I imagine you're confused by the latest news out of city hall. As The Stranger first reported: Mayor Greg Nickels is circulating a proposal to regulate clubs out of existence. The loopy regulations include: a grumpy noise ordinance; a requirement that clubs must patrol adjoining properties; and a gimmee to the whims of the police that allows the city to yank operating licenses from the club of their choice if anyone sneaks in drugs.
So, you're wondering: Why did I move here? Seattle was supposed to be shape-shifting into a big city. You moved here for that biotech job, that content start-up. Ben Gibbard lives here. There's a weirdo arts scene. (Did you see SuttonBeresCuller's latest at the Lawrimore Project on Airport Way?) The urban bike trails, the fags, Le Pichet, Ezell's. This is the city where Sub Pop is. The city that shut down the WTO. Goddamn, you even read about Seattle's urbanist mayor in Rolling Stone.
But wait a minute... that mayor? What's with that guy? He's the one who's proposing all these condescending nightclub rules. So, you're wondering (hoping): Is your groovy new adopted home going to rise up and shut this guy down?
Well, here's the bad news, you duped newbies: Mayor Nickels's anti-nightlife stand is likely to play well with many of your new neighbors. Welcome to Seattle. It's not the city you were led to believe it was.
Here's the political context you've stepped into: This is a city where 75 percent of the land zoned for residential development is zoned single-family. And Nickels is worried that his main agenda item—tampering with longstanding zoning regulations to promote density—is politically dangerous. Nudging Seattle toward big citydom makes a lot of Seattleites uncomfortable, and it makes Nickels a bad guy to old-school Seattle. So, he's made the political decision to couple his urban-density efforts with this war on nightclubs you're hearing about. The crackdown is intended to win points with the voters he's alienating by pushing density. (Not to mention winning some points with developers, who will have an easier time filling up downtown condos with suburban expats.) Basically, Mayor Nickels is hoping his assault on nightlife will inoculate him against the charge that he's abandoning Seattle's small-town charm.
Unfortunately, by clamping down on the very cultural spark that comes with growth, Nickels entirely misses the point of the urbanism that brought all you excellent weirdoes to town. So, let me offer some hope. This is a moment. And Nickels may be underestimating how the stars are aligned. That is, he may be underestimating you. Nickels is playing to the past, a past that he thinks still defines the city. There's a chance now to set the record straight. You've moved here. Seattle has grown by 10,000 folks since 2000—and by 2010, it's expected to add another 20,000.
Let Nickels know you're here. The Seattle City Council is going to take up Nickels's anti-nightclub proposal. Go to the public hearings, call the council, press them to reform the hell out of it. On a related note, there's some Nickels legislation that will shut down strip joints. Vote for the repeal. You moved here. Now start living here.
