Renton police officer near McKnight Middle School after a motorist racing at high speed flipped their car and landed partially in the playfield (fortunately they survived). Police are typically the first professional responders to reach serious car accidents and other dangerous situations.
When I was on city council we tracked Priority 1 response times as one of our most important city metrics. We worked to ensure our police had the staff and resources to be anywhere in town in an extreme emergency within 60-90 seconds, sometimes even faster, and we were able to achieve this goal in most cases.
Mayor Pavone asks the clerk to conduct the roll-call vote on Council President Valerie O’Halloran’s motion to approve Renton’s new drug ordinance. The ordinance passed 7-0. (Council Member Ruth Perez was in attendance virtually)
Renton City Council passed the second-and-final reading of Renton’s new drug ordinance last night, with all seven Council Members voting in support. The drug law targets possession of highly addictive “hard-drugs”, like fentanyl, meth, heroine, and stolen prescription drugs, along with the paraphernalia associated with these substances. (The law has no impact on cannabis products). The law is intended to get the user into treatment and recovery whenever possible, with the threat of jail and fines used as a deterrent to continued drug use.
The State Legislature (almost-miraculously) introduced and adopted a statewide drug law between first reading of Renton’s ordinance a week ago and Renton’s final reading last night, and the unusual circumstances left a small amount of uncertainty about what Renton Council might choose to do with their local ordinance. I had anticipated in this blog entry on Wednesday that the city attorney would make adjustments to the Renton ordinance to align it with state law and then the adjusted ordinance would be passed; and that is what happened.
The State law gives local governments authority for controlling drug paraphernalia, which is covered by the new Renton ordinance and will play an important role in keeping parks, sidewalks, and flowerbeds clear of discarded drug materials. The drug paraphernalia section in Renton’s ordinance will also make it easier to confront someone who has just smoked or injected a drug; while the drug may be gone at that point, possession of the paraphernalia would be grounds for arrest and ideally the drug user’s first step in being guided toward treatment and a sobriety.
Unlike last week’s public comment period, when two-thirds of the testimony encouraged the Council to decriminalize drugs, this week’s public testimony was provided by nine community members who all supported the new Renton drug law. There was no testimony opposed to the new law. (Decriminalization of drugs was off the table because of the new State law, but the drug paraphernalia restrictions potentially could have caused controversy). The speakers gave compelling testimony. Most were members of Renton’s business community who have witnessed much of the suffering of the drug users first-hand, and have struggled to cope with the side-effects of drug use like crime, property damage, and discarded materials.
I was one of nine members of the community who testified last night in favor of Renton’s new drug ordinance. (Six speakers spoke in the Council Chamber, and three were virtual)
The complete council meeting with all the public testimony can be viewed here.
Renton fire fighters respond to an aid call near Planet Fitness on East Valley Highway last night, only to find themselves surrounded by mayhem, hostility, and gunfire. Image from this video
Renton’s fire fighters have increasingly found themselves trying to respond to medical emergencies in the midst of mayhem and even gunfire, as illegal street races and other criminal behavior block their access to those who need assistance. Police are doing all they can, but they’re constrained by officer resources and State pursuit limitations that ludicrously ban them from chasing most reckless drivers. After a completely unacceptable scene last night near Planet Fitness on East Valley Highway, our Renton Fire Fighter’s Union Local number 864 is now asking for the public’s help in reversing the out-of-control deadly trend.
After a two-year break from public office, my wife Cathy and I feel that Renton City Council could benefit from my experience again. Today I filed as a candidate for Position 7.
While Renton faces several new and vexing problems, the solutions will ultimately come from collaborative problem solving and hard work as we learned in past decades. I’ve powered through many tough challenges with five Renton mayors and dozens of Renton Council Members in the past, and together with our City employees, residents, businesses and community partners we successfully positioned Renton as a thriving, vibrant, inclusive community where people want to live, work, play and learn.
If Renton voters put me back in office, I’ll look forward to working with residents and city leaders again to help get Renton back on the healthy and desirable path we all want for our city.
My unused hammock last October when we had unseasonably warm weather but we all had to stay indoors to protect our lungs from wildfire smoke. On October 18 and 19 Seattle had the worst air quality of any major city in the world due to a fires burning in the Cascades, including a fire in Alpine Lakes Wilderness about 30 miles from Seattle.
