♪♪
-Good morning, everybody.
I'm really excited here to share some great news
that we're trying to do here.
I have a superstar of speakers in back of me,
so I'm actually going to be brief.
I'm just going to sort of give the parameters
of what we're announcing.
And I have a lot of thank yous,
but I'll thank these speakers after they speak.
I've already forewarned Gary Locke that he is the closer,
like we close -- like the Mariners closed last night.
He's the closer.
So you've got to -- you've got to win the game for us, Gary.
The most important concept of what we're trying
to do in making sure this community here,
the Chinatown International District,
elders and family and friends around here at any block here,
any restaurant, any business and feel safe and be safe.
And this exciting investment,
a million dollar investment from the city,
the Asian-American Foundation known as TAAF,
Amazon is designed to do that,
to help our businesses,
these blocks that we walk and treasure for decades and decades
and the lives here be safe in Chinatown, Japantown,
and Little Saigon.
Now, we know for too long that we've had conditions
that are intolerable.
People are struggling with health issues, addictions.
There's been public safety issues.
And we're trying and trying and trying,
and we keep pushing that boulder up a hill.
And we think we're making considerable progress
when you look at the data.
Their program, it has a simple but very important mission,
to provide regular, visible,
and reliable support to the neighborhood;
to activate it through these fine people
that believe in protecting and saving lives and helping people.
And sometimes it could be as easy
as giving some fine human beings
that are capable of doing this work.
And I want to thank you for coming this morning.
Let's give them a hand right now.
This program is modeled after other
successful Ambassador Programs
that we partner with like we're doing with
the downtown Seattle Association,
the MID ambassadors, the Ballard Alliance.
These on-the-ground teams will serve
as safety partners and neighborhood stewards.
Again, they'll help connect people to services.
You want to come and get a close-up shot.
This is -- this is the better side over here, by the way.
I'm just messing with you.
They'll support tourists
and local residents navigating the district.
They'll build relationships
and provide assistance to business owners.
They'll emphasize enough
that a strong partnership with the county
that runs the health system is needed in this kind of work.
A lot of these people are sick. They need to be treated.
They need services.
And so I wanted to impress upon you
that our partnership with the county that runs that system,
the only thing we're doing, of course,
this is one piece of the puzzle;
and it builds on a lot of work
we're continuing to do through the district.
You know that our investments are helping improve
the built environment through graffiti removal,
art and better lighting here -- and here, for example,
in Hing Hay Park and King Street,
we're expanding affordable housing
and strengthening small business support
and supporting more neighborhood activation.
You've heard me use that term a lot since I've been mayor,
activation, because, at the end of the day,
we want areas to be vibrant and active
with the right kinds of activity.
We're supporting community driven efforts
like the CID visioning group
and the full depth initiative led by Friends of Little Saigon.
They're doing amazing work.
We've doubled down on addressing the public safety
and economic challenges facing Little Saigon.
You see it.
You see the work we're doing since November 20 --
since November 1, 2024,
our downtown activation team has completed three
scheduled restoration actions,
three completed scheduled restoration actions every day
in the Little Saigon neighborhood.
We're putting our resources where we believe our values are,
which is to keep this community safe.
But, once again, change and progress
doesn't come alone in City Hall.
My style of leadership is one that is collaborative;
and I look for great partners, great teams.
The public sector, the private sector, our BIA,
the businesses, advocates, you, community members and leaders
working together toward a shared vision.
And that is a great segue into listening to our next speaker.
I'd like to introduce Georgette Bhathena,
the chief programs officer at the Asian-American Foundation.
And we're so excited to partner with T-A-A-F,
TAFF -- am I saying it right?
Okay -- TAFF on this exciting work.
And Georgette will be sharing a very special announcement about
how TAAF, along with their partners,
are investing right here in Seattle to advance safety
and economic prosperity for the AAPI community.
We are very blessed
and fortunate to have Georgette's leadership
and her organization.
And, Georgette, I'm going to leave all this stuff up here
because I'm sort of the MC.
I hope it doesn't mess you up a little bit.
Let's give Georgette a hand.
-Great. Good morning, everyone.
It's a pleasure to be here with you today.
So I'm Georgette Bhathena, the chief programs officer at TAAF.
