Let’s give Seattle’s new Mayor Durkan a fighting chance

As I mentioned yesterday, I went to Europe for the Thanksgiving holiday. By the end of the week, I was ready to come home. In large part because the Pacific Northwest is an awesome place to live. Every time I look out of a window in a plane arriving at SeaTac, I think “This is an amazing city.”

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But we all find ourselves at an interesting crossroads in our region’s history. Seems like the secret is out, and Seattle is the No. 1 hot spot in America for the foreseeable future. We all know the laundry list of issues we face, so I won’t repeat them here.

I’m genuinely rooting for the new Mayor of Seattle Jenny Durkan. She made the rounds this week as she moves into the corner office. She voluntarily signed up for a very tough job. In a lot of ways, it’s a no-win proposition. It’s impossible to pacify everyone in this town. No matter what she does, a good chunk of the citizens will be quick to criticize.

There is no shortage of special interests here, and it’s easy to choose sides before anything has happened. I’d like to suggest that we acknowledge that Mayor Durkan inherited a dumpster fire. So far, she’s an immediate improvement over the last guy. I’m hoping her administration will be free of any and all allegations of impropriety. May she never have to give an awkward press conference about a trip to the gastroenterologist if you know what I mean. So she has that going for her, which is nice.

I for one, am going to try my best to give her a fighting chance. My only suggestion from the outside looking in is to stop the bleeding. The average person is fed up with drugs and people living wherever they want. If we’re going to pay through the nose to live here, at least we should be able to walk our dog in the park without stepping on a needle.

I know it’s a complicated suite of issues, but affordable housing is going to take years to fix. Income inequality is another long term proposition. You can go out tonight and help the people living under the bridge.

So here’s to you Jenny Durkan. You wanted to be mayor of Seattle, and now you are. If you can deliver on even half of your campaign promises, that will be a success in my book.

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