This is an update of an essay I wrote and posted on Facebook last October explaining how our Federal implementation of the Clean Air Act relative to forest fires is harming our summer air quality instead of helping it. And it’s estimated to be causing hundreds of deaths per year in our area. While the moderate smoke haze we experienced the last couple days was from Canada, it’s a reminder that Washington State smoke will probably soon come back and start disrupting summer plans.
Stanford University says Washington’s wildfire smoke is killing some of us. The smoke that always seems to come during some of our precious warm summer and autumn days is worse than just a nuisance keeping us cooped up when we would all like to be outside. According to a 2020 study by Stanford University, “wildfire smoke is likely responsible for 5,000 to 15,000 deaths in an average year in the United States. Smokier years like 2018 or 2020 will have a much higher death toll.”
On May 15th Renton City Council voted unanimously to place a new drug ordinance on second and final reading at the May 22nd Council Meeting
In a suprise recovery, the Washington State Legislature succeeded in getting a new drug law approved through both chambers and then signed by the Governor over just two days. The special session was convened at least in part to try to prevent every county and city across the State from coming up with their own drug ordinances.
Renton’s ordinance is complete and simply needs a second reading and council roll-call vote on Monday, followed by the Mayor’s signature on Tuesday to become law. Some residents are wondering if this will still happen given the State law that just passed.
I think the Renton ordinance can and should still go forward, and Ruth Perez, a council member I spoke with, shares this view. Council Member Perez reminds me the new state law specifically gives cities the authority to control drug paraphernalia, and Renton’s ordinance includes this element. Controlling paraphernalia is important for at least a couple reasons. It’s dangerous for smoking-pipes and heroin needles with residue to be lying all over parks and sidewalks where children and others can access them and potentially overdose on them, and it’s easier to prosecute public drug consumption if paraphernalia is itself a crime since often the drugs are consumed by the time the officer is present to make an arrest.
Maryjane Van Cleave, Renton’s head of Equity, Housing and Human Services, discusses diversion and drug treatment options available to those who violate the new drug ordinance
The city staff provided a thorough presentation during the Committee of the Whole meeting prior to tonight’s council meeting. The presentation was heartbreaking at times, touching on the fact that Renton tragically lost 47 residents through overdoses last year, and police and firefighters had to save many more from close calls. The new ordinance focuses heavily on encouraging those struggling with addiction to get treatment as an alternative to being charged and sentenced for drug crimes. The council asked numerous questions during the presentation, and the city staff including the Police Chief, the City Attorney, the Chief Administrative Officer, and the Director of Equity, Housing and Human Services answered them all adeptly.
Official filing begins today for five Renton elected offices. The City Council Seats held by Kim-Khanh Van, Ed Prince, Ryan McIrvin, and Valerie O’Halloran are up for election, as well as the Mayor’s Seat held by Armondo Pavone. (Full disclosure: I’ve given early endorsements to Mayor Armondo Pavone and Council Member Valerie O’Halloran.)
Anyone interested in running has until the end of the workday on Friday May 19 to file (4:00PM online, 4:30 PM in-person), although it’s best not to wait until the last minute.
Renton Mayor Armondo Pavone (center right) addresses questions about the proposed Renton drug ordinance at a Kennydale Neighborhood Association meeting last Tuesday
The Council will be discussing a new drug law at Monday’s Committee of the Whole meeting at 5:45 PM, and then again at the Council Meeting at 7:00. The agenda for the Committee of the Whole can be found here, and the agenda for the Council Meeting (where you can comment) can be found here. The proposed drug ordinance can be found here, with a staff presentation about it here.
Emails to Renton City Hall from Renton residents who want to make possession of addictive drugs like fentanyl, meth, and heroine illegal are now significantly outnumbering Seattle-centric emails encouraging decriminalization. And many of you have also been outspoken about your positions at public meetings, one-on-one conversations with officials, and social media. Renton residents have shown immense support for criminalizing possession of these deadly drugs, even while Renton’s 11th district Senator Bob Hasegawa voted along with a majority of the Washington State Legislature not to criminalize possession of these drugs last month.
