Newly obtained text messages that Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell sent from his personal cell phone to millionaire philanthropist Stuart Sloan reveal that both men share a mutual “disgust” for the “nudity” at Denny Blaine Park, a long-time queer nude beach. In the texts, Sloan described the beach as attracting a “sub-group” of people from “all over” with “very different morals than most of the people in Seattle, you and me included.” Meanwhile, Harrell wrote, “I have been made aware of the fact that the problem of nudity and hazardous waste has become totally totally unacceptable at the beach.” Harrell continued, “If you are disgusted I share your disgust.”
The texts also show a deeper level of collaboration between the two men in their effort to “clean up” the park, casting even more doubt on Harrell’s assertion that he did not know Sloan anonymously pledged $1 million to fund the construction of a children’s play area at the beach, a proposal that deeply angered Seattle’s LGBTQ community, who saw the plan as a de facto eviction.
Lee Keller of the Keller Group represents Denny Blaine Park for All, a group of local neighbors that includes Sloan. She said that “this is not about a particular group of people or a particular member of a group. It is only about people regularly breaking the law in this park and that’s the ONLY thing we take exception to.” Keller emphasized their concerns have nothing to do with the LGBTQ community, and their only goal is to make the park available to “EVERYONE.”
Though the mayor’s office said in a March 2024 statement that “it is never our intent to take action directed at any protected class or even a protected right of expression such as nudity,” the texts from March and June of 2023 show that Harrell responding directly to Sloan’s concerns about nudity and instructing his team to “take a more aggressive and immediate approach” and to discuss “‘emergency strategies’ or anything reasonable to restore the park to a normal and reasonable use.” Shortly thereafter, mayoral and Parks staff visited Sloan’s home to present plans for the playground and its estimated cost.
Ultimately, their plans amounted to nothing. In December of 2023, a few weeks after the City’s proposal to plop a kid’s play area next to a queer nude beach had been made public, the Parks department hosted a public meeting at MLK Fame Community Center where hundreds of passionate queers came out in opposition. At the end of that week, the City announced the death of the plan.
“A Citizen and a Friend”
In its communications to The Stranger, the mayor’s office previously framed Sloan as just one voice among many in the neighborhood with concerns about Denny Blaine, saying, “Since the beginning of the administration, the Mayor’s Office has heard from members of the community regarding challenges at Denny Blaine Park related to matters such as parking, trash, and graffiti, with Stuart Sloan being one of many voices highlighting these issues.” But the text messages suggest the Mayor took a special interest in Sloan’s request, and that the issue was mostly nudity.
The exchange starts with a message from Sloan to Harrell’s personal cell phone on March 18, 2023, about four months after November 2022, when records show the mayor and Sloan met in Harrell’s office downtown to discuss, according to the mayor’s office, trash and graffiti.
Sloan began the exchange by apologizing for disturbing the mayor over the weekend, but he said he thought Harrell might be interested in “a couple of photos from this afternoon at Denny Blaine Park.” Though the records request obtained by The Stranger and published on MuckRock did not include those photos, Sloan said he took “the liberty to black out the ‘privates’ but, rest assured, there were many today in the park. Sloan then added, “This is disgusting and as you’ve said, we’re on the right side of this issue.”
Sloan went on to say he hoped the Mayor would agree that they needed to get ahead of nudity on the beach before the weather returned, and that they could not let “another year go by.” He then expressed some comfort in the word of a Parks administrator, who told him they were two weeks from “a plan.”
According to the texts, Harrell forwarded Sloan’s message to Seattle Parks and Recreation Director AP Diaz and reassured Sloan that “i will get it done.”
“I have all the confidence in the world that you will,” Sloan replied before complimenting Harrell’s work as Mayor and thanking him as “a citizen and a friend.”
Housen said “the plan” Sloan referenced involved parking enforcement. He said Parks and Recreation had requested support from the mayor’s office, and that Parks had staff onsite who encouraged people to move along after the two-hour parking limit was reached. Since Parks can’t issue parking citations, this did not solve the problem, Housen said. The text messages make no mention of parking and are focused on nudity.
As far as that goes, Housen said that Harrell did not believe that the park should be used for public masturbation, sex, or other illegal and lewd activities “as had been described to him.”
Going back to 2018, there have only been a handful of calls regarding lewd conduct near or around Denny Blaine Park, and the texts between Sloan and Harrell did not mention public sex, only nudity and waste.
Housen added that nudity was a protected right of expression, and the mayor respected people’s ability to exercise that right at Denny Blaine. He emphasized that the mayor had made park safety a priority, giving the example of working toward making all the parks’ restrooms available for year-round use. The mayor felt it was important for every park in the system to reflect those qualities, and acted accordingly when made aware of “the range of issues at Denny Blaine.”
“The work to improve Denny Blaine Park represents an example of the mayor’s commitment to both responding to community concerns and making parks clean, safe, and welcoming for all. Recent improvements the City has made–convening Friends of Denny Blaine Park, clearer parking regulations and enhanced parking enforcement, more frequent litter pickup, installation of portable toilets, and signage restoration–reflect that commitment,” Housen said.
