Capitol Hill Neighborhood Safety Forum: my impressions
Just got back from the Capitol Hill Neighborhood Safety Forum over at Group Health, which lasted about an hour and a half. My impressions?
First of all, the event was pretty packed. I got there at about 5:45 p.m. and was shocked at how few folks were in attendance; but by 5:55, all the seats in the room - I'm guessing there were between 150-200 - were filling up. By 6:05 it was standing room only.
And the people in attendance weren't just my Capitol Hill neighbors. On the news media side, I spotted the ever-friendly Casey McNerthney from the P.I. Elisa Hahn from King 5 was there with a cameraman, and commented to me that since the Carnation murders, there's seemingly been a noticeable increase in local crime. I noted that the holidays must bring out the worst in us Northwesterners.
And the politicians: outgoing Seattle City Council president Nick Licata was on-hand, along with councilmembers Sally Clark and Tim Burgess (the latter of whom was sworn in just a few days ago). Police officers were out in full force as well. Lieutenant John Hayes, a well-known figure on Capitol Hill for at least as long as I've lived here, played a prominent role in the evening's discussion, and East Precinct Captain Paul McDonagh fielded a vast majority of community questions.
Even Mayor Greg Nickels was there, shaking attendees hands and thanking them for coming. I wasn't expecting his presence, but it was a pleasant surprise. People can criticize the mayor all they want, but it was a nice gesture of him to come out on a rainy night and show his support for Capitol Hill.
After some obligatory introductions and 30 seconds of silence, McDonagh gave a rundown of Harps' murder and the ongoing investigation surrounding it. While officials couldn't say much - as is often the case with details of an ongoing investigation - one thing appeared clear: they still don't know whether Harps knew her assailant or not.
"We need to get this person," said Nick Metz, an assistant chief with the SPD who oversees their Investigations Bureau. "We don’t know whether this person knew Shannon or didn’t know Shannon, and these are things that obviously create a great deal of fear in the community.”
Shortly after this rundown came the "Community Questions & Concerns" portion of the forum. I've never been to an event like this, so I can't say if this is the norm...but it appeared that a lot of folks took advantage of the opportunity and used it as a soapbox. I counted a total of 20 questions from community members, the vast majority of whom either asked about off-topic issues or didn't ask a question at all, using the time ramble about some other vaguely-related safety matter. One man even took the time to subtly blame fiscal conservatives for Harps' murder.
I understand that this forum was partially to help the community heal, and for that I can see why some used the Q & A as a chance to vent the emotions that have been building since Harps' death. But I went into the evening expecting more insightful discussion about the problems in our community and what the city of Seattle is doing to improve them. Complaining about perceived negative interactions with SPD in the past is doing everything but addressing the issues of the future (which I assumed was the focus going into this event).
Ultimately, I got the impression that a lot of these people expect SPD to put an end to all crime, immediately. Many seem unaware that they live in a neighborhood that I'll bet sits comfortably in the top 5% of safest urban communities in the world. Have we begun to take our incredibly high standard of living for granted?
One woman went so far as to claim that Capitol Hill is "beset" with crime, a claim that all personal experience and statistical data would disagree with. As Mayor Nickels noted at one point in the evening, Seattle's crime rate is at its lowest since 1968. Last year, while similar sized cities (D.C., Milwaukee & Boston) had between 66 and 181 homicides, Seattle had 24. Crime can't be eradicated completely...the idea that it can is a fallacy. But SPD has done a damn good job at keeping crime rates down, and thankfully a couple individuals used their chance on the microphone to note this.
Still, one legitimate concern of community members that came through loud and clear was their unified agreement on one issue: that in darkness, outdoor lighting on Capitol Hill sucks. While I can't say I agree with them, it's interesting that this is a concern shared by many locals. And judging by the reactions of SPD and representatives from the City Council, I have a feeling that lighting on the Hill - or the lack thereof - will be addressed in the very near future.
