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Amy Sundberg

@amysundberg.bsky.social
6.7K followers 728 following 3.9K posts

SF/F and YA writer, reporter at @theurbanist.org, publisher of Notes from the Emerald City. She/her. Send tips on Signal (amysundberg.92) linktr.ee/amysundberg

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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Wow, this interview Sayles had with the investigator is pretty damning. Huge thanks as always to @ericacbarnett for her invaluable reporting.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
We've known for months that each CCTV "camera" installed by SPD is actually 5 different cameras, and that SPD has been signing up private cameras for their network. It's useful to know exactly how many of those there are, and the OIG report finds some real (although not surprising imo) issues.
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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Eastside friends! The PACs are ramping up their spending on ads in the 48th LD race between Amy Walen and Jessica Forsythe. If you see any of these ads, can you send me a screenshot? I'm really interested to see what the messaging is looking like in this race.
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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
A new security report from King County Metro shows that reported security incidents on buses are now less common than they were PRE-PANDEMIC, even after adjusting for somewhat lower bus ridership. In 2019, Metro saw 64 incidents per million boardings. In 2026 that number has dropped below 60.
Chart showing Coordinator Service Records per million boardings starting at 64 on all routes in 2019The same chart in 2024 to 2026 showing the line dropping to less than 60
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
I enjoy reiterating that these glasses are creepy and I don't want them around me. I also don't want the new Apple watches that constantly listen around me either, although I understand there might be a way to shut that off. Even so. A big no from me.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Just had a conversation and realized people are really confused about surveillance cameras and aren't really differentiating between ALPR, CCTV, and speed cameras. And this is fair, especially because you can run ALPR software on CCTV feeds.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
As promised, here's my latest piece on Seattle's budget season. I discuss councilmember reactions to the budget as well as details of the SPD budget and the trade-off of affordable housing dollars Wilson made in her proposal.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
I have a lot I could say about this, but I'll choose one: the gendered spaces shown in this article are appalling to me. You know, those parties/events/etc where all the women are clustered together and all the men are clustered together. And there's this silent no crossing gender lines rule.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Oh wow! Thank you so much to everyone who became a member (and also those who were already members!) It's really heartening to see support of local journalism in action.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
My budget article is running long...too long. There's just so much news!
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
A call for volunteers.
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Erica C. Barnett @ericacbarnett.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
In San Francisco, Lurie's RV ban—on which Dan Strauss' similar proposed ban in Seattle appears to be modeled—hasn't gotten people into shelter, but it has pushed them outside city limits, often after losing their RVs and becoming unsheltered. Is this what "success" will look like here?
missionlocal.org
S.F. cracked down on RV dwellers. A year later, many have left the city altogether.
Data shows that a year after San Francisco's RV ban, 1/3 of RV dwellers using city aid have moved outside city limits.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
WA State should do the same. And frankly we shouldn't wait until next year. Not having a full-time legislature means we can't act as decisively as we need to in this moment.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
A big failure. The argument about streaming the traffic cameras into the real-time crime center was that all the feeds were publicly available anyway, a fact that we now know to be untrue. That this happened at all erodes public trust in city government, and in surveillance cameras specifically.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
ONE WEEK FROM TODAY 10/6: the first Seattle city council budget public hearing will be in both the afternoon and evening. This is your chance to give public comment on the budget and what you would like to see (or wouldn't like to see). There's a 2nd public hearing on the budget in November.
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The Urbanist @theurbanist.org · 29/09/2026
NEW STORY// Pending Fiscal Cliff at SDOT Prompts Major Budget Shifts By Ryan Packer via @theurbanist.org
theurbanist.org
Pending Fiscal Cliff at SDOT Prompts Major Budget Shifts
Without major action, the Seattle Department of Transportation would have been looking at a $113 million deficit in its transportation fund by 2028, department leaders said Monday. Cuts that are already underway will impact road and bridge maintenance but not Vision Zero work.
