Last Night’s District 2 Community Forum was a Confused Clusterfuck

In less than a week, the Seattle City Council will choose one of six finalists to fill Councilmember Tammy Morales’ seat and represent District 2, which spans from the Chinatown-International District to Rainier Beach. With such a short timeline, there’s little time to get familiar with the D2 hopefuls. 

Unfortunately for all involved, last night’s only scheduled candidate forum, which took place at the Columbia City Theater, was a confused, biased disaster. 

Last Friday, the council narrowed the list of 20 candidates down by allowing each councilmember to nominate one person. Councilmember Bob Kettle chose not to nominate anyone, and Councilmember Cathy Moore was absent from the meeting. Thus, we were left with six: King Donuts owner Hong Chhuor (nominated by Council President Sara Nelson), Bruce Harrell’s senior transportation policy and operations manager Adonis Ducksworth (nominated by Councilmember Dan Strauss), land use lawyer Thaddeus Gregory (nominated by Councilmember Joy Hollingsworth), long-time attorney in the City Attorney’s Office Eddie Lin (nominated by Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck), Parks and Recreation employee and community organizer Chukundi Salisbury (nominated by Councilmember Rob Saka), and Seattle Police Department community crime prevention coordinator and failed District 2 candidate Mark Solomon (nominated by Councilmember Maritza Rivera). 

All these men (yes, they are all men) gathered for Tuesday’s event, hosted by Seattle CityClub and moderated by Tony Benton, Rainier Avenue Radio’s studio manager. 

The first question Benton posed was about which of Morales’ policies the candidates agreed or disagreed with.

Chhuor stated that he didn’t need to name any specific policies because he plans to lean on council staff who actually know policy, but his goal was for Seattleites to be able to be proud of Seattle. Ducksworth said he would “show up” since, according to him, Morales never did. As someone whose home was broken into twice, he had a strong emphasis on public safety. Gregory wants to pursue policy that unites the district. Lin was the only person who actually cited actual legislation Morales supported in her time on the dais. He said he was a big supporter of the Jumpstart payroll tax and her equitable development initiative (EDI) to give more space for community organizations in mixed-use developments. Salisbury plugged his website, where he mentioned we all could find pictures of him and Morales. He supported EDI, but claimed he’d differ from Morales by being more present. Solomon noted that he had a good working relationship with Morales, but would be stronger on public safety.

Are you sensing a theme? 

The next question is where things started to get a bit…wacky. 

Reading off his phone, Benton posed two versions of the same question to the candidates. First:

“The pedestrianization of Lake Washington Blvd has been a long running debate. Given that South Seattle has less access to park space than the North end, do you think the street should be closed to cars?” 

And then:

“Making Lake Washington Blvd only accessible to pedestrians and bikes is not something people in D2 desire. Bike lanes were installed in D2 without widespread community input or warning. Will you commit to keeping Lake Washington Boulevard open to vehicles?”

Given those prompts, the candidates responded. Unsurprisingly, all of them said they would not close the street down to cars. 

Ducksworth, who is a transportation guy, praised the “amazing” new waterfront “where you can have cars, you can have bikes, you can people walking, and you can have access to the water.” While the waterfront project is an improvement over the Alaskan Way Viaduct, the bustling multiple-lane highway almost undermines the people-centered design of the rest of the project. 

“Why can’t we get together and do that on Lake Washington Blvd?” Ducksworth said. 

Lin pointed out that not everyone can get around without a car, citing his half-paralyzed father-in-law—who doesn’t even live in Seattle—as an example. Salisbury encouraged everyone to visit his website before stating his firm commitment to keeping cars on Lake Washington Boulevard, noting that the city had already pedestrianized the area by banning cars in Seward Park. Solomon said if the people who live there don’t want to close the street to cars, then that’s all that matters. Chhuor agreed. Gregory did, too, but then added he knew the street could be unsafe and that Seattle should pursue Vision Zero goals of reducing pedestrian deaths. 

Benton then ad-libbed a “wild card” question. 

“This is just for me and my fellow community members who live very near Lake Washington,” Benton said. “When Lake Washington is shut down for cars… that’s cool, except all those cars park in our neighborhood and take our parking spaces and don’t respect the property.”

He waited a beat and then turned to Chhuor.

“Hong, what do you think about that, man?”

The candidates responded as expected. It felt like improv, everyone “yes and-ing” off of each other. Yay cars, boo outsiders taking curb-side parking that residents do not have a divine right to. While many of them probably did believe what they were saying, it was hard to tell what was genuine about what they said because the moderator’s preferences influenced their responses. 

Don’t worry, it got worse. 

Benton then asked, “What is your position on the threat of Sound Transit to businesses and community members to Chinatown?”

Behind the coded language (um, threat??), Benton is referring to the debate about where to place a new station for the necessary second tunnel to expand light rail throughout the city and make good on Sound Transit 3 promises. 

The overall consensus was that the future council member would need to “engage with community” on the issue. 

On questions about how to “rehabilitate” drug users, the candidates recycled the old canned responses about leading with compassion and wrap-around services. None stated how they would fund any of these lofty goals. Lin at least cited a specific county levy aimed at helping provide rehabilitation. 

When asked how they would be responsive to constituents, everybody assured the room they’d be available at voters’ beck and call. Salisbury said he would give people who called into his office a “tracking number” and assure he talked to them in 48 hours or less. 

Everyone mentioned public safety as their top priority for the district. Chhuor said he wanted to protect small businesses because otherwise a place like the CID would just be filled with “Paneras.” Lin discussed the One Seattle Comprehensive Plan as a driver for him since D2 is “at-risk of displacement.” He continued, “We need to make sure to right the wrongs of the past, the redlining that has robbed our communities of wealth building opportunities, we need to change that,” he said. 

Benton then asked a question from three businesses in the area: “What will you do to help small businesses like those in Columbia City that are struggling with issues such as crime, police response time—

He interjected, “That’s a real thing, we don’t even call the police.”

Then continued, “—and increased cost related to the new minimum wage? On Friday, [the businesses] said they may have to close.”

Lin was the only candidate to challenge the assertion that the “new minimum wage” is leading businesses to close, saying, “I support our workers, [they’re] struggling as well.” He said affordable housing was the key. He also said he’d support cuts to taxes and regulations to help small businesses.

Ducksworth, Gregory, and Chhuor said they would direct police to “walk a beat” in those areas so people feel safer. Quick fact check: The city council does not have the power to do that. 

Following this, Benton opened up the forum to impromptu audience questions, something the forum hadn’t planned to do. 

The first question came from his godmother, former state Rep. Dawn Mason. 

“I want to know this: How do you really understand being a council member? Most of the answers you’re giving sound like you’re running to lead a non profit organization,” she said. 

Great question. Duckworth, Lin, and Salisbury explained that their work with the City has given them insight into the role. Gregory said his experience working with the council on land-use issues means he understands the job. Chhuor stated he would rely on council staff for guidance but sees himself as “the bridge” between the public and the council. Solomon said he believes the role is all about “listening.”

After hearing their answers throughout the forum, it’s still unclear what, if anything, any of them actually stand for. Perhaps the best indicator comes from who on the council nominated them—or, in Salisbury’s case, from his website.