Violent, unprovoked criminal acts within the heart of downtown Seattle demand “immediate attention and action by the city,” in the words of a toughly worded letter sent to Mayor Mike McGinn on Wednesday and signed by 41 civic, business, legal and education leaders of the city.
“We are deeply troubled by the numerous violent incidents that have occurred over the past several weeks in the core of Downtown Seattle. The frequency of this type of street violence in Downtown’s most visible and traveled public spaces demands immediate new enforcement resources and strategies from the City,” said the letter, put out by the Downtown Seattle Association.
Seattle is No. 5 in Forbes’ list of “Best Cities for Good Jobs” in America. But the Downtown Seattle Association warns of increased violent acts “in the heart of Downtown, the most visited area of our city.”
The letter could not be more badly timed for McGinn’s re-election campaign. The mayor is airing a 60-second pre-primary TV spot in which he argues: “We have the lowest crime rate in 30 years.”
The letter argues, however, that the city should have an “all day presence of Park Rangers” in downtown parks who will “uniformly and consistently enforce all park rules.” According to the letter, “The current Park Ranger program as structured and resourced is ineffective.”
The letter asks for increased foot and bike patrols by Seattle police officers in the city’s downtown core.
“In the past three years, the number of officers assigned to 911 response has declined by 52, or 9 percent,” the letter staes.
Among those signing the letter are Kate Joncas, head of the Downtown Seattle Association, as well as Linda Mitchell of the Downtown Residents Association, developer H. Martin Smith III, Gerry Johnson of the Pacifica Law Group, Blake Nordstrom and Judith Runstad.
The letter lays out seven recent incidents of violence around Westlake Park. These include:
– “Last Sunday evening, on Pike Street, a man walked down the street and used a crow bar to smash the windows of cars and businesses.” He inflicted $5,000 damage to nine cars and two business windows in the Pike/Pine corridor, which was reported Tuesday by seattlepi.com.
– “Only days ago in Westlake Park, a group of youths savagely attacked an employee of a nearby building.” The employee was a concierge from the Seaboard Building at Fourth and Pike. He was punched and kicked by approximately 10 men and women who sought to steal his wallet.
– “In late June, on a Saturday afternoon at about 5 p.m., a group of individuals viciously beat a bicyclist at Fourth and Pine, adjacent to Westlake Park.”
– “On his way to a morning meeting in June, the president of the Seattle Hotel Association was assaulted at Third and Pine.” The assailant was “angry, swearing loudly” and had just struck another pedestrian in the neck.
– “At Westlake Park in the middle of the day last month, a woman was badly beaten by a group of young women. A trio of suspects was later detained by police, but released after no positive identification as assailants could be made.”
– “In June, a fight involving knives and skateboards broke out near Westlake Park at approximately 5 p.m. The fight continued several blocks before an arrest at the entrance to Pacific Place.”
– “On the evening of July 15, a Downtown employee was attacked and brutally beaten at Seventh and Pike. The man was walking down the street with a briefcase when witnesses say a man in his 20s started beating him with no reason.”
The letter points out that these violent acts occurred in the “most visited” part of Seattle. “They occurred mostly during the day and early evening when the sidewalks are full of Downtown families, visitors, workers and residents.
“The level of intimidation, physical assault and violence, particularly in and near Westlake Park, has been growing in a very visible way. Members of Friends of Westlake Park and staff from the Metropolitan Improvement District (MID) recently met with the Seattle Police Department and the Parks Department to communicate concerns over the increase in violence and intimidation in and adjacent to the park.”
Westlake Park is the semi-official center of the city. It is where presidential candidates have spoken on Seattle stops. It is where thousands gathered for a memorial service days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. It is where visitors catch the monorail to Seattle Center. It is where the Occupy Seattle protests sprang up in the fall of 2011.
The letter notes that business groups spent $140,000 to create a popular children’s playground in Westlake Park.
“The play space has been well used and serves as an important symbol to Downtown’s attractiveness as a great place for families with children to visit,” says the letter. “Regular violence surrounding this play space will erode our ability to successfully raise funds and partner with the City on future investments in new and existing Downtown parks.”
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