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Ryan Packer @typewriteralley.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
The transition from the city council trying to stymie the SSHD (by supporting an alternative ballot measure than the one that prevailed in 2025) to trying to utilize the funding that the social developer has been able to secure is a very predictable one IMO.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Wow. Budget director Ali Pennucci says there were around $78 million in one-time budget adds in the 2026 budget. $10-15 million of these one-time adds were made ongoing in the 2027 budget proposal.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Please note the $15-20 price tag for sending a single letter from immigration detention as folks are trying to manage their cases. The limitations of calls and messages are also very concerning as people try to stay in touch with their loved ones and also deal with legal and financial matters.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Ready to read about last week's End Times Fascism book talk with @naomiaklein.bsky.social and @astra.bsky.social, moderated by Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson? I'm fascinated by the idea that cities are inherently anti-fascist.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
This budget season is only going to get messier.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Wondering how the Seattle city council's budget meetings are going? Let me put it this way. I spent the afternoon writing about end times fascism, and it felt like a nice break. (Don't worry, I'll be back to budget stuff tomorrow.)
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
"HR1 is expected to dismantle healthcare coverage to pre-Affordable Care Act (ACA) levels." Starting in Jan, the new work requirements and more frequent eligibility checks for Apple Health users will impact 215,000 King County residents, some (but not all) of whom are expected to lose eligibility.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I know some activists worry that if the City gets additional progressive revenue, the bulk would go straight to SPD. Given the council is currently splitting hairs about $5m in food access right after SNAP cuts in the name of "public safety," their concerns seem at least somewhat justified.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
"Snohomish, Pierce, and Yakima counties all saw significant increases in ICE seizure, with 256 kidnappings in the week ending September 26. That's nearly double the rate from earlier in the summer, and a 133% rise from the previous week. And this is only reported sightings." Deeply concerning.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
This really does make a difference. Sometimes when I get an email like this I leave it in my inbox for a couple of weeks because just looking at the subject line gives me a little boost.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
The RV ban will have a full council vote sometime in October. As I reported in August, there is justified concern around the impacts this policy move will have on the local homeless population, with one possible outcome being more unhoused folks ending up on the street.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
As a special treat I'm attending the Seattle Symphony's performance this afternoon. They're playing Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique, which is one of my favorites. Program music for the win!
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
I needed to go to the art supply store today, so of course I stopped by Dough Joy...and they gave me a free donut! I buy boxes of donuts to feed my friends for my birthday every year, and apparently that has led to this free donut in my future. ☺️
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
After the city council meeting I sat through yesterday, reading a Stranger newsletter headline that "the Seattle City Council Didn't Suck This Week" is giving me cognitive dissonance.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Privacy as a "luxury good."
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
Ah, surprise power outage right around dinnertime. No estimate for when it will be fixed. Lovely.
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David Kroman @kromandavid.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Debora Juarez, 2020: "When I hear people say there's just a few bad apples on the police force I adamantly disagree with that. It's just not a healthy tree. We need to plant a new tree, we have to completely re-imagine, re-vision what community policing is." www.kuow.org/podcast/news...
kuow.org
Bad apples? Seattle Police 'not a healthy tree' says city council member
Chants of "defund S-P-D" have become a common message at protests in Seattle, and for the first time the idea is getting serious attention from the city council.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
One thing that is striking me as I watch these council budget discussions is it doesn't seem like the reality of the $175M deficit is real for some of these CMs. You either need to generate new revenue or you have to cut. That's it. Those are the options. Many CMs wouldn't have liked new revenue.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
For my first time on @citycastseattle.bsky.social, I talked with @janehu.bsky.social and @meganululani.bsky.social about Mayor Wilson's proposed budget that was released on Tuesday. We also talked about the evolution of neon signs in Seattle. seattle.citycast.fm/podcasts/may...
seattle.citycast.fm
Mayor Wilson’s Budget Explained, Seattle’s Neon Sign Past and Present, and Boeing’s Grunge Influence - City Cast Seattle
Today on the podcast, Jane is joined by two first-timers to City Cast Seattle, Amy Sundberg, reporter at The Urbanist, and Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton,...
