Tag: An Innovative City

Mayor Murray and Seattle City Council nominate appointees for the Community Involvement Commission

Today, Mayor Edward Murray and the Seattle City Council announced their appointees to the City’s new Community Involvement Commission (CIC). Created by Executive Order 2016-06  issued by Mayor Murray last year, the 16-member commission will advise the City on priorities, policies, and strategies related to equitable civic engagement and public participation in City decision-making processes. It will also provide feedback on the development of City departments’ community involvement plans.

“In order for Seattle to reach its full potential, all residents including those representing under-represented and under-served communities must have the opportunity to participate in the City’s decision making and planning processes,” said Mayor Murray. “The commissioners will have a critical role in guiding the City toward more accessible and equitable community engagement, and I look forward to their ideas and counsel so that the City’s efforts ensure that all voices are heard.”

Nearly 300 individuals applied for 13 CIC positions to be appointed by the Mayor and City Council – six selected by the Mayor and seven by City Council (by Council District). One additional Mayoral appointee will be selected through the Get Engaged program, and CIC members will nominate individuals to fill the two remaining positions later this year. All the appointments are subject to City Council confirmation.

“We have a creative, diverse, geographically representative group of appointees who will help strengthen the way neighborhood participation occurs in 21st century Seattle,” said Councilmember Tim Burgess (Position 8, Citywide). “The Commission will have an array of engagement tools at our fingertips, from web surveys, to telephone town halls, to social media, and in-person meetings.”

Below is the list of the newly appointed members of the Community Involvement Commission:

Mayor Ed Murray Appointees:            

Julie Pham

Alex Hudson

Bereket Kiros

Sonja Basha

Emily Kim

Jenna Franklin

 City Council Appointees:

District 1: Jennifer Calleja

District 2: Thais Marbles

District 3: Natalie Curtis

District 4: Alison Turner

District 5: Mark Mendez

District 6: Ben Mitchell

District 7: Patricia Akiyama

The City Council’s Affordable Housing, Neighborhoods, and Finance Committee will discuss and possibly vote on the CIC appointments at its May 26 and June 7 meetings.  The meetings will begin at 9:30 a.m. in City Council Chambers, Seattle City Hall, 600 Fourth Avenue, Floor 2.

For more information or for questions, contact Sara Belz at (206) 684-8696 or email sara.belz@seattle.gov. You can also learn more about the Community Involvement Commission at the following website.

The post Mayor Murray and Seattle City Council nominate appointees for the Community Involvement Commission appeared first on Mayor Murray.

Mayor Murray to strengthen broadband privacy rules in Seattle

Today, Mayor Ed Murray took steps to protect the privacy of Seattle’s internet users. Mayor Murray directed the implementation of a Seattle IT rule, which requires the City’s key internet service providers to obtain permission from their customers before selling web browsing history and personally identifiable information at a detailed or aggregate level. This rule reinstates a key consumer privacy protection eliminated by the U.S. Congress and the Trump administration last month.

“Where the Trump administration continues to roll back critical consumer protections, Seattle will act,” said Mayor Murray. “I believe protecting the privacy of internet users is essential and this policy allows the City to do just that. Because of regulation repeals at the national level, we must use all of the powers at our disposal to protect the rights of our residents.”

Mayor Murray is directing the City to issue this rule under its authority to issue and oversee cable television franchises. Seattle Municipal Code (SMC 21.60) grants the City of Seattle authority to issue rules related to the privacy practices of cable operators. These rules govern not only cable television services but also non-cable services, such as internet service. The new rule states cable operators must obtain opt-in consent before sharing a customer’s web browsing history or otherwise using such information for a purpose other than providing a customer with their requested service.

Comcast, CenturyLink, and Wave have cable franchise agreements with the City of Seattle and will be subject to the new rule. Under the terms of the rule, these cable operators must report their compliance by Sept. 30, 2017 and annually thereafter. The rule also stipulates that any aggrieved person may begin a civil action for damages for invasion of privacy against any grantee.

Background
Since 1999, the City of Seattle’s “Cable Customer Bill of Rights” has provided the public with strong protections to ensure competent, responsive service from cable operators. The Rights were modified in 2002 and 2015 to add privacy protections to address concerns that advances in technology would greatly increase the capabilities of cable operators to collect, use and disclose their customers’ information without customers’ permission. Learn more about the Rights and how to issue a comment or complaint by visiting http://www.seattle.gov/cable.

The post Mayor Murray to strengthen broadband privacy rules in Seattle appeared first on Mayor Murray.

