No free lunch: Mercer Island residents won’t be getting special access to I-90 high occupancy vehicle lanes says the state.
Staying wild: A Utah congressional representative has dropped his plans to privatize more than three million acres of federal land.
Cute and encouraging: Sound Transit’s transit tip cartoon animals are a good way to disarm transit etiquette.
For the wrong reasons: Uber’s CEO has decided to bail from President Trump’s national business advisory council after a massive campaign to dump Uber for collaborating with the authoritarian administration.
Double dipping: State Senator Doug Ericksen has a new administrator job with Environmental Protection Agency but plans to keep his senate gig, but is that really doable?
Economic devastation: Tim Eyman is eyeing a 25% cut in property taxes.
Highway removal: The Congress for New Urbanism has picked 10 urban freeways that they say need to come down in America.
Paramount duty: The education fight is gearing up in the Washington State Legislature.
Another kind of ban: Barcelona has put a ban new hotels in its city center.
Intentional outcome: How segregated school target=”_blank”built segregated cities.
Ending a deplorable policy: Washington state became the first state to sue the Trump administration over its unconstitutional immigration and travel ban which has halted the order nationwide.
Highly competitive: So far eight candidates are in the race for the open Seattle City Council seat (Position No. 8)
Overbuilt: According to Transportation for America, cities across the country are building way too much parking near transit.
Alive again: With Lobsang Dargey likely heading for prison, most of his projects have largely dried up, but the Belltown Potala Tower appears to have a new developer taking over.
Joining the club: Yakima claims itself as a “sanctuary city.”
Environmental injustice: The Dakota Access Pipeline has been pushed ahead by the Trump administration after being held back by the Obama administration.
Quiet threat: Did you know that 154,000 barrels of crude oil are transported through the Puget Sound area every day?
Just cause: King County Councilmember Rod Dembowski and Seattle City Councilmember Bruce Harrell co-author an editorial against the proposed King County youth detention center.
Up for grabs: Seattle Central College has five sites ready for redevelopment.
Good for the coffers: Greater Greater Washington says that building apartments near transit boosts the coffers of cities and counties.
New policy: Mayor Ed Murray released his new plans for how to manage homeless encampments and sweeps.
Pre-paid: King County is testing pre-paid postage for ballots.
Gaining attention: With a major apartment boom underway in Tacoma, the city is beginning to get serious national attention.
Eco-friendly: Vancouver, B.C. plans to increase energy efficiency requirements for residential buildings less than seven stories in height.
Map of the Week: What if bike paths looked like subway maps?
Stephen is a professional urban planner in Puget Sound with a passion for sustainable, livable, and diverse cities. He is especially interested in how policies, regulations, and programs can promote positive outcomes for communities. With stints in great cities like Bellingham and Cork, Stephen currently lives in Seattle. He primarily covers land use and transportation issues and has been with The Urbanist since 2014.