John Hines - District 1 - April 6, 2023

Good Morning,

I hope you are enjoying the return of cherry blossoms and daffodils with the arrival of spring. The Hines family is busy with more outdoor activities and community events, and we are very excited to have a few more warm sunny days to enjoy. Hopefully you are finding time to enjoy one of the most beautiful times in the City of Destiny too!

This past month, I was excited about the in-person return of the State of the City. It was great to join the rest of the City Council as Mayor Victoria Woodards shared all that we have accomplished and have coming in the year ahead for our city. I will be sharing some of the highlights in this newsletter, but many of the issues we have been talking about – from public safety and crime through housing and homelessness to roads and sidewalks – were addressed. You can watch the video of her address here.

Catching Up with Council Member Hines

Pierce County Opioid Summit

I was happy to be part of the Pierce County Opioid Summit on March 23, 2023. I have served as one of the executive co-sponsors of the Pierce County Opioid Task Force since 2021, and it was great to join such a large community gathering dedicated to addressing substance use disorder in our community. Like many of you, I have been deeply troubled by the increasing number of overdose-related deaths in our city over the past few years, and I know we need to continue to find ways to help those struggling and save lives.

Our session was about how we can continue to address gaps in services for those struggling with substance use disorder in Pierce County. In my opening remarks (which can be viewed here) I am clear that we need to commit to getting our residents the right services, in the right place and the right time. Since I have joined the City Council, we have continued to work to connect our residents to services – from setting up our therapeutic court to providing funding to service providers. In spite of the heroic efforts of many community partners, much more is needed.

My hope is that the recent $518 million opioid settlement with the State of Washington will begin providing funding to Tacoma and Pierce County for the next 17 years to further address, in our community, what has become a national opioid epidemic. This will mean we have more money available for drug treatment, prevention education, and support systems like drug court. As I said in my remarks, though there is much work to be done, I hope we can be the last generation to address the opioid epidemic.

Camping Ordinance Update

This past month, the City Council received an update at our March 14^th Study Session on the implementation of Substitute Ordinance 28831, the 10-block buffer legislation I sponsored. The ordinance has been in place for a little over three months and, so far, it seems to be working.

• More people in the buffer areas are accepting offers of shelter and services than before the ordinance was passed.
• More people in the buffer areas are accepting offers of shelter and services than in the non-buffer areas.
• The concern that this would lead to people being arrested for being homeless has not come to pass and we have had 100 percent voluntary compliance in the buffer areas.

My initial motivation for this ordinance was to address encampments, which are unsafe and inhumane, and encourage more residents to enter our shelters. While it is still very early, I feel good about the results so far. We are seeing more of our neighborhoods free of encampments and more residents accepting offers of service.

As I said before, this ordinance was not designed to end homelessness, but to address the impacts of encampments. Ending homelessness is going to require additional shelter options (like the new safe parking site we are opening shortly), more housing and services for mental health and substance use disorder, all of which we are addressing. These are all things I continue to remain committed to and work towards while I am on the City Council.

Crime and Public Safety

One topic that I hear about often is the continued impact of crime on our sense of safety. We have recently received quite a few updates on how we are addressing these issues. At our February 28^th Study Session, we got an update on the new efforts to address property crime and organized retail theft. Many of our businesses have been struggling with ongoing theft and many of our residents have been harmed by property crime. This new effort, that includes the use of overtime to investigate property crimes with actionable leads, will hopefully address some of our more prolific offenders.

During the State of the City, the Mayor also mentioned some of the other ways we will be addressing public safety. We are adding $10,000 retention bonuses for police officers, to go along with our recruitment incentives, so we can both keep the officers we have while attracting new officers to our city in what continues to be a challenging recruiting environment. With the hiring of 53 officers in 2022, we have enhanced our ability to address crime in Tacoma. Now, we're down to 29 officer vacancies, and continuing to add more officers each month.

With the establishment of a Community Services Officer Program, we will have new, non-commissioned officers in the Tacoma Police Department that can respond to non-violent criminal activity. This will allow our patrol officers to focus on violent crime and other calls of a similar emergent nature.

We have also implemented a Community Trauma Response Team to provide a community-level response in times of crisis. This team will:

• Respond to crisis after a traumatic incident to assist the community in healing, and to provide a safe place for the community to express their opinions and concerns.
• Support and give referrals designed to offer immediate, compassionate and practical resources for community members impacted by trauma and serious loss.
• Focus on the community’s emotional needs while the Tacoma Police Department and Tacoma Fire Department focus on the incident response.

Scenes From the City of Destiny

McKinley Hill and Proctor Neighborhood Plans

At our March 21 Council Meeting, I was happy to co-sponsor, along with District 4 Council Member Catherine Ushka, the adoption of the McKinley Hill Neighborhood Plan. I would encourage anyone interested in what to expect from the Proctor Neighborhood Plan to check it out.

In 2022, Council Member Ushka, former At-Large Council Member Conor McCarthy and I sponsored the creation of the Neighborhood Planning Program. At the time, McKinley Hill and Proctor were chosen as the pilot neighborhoods, and I am very excited by what was achieved in McKinley and what is in store for Proctor and other neighborhoods in Tacoma.

Speaking of Proctor, the Proctor Neighborhood Plan is currently underway and I was excited to see some of the first visible changes. The Proctor Business District Depave and Tree Replacement and Planting Project has begun to remove pavement and unhealthy trees in the district. Healthier trees and less paved landscaping strips in the business district will help refresh the business district’s look and feel for neighbors and customers.

Along with depaving, there are multiple other efforts underway to plan events, connect with neighbors and help support the development of the Neighborhood Plan. You can learn more here and I hope you will share your thoughts on the future of Proctor! 

National League of Cities

I was also happy to join many of my colleagues in Washington D.C. to attend the Congressional City Summit. I serve on the National League of Cities Finance Administration and Intergovernmental Relations (FAIR) Committee. This committee has allowed me to expand my influence and have a chance to lead on important issues like grant funding and tax credits for affordable housing in Tacoma.

Beyond the City Summit is a valuable opportunity for the City Council to meet with our Washington congressional delegation. We also met with senior leadership from the U.S. Department of Justice Office of Community Oriented Policing Services to discuss funding opportunities for our Community Services Officers and hiring additional police officers, and with the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness to discuss further funding to address homelessness in our city.