Also in this issue: Seattle gets a Green New Deal, a small business relief package, and more

Durkan Digest Standard Header



Earlier this week, I held a press conference with City officials and our partner agencies to help ensure Seattle residents are prepared for a potential storm. The National Weather Service is reporting that Seattle and King County could experience snow beginning this weekend and continuing well into next week. In addition to snow, we could experience heavy rain, freezing temperatures and high winds. I encourage all of you to be patient the bottom line is we dont know exactly whats going to hit us.

Senior Deputy Mayor Fong and members of Mayor Durkan's cabinet shovel snow as part of 2019's Shared Shovel campaign.

In the event of extreme winter weather and snow, there are five key things we need you to do:


* *Stay informed:* Be sure to check the National Weather Service [ [link removed] ] for updates, and sign up for AlertSeattle [ [link removed] ] for emergency notifications.
* *Shovel your sidewalks:* Its your responsibility to make sure the sidewalk in front of your home or business is safe and accessible. Its not only the law it's just the right thing to do to make sure people can move through Seattle safely.
* *Dont drive unless you absolutely have to:* Driving during a storm is dangerous please avoid driving, and choose to take public transit whenever possible. If you have to drive, check out these tips [ [link removed] ] on how to stay safe.
* *Check on your neighbors:* Make sure your neighbors have everything they need to be prepared for a storm, and if theyre older or disabled, be a good neighbor and offer to help get supplies, and shovel their sidewalk.
* *Get prepared:* Make sure your emergency kit [ [link removed] ] is up-to-date, and make sure you have a plan in the event of a power outage.

After last years snowstorm, we heard stories from seniors and our disabled neighbors some of whom were trapped in their homes for days on end, simply because the sidewalks in their neighborhood were covered in snow, making them dangerous and inaccessible. We cannot let this happen again it's all of our responsibility to make sure Seattle stays safe and accessible for all. Do your part and shovel your sidewalk.

Screenshot of Rooted in Rights video with a smiling, red-haired woman seated in a powered wheelchair. [ [link removed] ]

The City is prepared to do our part to make sure we weather this storm. The Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) is monitoring weather, traffic, and road temperatures 24/7, and our entire fleet of snowplows is ready to be deployed at a moments notice. If it does snow, have patience, and dont expect your neighborhood street to be plowed immediately. SDOT prioritizes clearing the most critical routes for transit and emergency response vehicles. Click here for more information on how SDOT is preparing for the winter weather [ [link removed] ].

And our Human Services Department has opened its Severe Weather Shelter starting Sunday, January 12 through Sunday, January 19. We know that extreme winter weather can be perilous for our neighbors living unsheltered. Please be compassionate, help those in need, and call 2-1-1 for help finding shelter options.

I encourage you visit www.seattle.gov [ [link removed] ] for more information, and follow @CityofSeattle [ [link removed] ] on Twitter for regular updates. And remember: Have patience and be a good neighbor. Its up to all of us to keep Seattle, safe, warm, and accessible this winter.

As always, please continue to write me [email protected], reach out viaTwitter [ [link removed] ]andFacebook [ [link removed] ], and stay up-to-date on the work were doing for the people of Seattle onmyblog. [ [link removed] ]

Sincerely,

Mayor Jenny A. Durkan's SignatureSpacer
Mayor Durkan Signs Green New Deal Executive Order to Fight Climate Change
Mayor Durkan signs her climate EO surrounded by members of her cabinet.

Mayor Durkan signed anExecutive Order [ [link removed] ] this week committing Seattle to new steps to combat climate change. The order requires that all new or substantially altered City of Seattle buildings operate without fossil fuels, and by January 2021, the City will develop a strategy to eliminate fossil fuel use in existing City buildings. Through the Executive Order announced today, the City will set an example that buildings can and should operate entirely without fossil fuels.

TheExecutive Order [ [link removed] ]also directs City department to work with the Green New Deal Oversight Board and the Mayors Youth Climate Council to integrate the following Green New Deal principles into City work:


* Reduce pollution at the rate of progress scientists say is necessary to limit average global temperature increase to 1.5 degrees C;
* Promote economic opportunity and inclusive access to stable, well-paying jobs; and
* Advance environmental justice by ensuring the benefits and investments of the clean energy transition accrue to those communities and populations historically most burdened by the fossil fuel economy.

