City of Tacoma Washington sent this bulletin at 10/30/2023 10:17 AM PDT
Dear neighbors,
I hope you are enjoying this beautiful fall as much as I am! It has been a busy month in our city, and I hope you were able to check out some great events like Tacoma Arts Month, Green Day Tacoma, and—for Loggers like me—the Puget Sound football win at Homecoming! I was able to get out and see some great things happening in Tacoma recently that I am excited to share, and the month ahead is another one full of wonderful events!
I wouldn’t be a good former high school civics teacher without reminding you to vote by November 8. There are many important items on the ballot this year, so make sure you weigh in! For more information about voting and the voting process, including ballot drop-off information, click here.
Scenes from the City of Destiny
Addressing Encampments
It has been one year since the City Council passed Second Amended Substitute Ordinance 28831, which prohibits camping within in a 10-block radius around temporary shelters in Tacoma, as well as all public property within 200 feet of Tacoma’s mapped rivers, waterways, creeks, streams, and shorelines.
Looking back at the past year, I believe that Ordinance 28831 has addressed the health and safety impacts of encampments, especially around our emergency shelters. As of the last report from the City’s Neighborhood and Community Services Department (which you can view here), the data shows that people are more likely to accept offers of services in the prohibited areas. In addition, the City has reached more than 1300 people who are interested in services and placed more than 200 people into shelter.
Homelessness continues to be the most common issue I hear about from residents of our city. We still have people in our community living outside and we will continue to help them move into shelter and housing. The City Council has continued to invest in shelter and housing and continues to partner with Pierce County to take a more regional approach to homelessness.
We are a long way from where we want to be in addressing homelessness in Tacoma. This ordinance was just one step on a long journey together as a community. I appreciate all we have done and, by working with one another, I am confident we will continue to see additional progress.
Pictures of Hope
At our October 10 City Council meeting, the City Council voted to sponsor the Pictures of Hope program in Tacoma. Pictures of Hope is an award-winning non-profit created in 2005 by photojournalist and author Linda Solomon. The program pairs children experiencing homelessness with volunteer mentors who help the children express their hopes and dreams through the lens of a camera, with the intent of showing each child that their hopes and dreams matter. More than 50 cities have participated in the program, which has received local and national acclaim.
As I said during the City Council meeting, we have too many children experiencing homelessness in our city. These young people have beautiful hopes and dreams for the future, and we want them to know that we believe in and support them. One of the things I love about Tacoma is that our community knows that when we all work together and support each other, great things can happen. My dream is that Pictures of Hope is just the beginning and that we will continue to find ways to keep all of our children hopeful and dreaming in Tacoma.
Charter Review Committee
The City Charter – Tacoma's governing document – is up for review in 2024. This is a process that the City embarks on every ten years, and it is the chance to review how our city operates and propose changes to the City Council for consideration. To do this work, the City Council is looking for 15 residents willing to volunteer and serve on the Charter Review Committee.
The Charter Review Committee will be made up of 15 members. The Mayor and members of the City Council will each recommend one individual for appointment. For the remaining six positions, the Government Performance and Finance Committee will conduct interviews and recommend a diverse group of 10 individuals for City Council appointment. Interviews are tentatively scheduled for Tuesday, December 5, 2023, from 8:30 to 11:30 AM.
Those serving on the Charter Review Committee should anticipate the work to be time-intensive, as it involves a thorough review of the existing Charter, with possible after-hours meetings and extensive community engagement. The Charter Review Committee is expected to meet between January and April 2024 in a hybrid format with virtual and in-person options to attend. The Charter Review Committee is expected to submit its final report and recommendations to the City Council by Tuesday, May 7, 2024.
The application is available atcityoftacoma.org/CharterReview. To receive the application in another language or format, ask questions about the process, or request an accommodation, contact the City Clerk’s Office at cityclerk@cityoftacoma.orgor (253) 591-5505. Applications must be received in the City Clerk’s Office by noon on Monday, November 6, 2023.