For a more detailed rundown of the overall event, check out the coverage over at Big City Hippie.
First of all, the event was pretty packed. I got there at about 5:45 p.m. and was shocked at how few folks were in attendance; but by 5:55, all the seats in the room - I'm guessing there were between 150-200 - were filling up. By 6:05 it was standing room only.
And the people in attendance weren't just my Capitol Hill neighbors. On the news media side, I spotted the ever-friendly Casey McNerthney from the P.I. Elisa Hahn from King 5 was there with a cameraman, and commented to me that since the Carnation murders, there's seemingly been a noticeable increase in local crime. I noted that the holidays must bring out the worst in us Northwesterners.
And the politicians: outgoing Seattle City Council president Nick Licata was on-hand, along with councilmembers Sally Clark and Tim Burgess (the latter of whom was sworn in just a few days ago). Police officers were out in full force as well. Lieutenant John Hayes, a well-known figure on Capitol Hill for at least as long as I've lived here, played a prominent role in the evening's discussion, and East Precinct Captain Paul McDonagh fielded a vast majority of community questions.
Even Mayor Greg Nickels was there, shaking attendees hands and thanking them for coming. I wasn't expecting his presence, but it was a pleasant surprise. People can criticize the mayor all they want, but it was a nice gesture of him to come out on a rainy night and show his support for Capitol Hill.
After some obligatory introductions and 30 seconds of silence, McDonagh gave a rundown of Harps' murder and the ongoing investigation surrounding it. While officials couldn't say much - as is often the case with details of an ongoing investigation - one thing appeared clear: they still don't know whether Harps knew her assailant or not.
"We need to get this person," said Nick Metz, an assistant chief with the SPD who oversees their Investigations Bureau. "We don’t know whether this person knew Shannon or didn’t know Shannon, and these are things that obviously create a great deal of fear in the community.”
Shortly after this rundown came the "Community Questions & Concerns" portion of the forum. I've never been to an event like this, so I can't say if this is the norm...but it appeared that a lot of folks took advantage of the opportunity and used it as a soapbox. I counted a total of 20 questions from community members, the vast majority of whom either asked about off-topic issues or didn't ask a question at all, using the time ramble about some other vaguely-related safety matter. One man even took the time to subtly blame fiscal conservatives for Harps' murder.
I understand that this forum was partially to help the community heal, and for that I can see why some used the Q & A as a chance to vent the emotions that have been building since Harps' death. But I went into the evening expecting more insightful discussion about the problems in our community and what the city of Seattle is doing to improve them. Complaining about perceived negative interactions with SPD in the past is doing everything but addressing the issues of the future (which I assumed was the focus going into this event).
Ultimately, I got the impression that a lot of these people expect SPD to put an end to all crime, immediately. Many seem unaware that they live in a neighborhood that I'll bet sits comfortably in the top 5% of safest urban communities in the world. Have we begun to take our incredibly high standard of living for granted?
One woman went so far as to claim that Capitol Hill is "beset" with crime, a claim that all personal experience and statistical data would disagree with. As Mayor Nickels noted at one point in the evening, Seattle's crime rate is at its lowest since 1968. Last year, while similar sized cities (D.C., Milwaukee & Boston) had between 66 and 181 homicides, Seattle had 24. Crime can't be eradicated completely...the idea that it can is a fallacy. But SPD has done a damn good job at keeping crime rates down, and thankfully a couple individuals used their chance on the microphone to note this.
Still, one legitimate concern of community members that came through loud and clear was their unified agreement on one issue: that in darkness, outdoor lighting on Capitol Hill sucks. While I can't say I agree with them, it's interesting that this is a concern shared by many locals. And judging by the reactions of SPD and representatives from the City Council, I have a feeling that lighting on the Hill - or the lack thereof - will be addressed in the very near future.
For a more detailed rundown of the overall event, check out the coverage over at Big City Hippie.