And TAAF was launched in 2021
in response to the rise of anti-Asian hate
and to address the long-standing underinvestment
in our communities.
Our mission is to promote safety, foster belonging,
and advance prosperity for our AANHPI communities
across the country.
The Chinatown International District
has always felt like home to me.
I was born and raised in South Seattle
and spent a lot of time in the CID growing up.
And, during college,
I was a docent at the Wing Luke Asian Museum.
And I served as a student consultant
to the Northwest Asian-American Theater,
as well as the CID BIA
while at the University of Washington's
Foster School of Business.
Go Huskies.
So I'm very excited about the CID Ambassadors Program
on a personal level.
This program marks the launch of TAAF Cities Initiative
and is aimed at catalyzing cross-sector collaboration
to support Seattle's AANHPI communities.
And we're also honored to have the support of Amazon
as well as Bank of America join us as founding partners.
TAAF Cities is focused on driving place-based change.
So, while we're a national organization,
we know that a lot of important change and investment
is needed and required at a local level.
And we do that by working hand in hand with local leaders
because, across the country,
AANHPI communities are shaping the future of cities.
But too often they're expected to do it
without real investment.
So, to address this challenge,
TAAF is supporting coalitions like this one across sectors,
government, business, and community.
And Seattle was chosen as a pilot city in this initiative
because of its history as a major cultural
and economic hub with a strong and vibrant AANHPI community.
So we're coming together to invest in neighborhoods
like the CID,
not as problems to fix but foundations to build upon.
And how do we do this? So, to begin with,
we can't talk about community investment
without talking about the importance of safety.
Through our partners,
we have learned about the urgency
and the need to develop solutions to prioritize safety,
and we admire the work that's already being done here
by community based organizations
like the Chinese Information and Service Center,
CISC -- and I see Michael in the audience --
a leading organization responding to hate incidents
and also a partner who has been leading the way
in providing services to our immigrant communities.
And we released our Seattle safety study last fall
to help identify gaps in public safety,
areas for investment in city infrastructure,
and also community resources
that would help the city become safer for the AANHPI community.
There are two statistics that I want to share briefly.
So, according to the study,
54% of AANHPIs in the city said that public safety is
either a major problem or somewhat of a problem
that needed to be addressed.
Sadly, the study also showed
that nearly 1 in 3 AANHPIs in Seattle
said they personally feared being attacked.
So, with the CID Ambassadors Program,
we're supporting a community based solution
to address these problems.
The CID Ambassadors will walk
and watch over neighborhood blocks to ensure
that they are safer, cleaner, and cared for.
So we believe that,
working together with coalitions like this one,
we can strengthen neighborhoods,
we can empower small businesses, and we can build cities
where everyone belongs.
Thank you. -Thank you, Georgette.
In order -- in order to give a good speech,
sometimes it's necessary to steal things.
And what I loved what Georgette said
was this is not perceived as a problem to fix
but a foundation to build upon.
I'll be stealing that in another speech,
so I'm just giving you forewarning.
That is exactly how we are approaching this.
So next we're going to hear from who you know,
Taylor Wong, Senior Manager of Community Engagement in Amazon,
to bring some brief remarks.
But I want to thank Taylor for a strong commitment
to our community here
and to the city of Seattle through Amazon's efforts.
And we are very fortunate
that we have her at that position at Amazon.
So, Taylor, take it away.
-Thank you, Mayor.
I can't tell you how deeply moved
and excited I am to be here today
as we announce the CID Ambassador Program.
This neighborhood holds a very special place in my heart.
It's where my parents have their business,
where I grew up,
and where I've spent countless hours working with many of you,
our partners in the community,
to make this a safe and vibrant --
the Chinatown International
District Business Improvement Area, Friends of Little Saigon
and many more partners in this coordinated
$1 million investment. Last September,
Amazon was honored to help bring back the night market,
and we're excited to return this fall.
Our commitment, our $250,000 commitment,
contribution to Friends of Little Saigon,
in addition to what TAAF and the mayor has already announced,
will help further demonstrate our commitment
to supporting economic development and public safety
in this neighborhood.
This public-private partnership shows that we can achieve
when government, business,
and community organizations work with shared purpose.