Sloan Was His Friend, but Harrell Had No Idea He Was the Donor
Though the Mayor personally met with Sloan on two occasions at two key points during the playground’s proposal process–first in November 2022 and then on December 9, 2023, a day after the Seattle Parks Department publicly killed the plan–the office denied that Harrell knew that Sloan pledged to donate the money for the kid’s play area.
But after Sloan’s March 2023 text messages, which Harrell fielded on a Maui vacation with his wife in celebration of their anniversary, Harrell texted Parks Superintendent AP Diaz to say he was sensitive to Sloan’s “philanthropic position.” Harrell then instructed Diaz to call him the following week with a “status report on the nudist beach we are trying to clean up.”
Housen said the mayor was referring to Sloan’s “history of philanthropic donations broadly, (which are well documented), not any particular reference to Denny Blaine.” He added that the mayor did not know a play area was being considered, “let alone that Stuart Sloan might be a potential donor.”
On June 2, 2023, Harrell sent Sloan messages from his private cell phone, apologizing for not acting quickly enough in Denny Blaine and expressing his shared disgust.
He added, “[Deputy Mayor] Adiam Emery will be working with you to address the issue and I apologize it has not been done quickly and effectively. The law department pushed back on one strategy but I am committed to figuring this out. I am assuming you are frustrated and I think your frustration is very reasonable. I know you want results and not an apology so I hope the later [sic] is quickly forthcoming.”
Sloan replied that he appreciated Harrell’s message and expected to meet with Emery that day. Public records show that Sloan and Emery met at City Hall in June, and then again five weeks later at a Starbucks a mile from Sloan’s home. Emery and Andy Sheffer, deputy superintendent of Seattle Parks, visited Sloan at home shortly after.
In text messages, Sloan said that Emery wanted to discuss short and long-term solutions for the “bizarre behavior” at Denny Blaine and called for rules at the park.
“What is happening because there aren’t enforced rules, Denny Blaine Park is an attraction for a sub‐group of people from all over, not just Seattle, that have very different morals than most of the people in Seattle, you and me included. So, that sub‐group are absolutely keeping the clear majority of Seattleites away from Denny Blaine Park. Again, thank you and I hope that results will be sooner rather than later.”
Regarding those morals, Housen said Sloan reported to the Mayor “unwanted, illegal, and lewd behaviors including public masturbation, leering, and public sex.” Housen said Sloan’s comments were not aimed at the primarily queer beachgoers because he never referenced their sexual orientation or identity.
“In any conversation Mayor Harrell has had with Sloan, Sloan has never denigrated LGBTQ people, and, additionally, his significant philanthropic donations have been made to the benefit of people of all backgrounds, identities, and orientations, including his $78 million donation to Fred Hutch–a leader on cancer health care for LGBTQ people. Our understanding of ‘sub-group’ was in reference to people engaging in unwanted, illegal, and lewd behaviors,” he said.
Harrell didn’t respond to Sloan’s message until Sloan texted him again on June 14, requesting that they talk in person or on the phone. Harrell said he would call him soon, but that he was on a flight to Japan for the G7 climate conference.
“Sorry I had to rush,” the Mayor wrote several hours later. “I’m instructing Adiam and team to take a more aggressive and immediate approach and next week we can chat about “emergency strategies” or anything reasonable to restore the park to a normal and reasonable use.”
“Thank you, Safe travels!” Sloan said.
Ultimately, after pushback from the LGBTQ community and an impassioned public meeting, the mayor and city killed the plan on December 8, 2023.
Bruce Harrell kicked off his campaign with an endorsement from K. Wyking Garrett. He’s the CEO of Africatown who said that gays and lesbians are not welcome in the community. He backed that up with even more homophobic comments. And his father is one of the biggest homophobes and antisemites in Seattle. BUT NO! The Stranger, like most of Seattle Leftists, believes anti-racism excuses homophobia. So no, not surprised by his bigotry.
You buried the lead on the story, which is that the public rejected the plan, and the money/connections/croneyism didn’t matter. The system – the “Seattle process” – worked.
naked
bodies’re
Disgusting.
ever seen one
up Close?
well, I
Have.
The Stranger does a disservice to call Denny Blaine “a queer nude beach.” It’s a beach. End of story. Stop with the over-identifying. It crosses the line into appropriation and exclusion. And hurts the cred of acceptance and freedom.
As for Harrell, typical Bruce. Not a leader.
“… November 2022, when records show the mayor and Sloan met in Harrell’s office downtown to discuss, according to the mayor’s office, trash and graffiti.”
I too am concerned about trash and graffiti, but somehow cannot secure a private meeting with Mayor Harrell…
Oh, Brother.
Sloan might want to move.
DMing nudes to the mayor is wild!
People who are this repressed are the biggest freaks and they don’t even realize it. Just casually snapping pics of random strangers on a nude beach and then texting them to the mayor for uhhhh, you know, law enforcement purposes, I guess…?
Why are you texting nudes to the mayor???
Honestly I believe that Harrell had no idea Sloan was the donor. If this had been planned they would’ve handled it much better.