Mayor Murray signs executive order expanding use of performance data

 

Mayor Ed Murray has signed an executive order directing City of Seattle departments to expand their use of data and analytics in everyday management and strategic decision making. The announcement is part of Mayor Murray’s ongoing effort to make Seattle’s government more efficient and data-driven to better serve the residents of Seattle. This week, Mayor Murray participated in Bloomberg Philanthropies What Works Cities 2017 Summit, which brought together leading city policymakers from across the country to discuss, share, and explore best practices that increase the performance and effectiveness of local governments. Seattle was recognized at the summit for its recent work to reshape human services contracts to better focus on performance.

 

“Seattle has a national reputation for excellence in governing and today’s announcement builds on this foundation by bringing innovation and transparency to more City agencies,” said Mayor Murray. “We are a City that uses data, best practices and common sense to meet both basic needs and complex challenges head-on. We are expanding these performance measures to more City departments than ever before. Ultimately, good governance increases the return on our investments, maximizes the effectiveness of our contracts, and helps us better serve more residents.”

 

In 2016, Mayor Murray created the Performance Seattle team to increase accountability in carrying out day-to-day City business and to give City departments the tools and information to become more efficient, effective and accountable. Today’s announcement directs the Performance Seattle team to work worth City department leadership to ensure performance and accountability measures are integrated into new policies, funding measures and priority issues facing the City by:

 

  • Creating an inventory of department performance measures;
  • Conducting an analysis of where data is needed but not currently available;
  • Building business intelligence dashboards to make data available to City officials; and
  • Establishing a long-term plan for ongoing data management and analysis

 

These actions are intended to apply results-driven methodologies to City programs to better analyze and measure good governance, transparency and effectiveness. These measures are currently being applied to the City’s efforts to re-bid all homeless service contracts to ensure providers meet performance goals and that contracted services have a proven, data-driven record of placing people experiencing homelessness into permanent housing. The team has been working to consolidate contracts with service providers, restructure contracts to prioritize placement into permanent housing, and improve the use of data to pinpoint, and fund, what works. This effort was highlighted in a short film debuted at the What Works Cities 2017 Summit in New York City this week.

 

Seattle was selected as one of the first eight cities to participate in Bloomberg Philanthropies’ What Works Cities, a national initiative started in 2015. The goal of the program is to help American cities enhance their use of data to improve services, inform decision making, and engage residents, ultimately helping leaders identify and invest in what works.

 

The post Mayor Murray signs executive order expanding use of performance data appeared first on Mayor Murray.

Mayor Murray debuts What Works Cities film on Seattle’s efforts to improve contract performance of homeless service providers

Today, Mayor Ed Murray debuted a Bloomberg Philanthropies What Works Cities film in New York City featuring the City of Seattle’s first effort in a decade to re-bid all homeless service contracts to better ensure providers meet performance goals and have a proven, data-driven record of placing people experiencing homelessness into permanent housing. Click on the image below to watch the film:
  
In 2016, Mayor Murray created the Performance Seattle team to increase accountability in carrying out day-to-day City business and to give City departments the tools and information to become more efficient, effective and accountable. The team has been working with Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Harvard Kennedy School Government Performance Lab to pilot a new approach with how the City contracts with homeless service providers. Working with a small number of providers, the team has worked to consolidate contracts with service providers, restructure contracts to prioritize placement into permanent housing, and improve the use of data to pinpoint, and fund, what works.
 
Mayor Murray is in New York City this week attending the Bloomberg Philanthropies What Works Cities 2017 Summit, which brings together leading city policymakers from across the country to discuss, share, and explore best practices that increase performance and effectiveness of local governments. Founded in 2015, What Works Cities is a national initiative to help American cities enhance their use of data to improve services, inform decision making, and engage residents, ultimately helping leaders identity and invest in what works.
 

The post Mayor Murray debuts What Works Cities film on Seattle’s efforts to improve contract performance of homeless service providers appeared first on Mayor Murray.

Mayor Murray launches age-friendly initiatives

Today, Mayor Ed Murray announced a series of age-friendly initiatives for the City of Seattle to address environmental, economic, and social factors influencing the health and well-being of older adults. As part of the age-friendly initiatives and resolution signed today, the first quarter supplemental budget includes $200,000 of additional funding for 2017 to fund organizations that are developing innovative new programs for seniors, nonprofits that provide transportation options for seniors and to fund a technology symposium to create user-friendly online resources for seniors.

“While the Trump administration is actively working to dismantle America’s safety net, including health care and food assistance which protect many of the most vulnerable people in our community, including seniors, Seattle will remain committed to addressing the economic, physical and social challenges facing older adults,” said Mayor Murray. “From urban planning, growth and development to housing, transportation and services, these aspects of our community will be shaped for and by our older residents.”