As someone who has witnessed this neighborhood's challenges,
triumphs firsthand, I'm grateful for Amazon
and their continued support and excitement
that we will bring to this neighborhood.
So thank you to all the partners and Mayor.
-Thank you, Taylor.
Next, I'd like to invite Tuyen Than,
the new executive director for the CID BIA, to bring remarks.
And, you know, a couple of weeks ago,
Tuyen and I and others
announced the launch
of the Comcast RISE Small Business Grant Program.
And that was indeed exciting,
and she has hit the ground running.
I'm very excited to reintroduce to most of you
because you already know her Tuyen.
Please take it away.
-Hello, hello, hello. Good morning, everybody.
It might be a long one, but we --
as you can see, we all have our pieces of paper
that we're going to read from.
So thank you for -- all for being here today.
I want to share a moment that stuck with me.
A few months ago,
a small business owner in the CID told me,
I just want to feel like someone has our back.
And that stuck with me
because it captured what so many in our community
have been feeling for years:
unseen, unheard, and left to fend for ourselves.
Getting to this point took a tremendous amount of work.
It took long meetings, a lot of them;
difficult conversations; and people who refused to give up.
So I want to thank Natalie, the CID BIA team,
Jeff Liang, TAAF, the City of Seattle,
Office of Economic Development,
and all the other -- and Amazon, Bank of America,
and all the other hands and hearts
who helped make this possible.
Today is a turning point.
The launch of the Safety Ambassadors
isn't just about visibility.
It's about trust, presence, and hope.
This is what the community asked for,
and it's a step toward reclaiming our streets
with dignity and care.
We still have a lot of work ahead, but this moment matters.
And it's a reminder that when we listen, invest, and show up,
we can move toward the kind of neighborhood we all deserve.
Thank you. -Thank you, Tuyen.
Before I introduce our next speaker,
I'd like to just recognize
that former council member Tanya Wu is here.
Thank you for being here.
And former council member David Della is here.
Once a community public servant,
always a community public servant.
And we know how much you love this community.
Thank you. Let's see here.
Going down the list of superstars,
another critical partner, Quynh Pham.
Many of you know Quynh, Executive Director,
Friends of Little Saigon.
And we want to recognize
the outstanding leadership Quynh is shown.
And, Quynh, please bring us some remarks.
-Hi, everyone. Good morning. Are you still awake?
Yeah. Hi. My name is Quynh Pham.
I am the Executive Director of the Friends of Little Saigon.
We're a place-based community development organization
dedicated to preserving and enhancing the cultural,
economic, and historic vitality of Little Saigon.
Over the past year,
Friends of Little Saigon
has engaged more than 100 stakeholders in conversations
about community safety, identifying our challenges
and working together on potential solutions.
This collective effort has led to the launch of the Pho Dep,
Beautiful Neighborhood initiative.
Through it, we developed a comprehensive safety plan,
formed a community coalition,
and secured financial investments,
not just for Little Saigon but
for the Chinatown International District as a whole.
This initiative has fostered true,
meaningful collaborations and partnerships,
strengthened trust,
and helped us leverage community and local government resources.
Together, we are implementing very tailored,
immediate solutions,
while also building momentum for longer-term progress.
Our interventions really briefly are really grounded
in three strategic areas.
It's around improving neighborhood conditions
using crime prevention through environmental design principles,
bolstering our small businesses, and building community capacity
and providing human-centered services.
Shout-out to We Deliver Care.
Thank you all for your work.
In other words, improving the neighborhood block by block,
strengthening our small businesses,
and truly investing in the people
and the lives in this neighborhood.
And this work is made possible by both public
and private partnerships.
So I want to again thank the City of Seattle
for their commitment
and continue to work towards this shared community vision.
We're grateful for this ongoing partnership and support
for our neighborhood,
but we know that there's still a lot more to be done.
And, with this public partnership,
as you've heard,
we've been able to leverage our private investments.
As mentioned, Amazon is contributing another $250,000
which will specifically go to support safety,
security, and culturally specific capital improvements
in Little Saigon.
So thank you again to our city leadership, TAAF,
and Amazon for your commitment to the CID and
for helping us expand the impact of this critical work.
Thank you.
-Thank you, Quynh.
See how efficient we are here.
