-Hi.
I'm Jon Lisbin, and I'm running for city council
because I'm passionate about Seattle.
I moved here over 25 years ago,
when Seattle was rated the most livable city in the country.
Ask yourself if you can say that now.
I have a vision of Seattle once again
leading the country in livability.
This is an historic time in Seattle,
particularly because growth management
has been an unmitigated failure.
Traffic is a mess,
housing is unaffordable, bridges are crumbling,
residents fear for their safety,
and our neighbors are literally sleeping in the streets.
The recent update to Seattle's tree ordinance
is an example of the failure --
failure of our city's leadership.
Multiple amendments recommended by the Urban Forestry Commission
were summarily rejected.
Combined with the state's Middle Housing Act,
which requires multi-family zoning throughout Seattle,
who stands for trees?
Are we the Emerald City or beholden to special interests?
Subsidized multi-family housing close to transit
is part of the balance that Seattle needs.
We can have trees and we can have affordable housing, too.
Before I built a small business from scratch
into one of the fastest-growing companies in Washington,
I was a starving radio announcer
barely able to pay rent
while working three or four part-time jobs at a time
just to get by.
I know what it is to live paycheck to paycheck.
We must require developers to build affordable housing
on site, not pay a fee to build it somewhere else,
on cheaper land, four years later.
As president of Seattle Fair Growth,
I've been advocating for housing for people of all incomes.
And as your future city councilmember,
I will not be taking contributions
from the Master Builders of King County.
I'll be working for one constituency -- you.
Together, we can make Seattle livable again.