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Staff Biography

Stephen Fesler

Senior Reporter

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.

Recent Articles

Amtrak Ramps Up Sounder Train Maintenance Work, but Service Still Reduced

Sound Transit continues to restore Sounder rail cars to service with some improvements for riders, but maintenance work by contractor Amtrak could take a while longer. That means reduce Sounder service could linger.
A crowded northbound train unloads at U District Station with dozens waiting on the platform for the southbound train.

Sound Transit to Suspend Downtown Link Service on Sunday for Maintenance Work

Weekend service disruptions continue Sunday, February 23 on the Link 1 Line. Sound Transit will suspend light rail service between Capitol Hill and SoDo stations to facilitate maintenance and construction work, and offer replacement bus bridge service.

Community Transit To Reduce Fares for Some Riders in March

On Saturday, March 1, Community Transit will implement a fare change benefitting low-income riders, seniors, Medicare recipients, and disabled riders, as fares drop from $1.25 to $1.00 for these riders. Community Transit's full fare will remain $2.50.

Sound Transit Pulls Sounder Cars Out of Service, Temporarily Reduces Trips

Sounder commuter rail service will continue to operate on reduced schedules, with no firm timeline yet for the full restoration of service, Sound Transit said. The reductions stem from a maintenance lag revealed on Wednesday.

Sunday Video: Why Is The Public Land Survey System So Important?

Dave Amos of City Beautiful dives into the history of the Public Land Survey System and how it has affected much of the United States in big and small ways.