That's how we run the show here
in Chinatown International District.
You know, not only is this Asian-American
and Pacific Islander Heritage Month,
it's also Small Business Awareness Month.
And one of our strongest partners in the City of Seattle
and strongest leaders in this area is Laura Clise.
She, of course, is from the Intentionalist,
and she'll bring some brief remarks.
And we just love working with Laura.
Laura, take it away.
-Good morning. I'm Laura Clise.
I'm the founder and CEO of Intentionalist and
self-proclaimed small business super fan.
At Intentionalist,
we believe that where we spend our money matters
and that everyday decisions about where we eat,
drink, and shop are opportunities to connect with
and intentionally spend money in support of the small businesses
at the heart of our communities.
We're here today for the love of Seattle's
Chinatown International District,
neighborhoods
whose story is still being written every day by the people
and small businesses who call it home.
We're also here today
because we believe in what's possible through community
when we connect with,
show up for, and invest in people and places that matter.
The power of community and collective action is what
AMPLIFY Chinatown International District is all about.
AMPLIFY Chinatown International District is
a cross-sector collaboration with the City of Seattle,
the Asian-American Foundation, Visit Seattle,
and Seattle's FIFA World Cup 2026 Local Organizing Committee.
The activation supports 35 small businesses throughout Chinatown,
Japantown, and Little Saigon.
I want to shout out Vlack Media who worked with us
to capture professional photos of all of the businesses
that help tell the story behind every storefront.
Local Filipina artist Shayla Hufana created
the AMPLIFY Chinatown International District artwork
and digital marketing assets
that partners are using to promote the businesses.
And this Saturday, May 17,
alongside the CID BIA and Friends of Little Saigon,
we're excited to welcome the community to come out,
explore the neighborhoods,
and use the free AMPLIFY Chinatown International
District Small Business pass to enjoy free treats and discounts
at 35 local businesses.
And thanks to the Asian-American Foundation,
the cost of all of the discounts is covered,
which means that the deals that we enjoy
don't come at the expense of the small businesses that we love.
The next chapter of the story of Seattle's
Chinatown International District is being written by all of us
and the intentional decisions we make.
AMPLIFY Chinatown International District is our way
of saying these neighborhoods matter, these businesses matter.
And we can all play a part in helping them thrive
when we spend like it matters.
Thank you. -Thank you, Laura.
-You know, our next speaker is Yenvy,
and this is what it's all about, a small business owner.
I was just trying to get to know her a little better,
and I asked what high school she went to.
She didn't say Garfield or Franklin.
So I said, I'm not going to say that.
I said, What's your favorite hobby?
She says, eating. So I'm going to go with that.
And how -- how appropriate for what she does for a living.
I think many of you know Yenvy.
Yenvy Pham is owner of Hello em and Pho Bac,
and we are delighted to have her bring some remarks to us who --
and she loves to eat.
Means she must love to cook.
So take it over, Yenvy.
-Good morning. Y'all hear me? Wow.
What a crowd. I was so unprepared.
But it's okay. That's what we do.
Anyways, I'm Yenvy Pham.
I grew up in Seattle, born at Swedish.
My parents opened the first Pho back in 1982.
So this is my hood. This is where home is, right.
And we want to continue that home for generations to come.
The hope of this Ambassador Program
is to kind of reconnect to each other,
to have a human-to-human connection,
and to break down the barriers between those who need help
and an everyday person, right.
In my time here,
it's been -- we've seen some really traumatic things.
Just maybe two weeks ago,
someone OD'd in front of soup shop, right?
And it was like 8pm.
There was customers, and this guy was laying there.
And everyone was just walking past him.
Like, I wasn't there,
but I was watching my cameras
because the cops asked for cameras.
But, anyways,
but I was watching the camera,
and I just saw how sad it was that --
how easy it is to ignore, right?
So what is -- what is this Ambassador Program?
This Ambassador Program is to engage,
to actually care for each other
and see if everyone's doing okay because most of the time,
if someone's acting a fool, they're in pain, you know.
And most of the time they want someone to talk to.
So this is that little step,
that very obtainable thing to do is to engage and not ignore,
to give attention to someone
that may not get attention, right?
And that helps everyone because,
you know, we're not going to eradicate homelessness.
