labor and Industries public records request about the types of complaints Amazon workers have made to the state. "The L&I spokesperson added that it’s pretty atypical for one company to receive as many complaints as Amazon, but all of the state’s in-person visits have found the bathrooms to be within the state’s standards," Geekwire reports.

Neighborhood groups can now apply to a city program to paint their crosswalks in a way that reflects community pride.
Neighborhood groups can now apply to a city program to paint their crosswalks in a way that reflects community pride. Kelly O

Now Any Neighborhood Can Have Community Pride Crosswalks: Remember when the city painted 11 Capitol Hill crosswalks in rainbow colors for Pride in June? And how shortly after, residents in the Central District and Rainier Beach painted their neighborhood crosswalks with Pan-African and Ethiopian flag colors, too? The city has a new "Community Crosswalk Program" that invites community groups to apply for crosswalk paintings.

Washington State and the Suquamish Tribe Sign First-Ever State-Tribal Pot Pact: The 10-year agreement means that the Suquamish Tribe could open a retail store in Kitsap County (if approved by Governor Jay Inslee). The Suquamish would then be exempt from paying the state's 37 percent excise tax on pot sales, but would pass on an equal tax to nontribal customers instead. The Seattle Times reports that those tax revenues would "be spent on 'essential government services,' such as tribal public safety and health." This is a big fucking deal.

US and Chinese Climate Change Negotiators Are Meeting in Los Angeles Today: "On Tuesday, the two nations will announce an arrangement between government entities in China and California to begin working toward devising cap-and-trade programs in China," the New York Times reports. "Several American climate policy experts have said they envision a future in which California’s cap-and-trade market could be linked with China’s regional cap-and-trade markets." Earlier this year, the Washington State legislature shut down Governor Jay Inslee's idea of a cap-and-trade system—a cap-and-trade system that would have funneled a tax on the state's biggest carbon polluters into revenue toward public education.