In recent blog entries I’ve explained that Renton is working on its own drug ordinance, and several Renton leaders have no confidence the State will find its way through this issue.
As if to illustrate the difficulties that the Legislature faces in developing a drug law, the King County executive’s office sent King-County-based State Legislators a letter on May 9th arguing with virtually every point made by the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs in their May 4th letter. The County Executive’s letter, signed by Michael White, King County State Relations Director, didn’t even try to find common ground on anything with our State’s law enforcement leaders, except for one minor point on public use.
Two million dollars worth of drugs confiscated by Renton Police in February 2023 drug trafficking arrest. (RPD photo)
With both the Renton City Council and Washington State Legislature poised to discuss new drug laws next week, action on this important topic could become confusing for residents.
The Legislature is convening in a special session which is essentially a do-over after they failed to act in April, effectively decriminalizing possession of all hard drugs in our state as of July 1st– including fentanyl, meth, cocaine, stolen prescription drugs and other highly addictive substances. Meanwhile, Renton City Council is working on a city ordinance to make possession of these drugs illegal, and public use of drugs even more illegal, because of the Legislature’s failure to enact legislation the last time.
The Legislature is expected to pick up where they left off with Senate Bill 5536, which still had a number of areas of disagreement in it.
Renton Police officers with a police canine search a neighborhood near Valley Medical for a suspect in a case unrelated to a nearby shooting at Stonebrook Apartments. Photo courtesy of Scott Ference
Multiple Renton residents have been inquiring on social media about heavy Renton Police presence near Valley Medical. Renton Police Public Information Officer Cyndie Morris provided an update on Facebook to clear up confusion. Here is her summary:
Here are some details: At 4:23 pm, officers were dispatched to an illegal discharge at Stonebrook Apts 12210 SE Petrovitsky Rd). Multiple callers reporting shots heard with multiple subjects running throughout the complex. Two adult black males (both in their early 20’s) responded to Valley Medical Center with non-life threatening gunshot wounds to their legs (one wound a piece). Victims told officers they were simply standing outside in the complex when somebody ran up on them on foot and shot at them. Suspect was said to then have jumped into a vehicle and fled the scene. Victim advised they don’t know who shot them or why somebody would want to shoot them. No direct witnesses onscene were able to provide any additional information regarding what happened or who was involved. Victims declined to speak to officers any further about what occurred.
There was no arrest made in the above incident, BUT: As officers were at Valley Medical to interview victims/witnesses, they observed a known wanted juvenile suspect arrive with one of the victim’s. When officers challenged him, he fled on foot. Due to the seriousness of the juvenile’s outstanding warrant, officers pursued after him on foot, requesting assistance from Kent PD K9 and Guardian. Guardian was able to pinpoint the juvenile suspect’s location and officers arrested him without further incident.
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By popular request I added a subscribe feature to my blog a couple weeks ago so that you can receive email notification of new entries. I’ve been gratified that many people have found it, and signed up already.
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From City of Renton presentation. The complete presentation is here
At 6:00 PM tomorrow night, Renton’s Planning and Development Committee will discuss updating Renton’s home occupations rules to make it legal for Renton residents to do home based online retail sales. I think this update probably makes sense in today’s world. If you have input one way or the other, you can address it to council via email or at tomorrow’s City Council meeting.
In 1995 during my first term on Renton City Council I helped write a new law that formally legalized home piano teachers, home tax accountants, and other similar small residential-based businesses for the first time in Renton. Prior to ordinance 4493 in 1995, these businesses were technically not allowed in residential neighborhoods, although some people were doing them under the radar if their business was small enough and neighbors were not asking questions.
This law has seen updates in 1997, 2008, 2012, as we made adjustments based on input from businesses and neighborhoods. Here is the law as it stands today. This law will likely be updated again in the coming days, primarily to allow retail sales from homes as long as these sales are online-based. Previously, retail sales were not allowed from home-based businesses.
Renton Police work the scene of a homicide in the Highlands
Tragically, a 17 year old was shot and killed early this morning east of the Renton Highlands Safeway parking lot off NE 4th Street. My heart goes out to the teen’s family and friends.
Renton Police are actively interviewing witnesses and working the investigation. Anybody that saw anything that can help the police should call 911.