We're not going to eradicate drug use.
It's not going to happen.
You know, that's the reality of it.
But what we can do is just try to reach out
and try to deescalate.
And most of the time it's just people just want to feel loved,
right?
And this is what that Ambassador Program can do
is just have that human connection,
break down the barriers,
and just get back to just talking to each other, right?
And so I'm very excited for this.
I'm really excited for all the organizations behind this.
I don't -- everyone behind me,
do you see how they're all ladies, by the way?
All the ladies in the house.
That's right.
And two gentlemen, of course. But thank you for your time.
I'm really excited for the program, and let's do this.
Bye!
-That's real talk from the Yenvy, real talk.
And now the closer, standing at 6 foot wing, 190 pounds.
You know him as the governor.
You may know him as Commerce Secretary.
You may know him as the ambassador to China.
I present to you -- by the way,
athletes always exaggerate their size, Gary.
That's where I was going with that one.
I present to you Gary Locke. -Thanks, Mayor.
We're talking about maintaining the vibrancy of our communities.
And I can tell you that the Chinatown
International District is very dear to my heart.
As a little kid,
my mom and dad used to come to some of the Chinese groceries
and get Chinese food, herbs. I used to be in the Boy Scouts,
and we met at Chinese Baptist Church
just a few blocks up from here.
Many of us have grown around this community,
but what does it take to be a vibrant community?
You want those small businesses run by mom
and pops to be successful
because they support their families.
You want the restaurants to be attractive
and bringing people here.
We want open spaces where our seniors can play ping pong
and just walk around and enjoy.
But everybody needs to feel safe.
And it's -- government cannot do it by itself.
It's not just the police department
but it's human service organizations
that take care of the needs of the people,
whether it's mental illness or housing and healthcare and food.
It's the involvement of business associations
that advocate for the businesses that are here,
again, really run by mom and pop enterprises and families,
not big corporations and faceless people but people
of our community. And, of course,
we really need to make sure that everybody is pulling together.
Nonprofits can't do it by itself.
Government can't do it by itself.
The police can't do it by themselves.
And so we have programs like the Ambassadorship Program,
sponsored by nonprofits, sponsored by corporations,
and pulling all the elements of this community
together to make sure that it remains vibrant.
The Chinatown International District has seen
some hard times over the last several years,
especially during the COVID era.
It's hard to come back from that isolation and closure
when shops are boarded up
and people feel kind of out of place.
But that's what this program is all about.
And so I'm really excited with the leadership of the mayor;
nonprofit organizations, including TAAF,
and the Ambassadors Program
and the participation and contributions of corporations.
We're showing,
we're saying
that we want the Chinatown International District
to remain vibrant and to be better than ever before.
Thank you very much.
-Thank you very much, Gary.
So our Ambassadors will work seven days a week.
Let me make that very clear.
From 2pm to 10pm,
our We Deliver Care investment and that fine organization
will work seven days a week, from 7:30 to 3.
So we're trying to demonstrate to the community
that we love that we're here for you.
And, with that, if there are any questions,
we'd love to entertain a few questions.
And I will say I want to thank the speakers for,
to coin the phrase used by Yenvy, real talk.
And, if there's any questions
that you would like to respond to you,
you have the license to do that.
So are there any questions that I could address?
Yes, sir Mr. Lynch. Yes. Yenvy. Encore, encore, encore.
-What does all of this mean for your family businesses,
and how excited are you?
-And what to -- what's going forward.
Correct.
What it means is that we're able to have a safe environment
for our staff,
for our customers, and to kind of -- and just really create --
like, for me, my personal goal is just to, like,
enjoy my neighborhood, right; to, like, work in it,
to hang out in it, you know,
have a few drinks, walk the streets
and not have to worry about my public safety, right?
That's about -- that's about, like,
just bringing people together
and having this amazing energy in this neighborhood
where we can enjoy one is just a place
where we can really come together and gather.
I think Seattle's missing gathering places, you know.
And the CID is such --
so much potential to bring back what it used to be of gathering
and bringing people together again.
Yenvy is Y-E-N V as in Victor Y; P-H-A-M as in mother.
Thank you.
-Thank you, Yenvy. -Yes, sir.