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Predictably CM Kettle is upset that the SPD budget isn't bigger and doesn't fund more police officers, especially in 2028 (2028's budget will be adjusted during next year's budget season). I'll report here if CM Kettle gives any suggestions as to how to pay for more officers.
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Prisonculture @prisonculture.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
"In 2020, there were only six programs in the U.S. that sent unarmed responders, such as mental health clinicians, to certain 911 calls instead of police officers. Now, these programs — sometimes called alternative or community response — are in nearly 100 cities." www.npr.org/2026/09/22/n...
npr.org
How unarmed 911 teams are reshaping public safety in nearly 100 cities
Alternative response programs, where mental health clinicians respond to 911 calls instead of police, have proliferated since George Floyd's murder. What does it take to do this work well?
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Taniel @taniel.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Sheriffs & DAs have huge powers over criminal justice, e.g.: often deciding how much local assistance ICE gets. So I worked all year on whittling down the thousands (!) of these races happening in 2026 to find the ones that matter most. NEW TODAY: Learn about the 25 most pivotal November races.
boltsmag.org
The 25 Sheriff and Prosecutor Races Set to Shape Criminal Justice and ICE Collaboration - Bolts
Voters face stark choices for offices with vast powers on policing and punishment. Bolts walks you through key contests to watch across a dozen states.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
So many people are wearing masks here! I ❤️ you, leftist Seattle! Keep staying healthy.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Tonight I will be attending a Seattle Town Hall with Mayor Katie Wilson as one of the speakers, along with Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor, who are touring to support their new book End Times Fascism. Expecting an interesting evening!
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
One thing I'm looking forward to doing next year is interviewing a whole bunch of Seattle City Council candidates, asking them specific policy questions, and writing substantive articles explaining their positions. 7 positions up for grabs in November 2027!
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
I like this paragraph: "To put that number into perspective, Wilson’s completely voluntary $12.6 million bump to SPD is 20% greater than the entire budget for the Office of Labor Standards, the office tasked with solving the single most prevalent form of theft in the nation: wage theft."
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
If Katie Wilson hadn't used JumpStart dollars to maintain City services in this budget, she would have been facing a $350M budget deficit for 2027 instead of a $175M deficit. So her choice was between continuing an ongoing suboptimal baked-in practice or plunging the General Fund into chaos.
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Erica C. Barnett @ericacbarnett.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
One consistent thing to look for is that Strauss seems personally insulted by Wilson's budget and any implication that the council has not been a fiscally responsible steward of city funds. They have, in fact, added spending while using budget tricks to forestall the reckoning with the deficit.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Seattle budget season has officially begun. (This one is a real grab bag of local news from the last month.) notesfromtheemeraldcity.com/seattle-budg...
notesfromtheemeraldcity.com
Seattle budget season has offically begun - Notes from the Emerald City
My Stories: I’ve published five articles since my last edition of Notes so buckle up. In August, I wrote about Seattle Councilmember Dan Strauss’s legislative package that would phase out parking for ...
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
In addition to budget news, I also wrote about Seattle Mayor Wilson's new gun violence prevention plan. The plan makes some key changes in how violence intervention & prevention will be handled by the City.
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University of Washington Center for Human Rights @uwchr.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
As a federal judge in Oregon decides whether ICE officers violated a court order, testimony details ICE's use of state-held DMV data to identify and arrest people driving by, and how these DMV-assisted arrests play a role in warrantless immigration enforcement. www.opb.org/article/2026...
opb.org
Federal judge to decide if ICE violated court order over warrantless arrests in Oregon
During a two-day hearing, an ICE officer also told the court he wrote false information in one arrest report.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
$15M is a significant help to this budget proposal.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Update on yesterday's non-budget Seattle news: The groceries surveillance pricing ordinance passed, the first city ordinance like this in the nation. A few amendments were added from CMs Kettle and Hollingsworth but it's sounding like nothing too disastrous there.
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Amy Sundberg @amysundberg.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Kicking off nine weeks of Seattle budget season with Mayor Wilson's proposed budget. My sense is many are happy to have an adult in the room who's willing to address the structural deficit. Meanwhile, the Chamber is happy about no new taxes and increased policing spending.
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