@1 I am happy to see somebody else has their eyes on the pandering done to some seriously sordid individuals and organizations whose attitudes are completely unaligned with anything that could even vaguely be considered progressive, but because of their demographics everybody ignores that.
A few points of contention though. Wyking also has a history of misogyny, antisemitism, anti-asian racism, and anti white racism. His statement after his father’s anti-Semitic outburst said pretty much (paraphrase) “The Jewish man brought it on himself. Why are people so upset? They should be more upset that I want tons of taxpayer funds and not getting it”.
He pulled the Keiro building away from the Japanese community who was fighting to make it theirs. And he turned it into a homeless shelter for black men that touts its magnificent views, secured parking, game room and barber shop. You have to email to get a spot.
His father also has a history of anti-Asian racism as seen in a video when he tells a Asian man that he’s a China man and to go back to China.
I voted for Harrell and I was disappointed that he pandered to Garrett and Co too. But I couldn’t hold it against him too much because he was just doing what every other politician has done. Not only did Mayor Murray to ander to Wyking he pandered to his father as can be seen in a video.
Mayor Durkin pandered to him. Kshama Sawant certainly did, as the rest of the city council did to some extent. Frank Chopp, Adam Smith and even Governor Inslee did. So hey, I can’t single him out for criticism. I can only wonder what sort of dirt the Garretts have on everybody in Seattle to get such subservience despite such open hatred and distain for a huge chunk of the population.
Oh I forgot to mention why I said that Garrett was also sexist and anti-white. He booted out Mary’s Place, a woman’s homeless shelter, that have been leasing the Keiro building. His excuse was that it was mostly black and brown clients but those who ran it were white women. It was a well run social service organization. Now he made it ostensibly a homeless shelter for black men. Given the ratings it has been given online along with my own research and to how they function they clearly are not anywhere near as ethical or as helpful to the community as Mary’s place was.
Mayor Harrell pretending he couldn’t figure out that Sloan was the donor is pretty funny. I guess Harrell would rather look stupid than admit he was doing favors for a rich guy.
That said, Mayor Harrell’s texts mention only “nudity” and “hazardous waste,” nothing about sexuality. Obviously city parks should be free of hazardous waste, and while nudity is not illegal, citizens can have different ideas about how well it works at a public park, which should be a welcoming space for all. As @4 noted, the Stranger seems to have declared this space to be a “queer nude beach,” without any consideration for other users of this shared public space. That is in itself a form of appropriation the Stranger implies Sloan was wrongly trying to do.
The elder Garrett was the one who slugged Mayor Schell with a bullhorn.
I know this goes against the narrative, but I’ll say this: Stuart Sloan may be a prude, but he and his wife Molly recently donated 78 Million to Fred Hutch, so he’s not all bad.
@8 “If this had been planned they would’ve handled it much better.”
Never underestimate the stupidity of corrupt politicians. They’re so full of themselves, they don’t even realize what their action look like and/or forget to cover their tracks.
Look at Sen. Menendez in NJ. He f’ing googled to find out how much his stash of gold bars were worth…
tensorna dear, it’s an established fact that only queer people get nude. Everyone else is a NeverNude.
I wonder cancer patients and researchers in the cancer field feel a little different about this whole thing. I mean, Stuart Sloan comes off as pretty entitled about the nudity and trash at the beach. But on the other hand, he and his wife donated $80 million to Fred Hutch…that’s a pretty generous donation and will probably save lives. But white progressives gonna white progressive.
Rightwingtrollspreferthestranger dear, it’s entirely possible to be grateful for an incredible act of generosity but also oppose the philanthropist’s other actions. You must strive to not be so linear.
In any event, I really doubt that anyone who has cancer or the people who assist them in that fight, pause to consider Stuart or Molly Sloan or the “historically queer nude beach” when undergoing or administering treatment.
For Sloan and Harrell to try and blame the trash (including bio) and graffiti on the nudes is disingenuous. All Seattle public beaches and parks have the same issues. Correct those issues outside of people clutching their pearls about nudity. Harrell didn’t know about this prior but close enough to an individual that has his personal #? Yeah he’s a liar. I will remember this when I vote. Nice also to learn about the Garrert’s, a business there just lost a client.
For those that don’t like nudity it is legal as long as the individual is not being lewd or lascivious and no, just being nude is not being lewd or lascivious. For those that don’t like it count your blessings that nudity is basically happening at two beaches. Plenty of beaches in Europe practice nudity. Bet some have even been to beaches with your children outside of your Mexican condos walking topless while peddling their wares. So what if your child sees someone nude, good teaching moment to indicate nudity is not always about sexuality.
Don’t want others from outside neighborhood coming to the beach? Then don’t go to beaches elsewhere like the Eastside. Actually Kemper Freeman doesn’t want Seattle folks going to Bel Square.
Posted from a straight person with children who isn’t scared to visit the beach.
“Kemper Freeman doesn’t want Seattle folks going to Bel Square.”
Kemper doesn’t want poor people going to Bel Square. If you’ve got cash, he doesn’t care where you’re from. Much like Stuart Sloan and University Village (which, if you want to be angry with him about something, is a much more appropriate thing to be vexed about. That place gives me the itch, and I will die mad about University Lanes)