When it opened on October 1, 2013, the Tacoma FIRST 311 Customer Support Center was designed to provide a “one-stop shop” for City services, and offer a concierge feel in the way of reception, face-to-face interaction, 311 telephone support, online resources, and mobile app connectivity. In the years since, it has further improved its service delivery with language translation, better technology for location mapping, and cross-platform communication.
As many of you know, the Hines Family is a regular user of the Tacoma FIRST 311 app. Whether it is potholes, illegal dumping, or animal noise, Tacoma FIRST 311 is where we go to make requests. It is the best way to track your request, including seeing when it is resolved and whether it was already reported by one of your neighbors.
If you have not had a chance to check it out, I would encourage you to do so and make a request today!
Catching Up with Council Member Hines
Walk and Roll to School with Sherman Elementary
This past month, I joined the families at Sherman Elementary School for Walk and Roll to School Day. As always it was a great turnout, and we even had a visit from a Tacoma Fire Department fire engine! I enjoy these great community gatherings and appreciate the chance to talk with families while we safely move around our city.
As I have mentioned in the past, I think it is important that we have safe routes to school for all children. As part of the City’s 2030 Climate Action Plan and in conjunction with the Safe Routes to Schools program, we will need to continue to find ways to provide students and families with safe ways to get to school and encourage walking, biking, or rolling instead of driving.
If you are a family member of an elementary student in Tacoma (like me!), I would encourage you to check out the Safe Routes to Schools page and the suggested walking routes map for elementary students. Both are great resources for helping make sure our kids get to school safely.
Tacoma Arts Month
Tacoma Arts Month is always one of my favorite annual events in our city and this past month was another great one. I was happy to join Council Member Kiara Daniels and Council Member Olgy Diaz at the Kaleidoscope Opening Party to help hand out the AMOCAT Arts Awards. These awards go to people who positively impact the community with their passion, innovation, and commitment to the arts it was a pleasure to share the stage with them!
Hopefully you were able to enjoy one of the arts events this past month and found places to experience art in our city. If not, we still have Arts at the Amory this November that you can check out!
While many of us already know this, this study confirms yet again that City of Destiny is an arts and culture town!
Lucky Day at the Tacoma Public Library
This past month, I stopped by the Tacoma Public Library, and I was excited to find a book I had been waiting for sitting on the Lucky Day shelf. Lucky Day is a collection of highly popular books that are available for immediate check-out. If you find a book on the Lucky Day shelf, you can immediately check it out, even when there are multiple holds on other copies of a Lucky Day title.
Lucky Day books will be available at Fern Hill, Moore, Mottet, Swasey, Wheelock, Kobetich and South Tacoma, and Main will add Lucky Day when it reopens in 2024. Stop by a local library and see if it is your Lucky Day today!
Also, do not forget about the upcoming Tacoma Reads event in early November where Mayor Victoria Woodards will host a conversation with child welfare advocate and author David Ambroz. They will be discussing his book, A Place Called Home: A Memoir.
When: Saturday, November 4, 3:00 – 5:30 PM
Where: University of Washington Tacoma Library
Make sure to register here to save your seat at this event before its gone!
Check out our progress with Tidy-Up Tacoma! 317,060 lbs. of Litter, Illegal Dumping, and Garbage Removed from Public Areas in September 2023!
Please be sure to check out cityoftacoma.org for City updates and resources and, as always, please feel free to share your thoughts and concerns with me directly at john.hines@cityoftacoma.org. You can also call me at (253) 312-5620 if you have questions.
I invite you to tune in to the City Council’s Study Session or Council meetings every week on Tuesdays via TV Tacoma, Facebook Live, or Zoom. Access information is available at cityoftacoma.org/councilmeetings.
Also, if you enjoy getting this newsletter and regular updates from me, please feel free to share it with others who you think might find it valuable and encourage them to subscribe.
