Mayor Mike McGinn and an entourage of cheering arena supporters were on hand during a press conference on Wednesday, May 16, to unveil a memorandum of understanding that could allow the city to build a third sports facility in SODO. The Seattle City Council and the Metropolitan King County Council have yet to vet the agreement.
But the ease with which McGinn is ready to dole out $200 million in a general obligation bond contradicts his utter unwillingness to concede that the Seattle Police Department (SPD) needs more than the $5 million a year that he says will fix it.
Instead, the mayor publicly balked at his preliminary estimate of $41 million in reforms proposed by the federal Department of Justice (DOJ), even though the DOJ and many others have said this figure is grossly overstated.
The DOJ’s proposed reforms includes training in de-escalation techniques, anti-bias training, more supervision of officers and recruiting new officers — all of which are listed in McGinn’s oversimplified “20/20” (“20 Changes in 20 Months”) plan. But the DOJ’s report actually explains how these reforms should be implemented — hence, any difference in cost.
It’s not a subtle statement that, coincidentally on the same day as the press conference, a group of 25 to 50 people prevented emergency responders from aiding a man who had been shot outside a Rainier Beach fast-food restaurant. The group confronted and postured before medics and police officers, allegedly challenging, “So, are you gonna kill me, too?”
The mayor’s own posturing over the DOJ’s recommendations only serves to minimize the SPD’s crisis and scare citizens about more budget cuts to city services. This further undermines the public trust in the police department and the city that any change will take place.
And if the DOJ is recommending $41 million worth of changes to fix the police department, imagine how much work needs to be done to repair the public’s confidence in the SPD.
While the arena proposal is considered a long-term, money-making venture for the city, public safety isn’t a money-losing proposition. Instead, the payoff for the short and long terms is proving that public safety is not a game of political grandstanding but for the people who could potentially fill the seats.
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