The goal of these new initiatives is to increase social participation, racial equity and awareness of issues older adults face daily, while decreasing displacement. As the population of older adults in Seattle increases, the City is developing goals and indicators around departmental initiatives that consider aging adults. In addition to the new funding outlined above, Mayor Murray outlined several specific early action items for 2017 including:

  • Signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the King County Department of Assessments to increase enrollments in the City’s Utility Discount Program and the state’s Property Tax Exemption/Referral Program to help older adults to stay in their homes. The goal is to double the number of seniors enrolled in both programs;
  • Leveraging Seattle’s civic technology community to help the City better meet the needs of the aging population. This includes coordination of a technology symposium and design workshops to create user-friendly online resources for seniors based on best practices and innovative solutions from other cities;
  • In a partnership with King County Metro, increasing usage of the ORCA LIFT a reduced fare program by older adults by streamlining the application process;
  • Improving the pedestrian environment by assessing sidewalks with the involvement of seniors, implementing walkability audits, promoting transportation options for older adults, and incorporating age-friendly criteria into the Pedestrian Master Plan for 2018-2022;
  • Involving seniors in the development and engagement process for new capital investments and increasing participation in senior-focused recreation and healthy food programs offered through the City of Seattle Human Services Department, Department of Parks and Recreation, and Office of Sustainability and Environment;
  • Improving housing affordability by developing a regional housing action plan to assess senior housing needs, identifying low-income seniors to participate in the Utility Discount Program and the senior property tax exemption program; increasing access to weatherization services, home repair, and foreclosure prevention programs; and evaluating feasibility of senior home-sharing options.

“As the real estate market continues to boom we see more and more seniors facing financial difficulty,” said King County Assessor John Wilson. “I am thrilled to partner with Mayor Murray and the City of Seattle to offer relief to those who need it the most. We will work together to ensure Seattle is a place we can all afford to call home.”

In addition to early actions, Mayor Murray is committing to two community equity forums—one focused on the needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender elders; the other on the needs of older women. Also, the City is looking to provide older adults with better access to human services and City resources, based on best practices, new technologies and innovative solutions from other cities.

“I’m pleased to see our City so fully embrace this Age-Friendly concept, making this a city for all ages and abilities,” said Sally Bagshaw, Seattle City Councilmember. “Personally, I want to see giant steps forward in improving our sidewalks across the city. When we maintain our sidewalks, connecting them block-to-block and implementing safe crosswalks, we make a pedestrian-friendly network. The improved pedestrian environment encourages people of all ages to walk, and as we all know, a little fresh air does us good.

“A sidewalk free of bulges and holes appeals to everyone in the neighborhood, including the mom pushing her stroller, a child riding a scooter to school, and those who may find walking a challenge. Investing in safe walking routes for all of us should be a top priority for our Age-Friendly city.”

“It is important to me and to our City that we take care of our elders,” said Catherine Lester, Director of the City’s Human Services Department. “This requires us to create opportunities for social participation, to promote health and wellness, and to make sure our physical environment is accessible. These are the types of things that allow Seattle to continue to be a place where people of all ages and stages of life can thrive. Our elders, as well as all people in our community, must feel valued and be able to participate fully as part of this community.”

The Human Services Department will also design an innovation fund to identify and award funding for unique and creative projects that meet community needs. The first year will include a focus on ways to creatively move towards an age-friendly community with a specific focus on results and racial equity.

The City will consider suggestions for age-friendly improvements in the 2018 budget and will report on the progress of the initial three-year plan to the Human Services and Public Health Committee, or other appropriate City Council committees, through 2021.

Currently, 18 percent of King County’s residents are 60 years and older. By 2040, that number is expected to grow to be one in four adults (25 percent). Currently, 63 percent of King County renters age 65 and older spend more than 30 percent of their annual income on housing. Racial disparities persist in these findings. Nearly two-thirds of older Black/African Americans (60 percent) spend 30 percent or more of their income on housing, as do more than half (56 percent) of older Latino seniors. This compares to 47 percent of White older adults.

In July 2016, Seattle joined the AARP Network of Age-Friendly Communities, an affiliate of the World Health Organization’s Global Network of Age-Friendly Cities and Communities. This initiative outlines “The 8 Domains of Livability” which include:

  • Outdoor Spaces and Buildings
  • Transportation
  • Housing
  • Social Participation
  • Respect and Social Inclusion
  • Civic Participation and Employment
  • Communication and Information
  • Community and Health Services

 The AARP/WHO framework looks for improvements in these specific areas that influence the health and quality of life for our city’s older residents. This initiative aims to help the region support the positive contributions of older adults and enable people of all ages and abilities to achieve their potential.

The post Mayor Murray launches age-friendly initiatives appeared first on Mayor Murray.