-Downtown Ambassador Program has an ongoing revenue
[inaudible]
What are the prospects for the long-term sustainability?
-Yes.
So the question is, for those that didn't hear it,
what is the long-term sustainability plan,
which is -- on this project, which is --
could be differentiated from some other Ambassador Programs.
So we're working through that.
We think that, once again,
we're going to demonstrate that this is a good investment.
And, again, I want to thank Amazon and TAAF.
We're going to demonstrate there are other corporations out here
that would look at -- they see this as the economic vitality.
So my executive team are looking at sustainability streams,
and we think we're going to make a good case with this,
this -- I don't want to call it a pilot.
But we'll look at that.
And the City, of course, will step up, as we have in the past.
We have approximately $500,000 in this investment,
and this is a treasured investment.
So we'll make our decisions accordingly.
But we feel like this is going to be a sustainable program.
Yes. -We see a lot [inaudible]
-Yeah. The question is, what makes this different?
Why does this sort of stand out?
And I guess I'll answer it this way.
We've seen the MID Ambassadors.
We've seen the Ballard Alliance Ambassadors,
and we've seen members of our downtown activation team.
So it's not necessarily different in that sense.
This strategy works.
So we're not trying to create something
that is not working in other parts of the city.
The fine gentlemen standing in back of me
are experienced doing this job.
And we're actually looking for, I've been told,
more ambassadors.
And so any of those that are interested
in helping keep a community safe, come and join.
So we are employing what we can see --
perceive as the best practice that works in communities,
people that actually love
and want to protect their own community walking around here
and being vibrant.
So we're just sort of continuing an air --
continuing with a strategy that works.
-Can you specifically address Hoa Mai Park for me.
We've talked to people just recently, just a week ago,
who refer to that as dope slope.
And what is this plan going to do to rectify that situation?
What's the plan?
-So I'm not -- I couldn't even hear half the question.
Yeah, please.
What -- specifically another part of Chinatown
are you referring to?
Yeah. And I haven't heard the terms you're using.
That's why.
-Oh. Hoa Mai Park. -Okay. Go ahead.
-Are you familiar with that? That's that new park.
-No. I'm familiar with that one.
Yes. -Okay. It's across from --
-I just couldn't hear you.
-Yeah.
What I'm asking is, what does this plan do about that?
Just last week,
you were talking to business owners of people who live here
who refer to that as dope slope.
It's a public safety concern and just keeps getting worse.
So how does this fix that? -Good question.
So, when we participated in the opening of that park,
we had so much excitement because this is an investment
that the City are making.
And, again, I'm -- actually alluded to this
in my earlier remarks.
There are people that are sick out there.
I think Yenvy sort of alluded to that, as well.
And we don't have the county standing with us right now.
And what we think this strategy does is, number one,
it gives more activation,
more people that can help get people services.
A lot of these folks don't have any social ties.
We also have to get good information
to our police department.
So what this does is basically gives us the ability
to form relationships to let our police department know
where there are serious criminal activity
that we have to investigate and possibly arrest,
but it gives us more eyes on the ground.
And I've made it very clear
that my public safety strategy and enforcement
ability should not be confused with the public health approach,
that I do lead with empathy.
When people are sick, I want them treated.
And so I made comments earlier about improvements
with our health department
and what we have to do when we look at what we're seeing.
So some people are bad actors,
and we will take the appropriate action there.
But many of these people need help.
So these ambassadors are just that.
They are ambassadors. This is like a home for them.
And so they'll make sure that we get the right information
to take the right action.
Okay. Yes, sir. -If someone point
[inaudible]
where are you going to be for that?
The crowd here, I live here a long time.
I cannot find police [inaudible]
I don't even know where the police station is,
and I can only talk to the security guard
at the library station.
And they couldn't answer my question.
And what should I do. -Okay.
I'm going to talk to you
because you're not with the press, correct?
Okay.
Can you just stick around after this,
and we'll make sure we give you that information.
Thank you for being here, by the way.
So we'll talk to you off camera, answer your questions.
Okay. David, you have another question.
-What sort of reassurances can you give to this community?
I remember when we talked to you in the past
over the hot spots in 12th and Jackson in Little Saigon.
And we're going to fix that, and that's an issue.