Read more [ [link removed] ]
Spacer
Mayor Creates New Program to Help Vulnerable Small Businesses

This week, Mayor Durkan launched the Citys new Small Business Stabilization Pilot Program to help vulnerable micro-businesses remain in business after a destabilizing event. In 2019, the Mayor directed the Office of Economic Development (OED) to develop a strategy to help micro-businesses better navigate the impacts of rising commercial rents, displacement, and destabilizing events.

Seattle has been the fastest-growing city in the country over the last several years. That growth has brought incredible opportunities, but it has undoubtedly brought challenges. As rents rise, communities who have long called Seattle home are being pushed out of their neighborhoods, and thats true for our small businesses as well, said Mayor Durkan. Our small businesses are part of the fabric of our city, and they make Seattle a better, more vibrant place. With this Pilot Program, were telling our small businesses that their City will support them in moments of uncertainty, and they can count on Seattle as a reliable partner and ally.

The program awards $25,000 in grant funding to eight small businesses whose operations were jeopardized by a destabilizing event. All eight Small Business Stabilization Pilot Program grantees are women and minority-owned businesses.

For more information on this program, and a full list of grantees, click here. [ [link removed] ]

Spacer
Go Hawks! Mayor Durkan Makes Friendly Wager with Mayor of Green Bay

Mayor Durkan and Green Bay Mayor Eric Genrich made a friendly wager [ [link removed] ] ahead of this Sundays playoff contest between the Seattle Seahawks and Green Bay Packers. The wager is inspired by Mayor Genrichs Win-Win Playoff Challenge, which encourages both playoff communities to give back through service to highlight a community organization and effort.

To celebrate our cities shared ties, Mayor Durkan and Mayor Genrich also agreed to wager three things Seattle and Green Bay know well: Beer, cheese, and coffee. If the Packers win on Sunday, Mayor Durkan will send Mayor Genrich two growlers from Seattles unparalleled Georgetown Brewing, a selection of cheese from Beechers Handmade Cheese, and two bags of fresh coffee beans from Caf Avole. When the Seahawks win, Mayor Genrich will send Mayor Durkan beer from Stillmank Brewing, cheese curds from Rons Wisconsin Cheese, and coffee from La Java Roasting House.

3-up collage of Mayor Durkan and Lofa Tatupu raising the flag at the Space Needle

Our Seahawks are the best team in the NFL, and with Beast Mode back, theres no way we can be stopped, said Mayor Durkan. I hope Mayor Genrich and the Packers are ready to face the music when Russell Wilson (a former Wisconsin Badger) and our Hawks score a touchdown at Lambeau Field.

Go Hawks!

Spacer
Weekend read: The Seattle Times: Have you bought a shovel yet? Officials urge Seattleites to prepare for possible snow

In this weeks edition of the Weekend Read, we encourage you to check out the "Seattle Times" coverage of the Citys preparations for potentially snowy weather in the forecast [ [link removed] ]:

"Mayor Jenny Durkan urged residents Thursday to make sure they have supplies on hand that may not be a given for Seattleites: snow shovels and salt."

"The bottom line is we dont know whats going to hit us, Durkan said."

"Seattle officials say theyre readying plows and salt as the forecast shows a possibility of snow in the coming days."

"The National Weather Service in Seattlepredicts some snow this week [ [link removed] ]in places like the Issaquah Highlands and Everett, but isnt certain yet whether an Arctic front headed for the region will bring snow to Seattle early next week."

"The area will see bitter cold next week, with temperatures in Seattle expected to drop Sunday night. The weather service is forecasting highs of around 30 degrees during the workweek, with temperatures as low as 18 degrees on Tuesday, which is expected to be the coldest day of the week. Other parts of Western Washington will see even colder temperatures."

Read more [ [link removed] ]





*Seattle Office of the Mayor*

600 4th Avenue

4th Floor

Seattle, WA 98104

*Phone: 206-684-4000*

facebook [ [link removed] ]twitter [ [link removed] ]front porch [ [link removed] ] [ [link removed] ] [ [link removed] ] [ [link removed] ] seattle dot gov

Manage Preferences [ [link removed] ] | Unsubscribe [ [link removed] ] | Contact Us [ [link removed] ] | Help [ [link removed] ]| Privacy [ [link removed] ]




________________________________________________________________________

This email was sent to [email protected] using GovDelivery Communications Cloud on behalf of: City of Seattle 707 17th St, Suite 4000 Denver, CO 80202 GovDelivery logo [ [link removed] ]