Ursula: I fear Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson is ‘on track to be the worst mayor in city history’

The hits just keep coming for Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson.

The way things are going, I fear she’s on track to be the worst mayor in city history.

First came the national headlines over a series of self-inflicted political and public-relations gaffes. Now, the key person behind her biggest homelessness promise is out the door. Jon Grant, Wilson’s chief advisor on homelessness and housing, resigned Wednesday morning, PubliCola first reported. Grant’s departure — his last day is June 1 — came after he was asked to step down.

Grant was tasked with leading Wilson’s plan to add 4,000 shelter beds, including 1,000 by the end of the year. And this comes just weeks after the mayor replaced her chief of staff due to growing friction with the Seattle City Council.

That’s bad enough. But when you combine these high-profile staff exits, strained council relationships, bad public safety decisions ahead of the World Cup, shootouts on Aurora Avenue, our ongoing drug and homelessness crisis, and national headlines over avoidable controversies — Seattle, we have a problem!

And yes, it’s still early. I desperately want Katie Wilson to succeed because I love this city. I own a home here and have raised my family in Seattle. But the way this is going, I truly fear we may one day look back on this administration as one of the worst in modern city history. In Seattle, that is saying something.

Seattle is a major American city facing major American-city problems. Experience matters.

And right now, Katie Wilson looks less like a mayor in command and more like someone discovering in real time that running a city is a lot harder than campaigning and criticizing the people who came before her.

Listen to Gee and Ursula on “The Gee and Ursula Show” weekday mornings from 9 am to 12 pm on KIRO Newsradio.

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