Here we are years later, and it's still an issue.
So what can you -- what sort of reassurances
can you give this community this is going to make a difference?
-So I'll look at the data.
And, once again, we are here for a reason.
That is to show a continuum of investments
in the Chinatown International District.
The fact of the matter is,
is that crime rates are down across the board 18%.
The fact is that homicides are down in our city 27.5%.
The fact of the matter is,
is that violent crimes are down 12.5%.
The fact of the matter is, is that shots fired are down 22%.
We lead with data.
And what we're showing is, once again,
when we're in Chinatown International District,
that this is an investment that we will continue to make.
These partnerships we formed with TAAF,
these partnerships we formed with Amazon
are a result of them being willing to partner with us
and the city being willing to look for partnerships.
This just doesn't happen organically.
I love Laura Clise's organizations name,
The Intentionalist.
We are very intentional about protecting this community.
That's the assurance I'll give you.
Many of you know my roots here in this community.
Many of you know that my personal family
of my aunts and uncles have owned property here.
I'm not a stranger.
I was only born a couple of miles from here.
So, under my administration,
we will continue to invest in this community
because of what it means to this entire city.
Dare, Gary Locke,
did I say what this community means to the entire state.
And, with that, I'm not going to take any more questions.
And I want to welcome councilor -- Port Commissioner.
Where you looking, Sam Cho.
Port Commissioner Sam Cho here.
I'll take some more questions.
David, did you have a question?
That was my mic drop, by the way.
Go ahead. [inaudible] Because I --
the fact that I just can't hear.
[ Inaudible Comments ]
Yeah. It's still being -- yeah. It's still at the --
I believe it hasn't been finally passed yet.
I think it's still in deliberation.
Yeah. Okay. Yeah. It's not in effect yet.
But, again, this is one of the areas among many
that we're looking at on how we could be smart
and how we can enforce some of the laws on the books.
-How are you going to measure this, Mayor?
I mean, it's one thing to come here and say,
We're going to do this.
And I get that it's a community, government,
private partnership, public partnership.
But how are you going to measure whether it's successful?
How are we going to know? I know you're there with that.
-Quarterly surveys with the businesses,
the residents, as well as visitors to the neighborhood.
So a text message. You know, fill it out.
-Do you know any specifics about Hoa Mai Park
and getting that area restored?
-I don't know any specifics about it,
but I definitely see it.
Yeah. Tuyen, T-U-Y-E-N; last name Than, T-H-A-N.
Thanks. -Okay.
It looks like I'm going to -- yeah.
Can I talk to you after? I'm going to respect the elder.
Go ahead.
[ Inaudible Comments ]
Yes.
Let me say what Mr. Chucking said.
We're going to -- come on, come on.
Mr. Chucking said that he's been here a long time,
and I'm the best mayor he's ever seen in his entire life.
And he said that he's -- hopes that this works.
And he's got a Husky shirt on -- coat on,
too, so he's just really on all -- he's on fire, Mr. Chucking.
Thank you for your comments.
And we're going to have another address to a previous question.
-I don't -- okay.
I just wanted to address the Hoa Mai Park question
because I know that that has been one
of the identified focus areas or hot spots.
Many of you who passed by Hoa Mai,
it's right across from Lam Seafood
on King between 12th and Rainier Avenue, our newest park.
It's been open less than a year.
But we're still seeing just the highest number
of challenges there.
Let's just put it that way.
I think there has been a lot of focus
on addressing things like that, addressing the challenges there.
We see, like, We Deliver Care make their presence.
The City has done a lot with their --
the DAT, right, DAT team to do both outreach and clean up
and all of those things.
And so I think there is an effort,
but I believe there could be more done
to prioritize the resources
to at least address the problems in different phases.
It can't be a kind of piecemeal approach from services
to activation to other physical and art investments.
They need to line up to see the actual impacts
and improvements at the park.
We're also going to make it prettier
and more activations there.
-Again, thank you for being here.
Follow up on the question May 19 is
when the nightlife ordinance will kick in and is applied.
So I want to give you that information, David.
Thank you for being here. This means a lot to us.
But when you show up like this, community, and even the media,
when you show up like this, it means you care as well.
So thank everyone for being here,
and let's make it a great day.
Thank you very much.