Jonathan Choe

Journalist and Senior Fellow, Center on Wealth and Poverty

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Youth Soccer Team Stops Season, Leaves Due to Green River Road Encampment

Jonathan Choe
October 24, 2023
System Failure All the elected officials in King County know about the Green River Rd encampment. They know about the crime, shootings, fires, drug overdose deaths, stolen vehicles, and environmental damage. Yet it’s being totally ignored. This stretch of road between Kent and Auburn has been littered with tents and RV’s for years. At the end of the day, this is on Executive Dow Constantine (@kcexec) but he’s MIA as well. The King County Sheriff’s Office is now being told to avoid this encampment unless it’s a serious emergency. After the latest incident of vandalism, Valor Soccer (@ValorSoccerUSA) is also ejecting from the area. Making matters worse, the deep woods are packed with tents and all kinds of forts. Dozens of people are living in there. …

Youth Soccer Field Destroyed Next to Green River Encampment

Jonathan Choe
October 19, 2023
The youth soccer field at North Green River Park is surrounded by majestic trees and breathtaking scenery. And on weekends, it’s usually packed with kids and families who depend on this field. Many come from underserved minority communities in Kent, Auburn, and other parts of King County.  Early Wednesday morning, Dean Aldridge of Valor Soccer says someone drove onto the field and caused more than $100,000 in damage doing donuts. “These fields serve our most economically challenged kids,” Aldridge tells me. Club officials say all weekend tournaments are now canceled and their season is effectively over. “To see it like this, it hurts my heart,” says Ray Johnson, Valor Director of Development. This is just the latest troubling incident along …

Community Members Clean pro-Palestine, Anarchist Graffiti in Chinatown

Jonathan Choe
October 17, 2023
It Takes A Village Late Tuesday evening, a volunteer took matters into his own hands after the city did not respond to community complaints. He wiped out all the pro-Palestine and anarchist graffiti scrawled on several tables in Chinatown-ID’s Hing Hay Park. Neighbors say they first spotted the vandalism on Saturday and suspect FAR-LEFT activists were behind the dirty deed. D2 Councilmember Tammy Morales (@CMTammyMorales) did not respond to the graffiti complaints either. It’s evident more than ever, you can’t just rely on the government. STAY THE F OUT: Saturday night vandalism in Chinatown-ID. Why do the whack job activists always hit this Seattle neighborhood? They did it during BLM riots as well. Please address this Seattle Parks and …

Without Cops on Patrol, Little Saigon Drug Use and Sale of Stolen Goods Come Back to Life

Jonathan Choe
October 17, 2023
That Didn’t Take Long Tuesday afternoon, 12th Ave & Jackson St was clear. The open air drug use was gone. No more sales of stolen merchandise. Actually saw a clean sidewalk. But by sunset, it was back to business as usual at this notorious intersection in Seattle’s Little Saigon neighborhood. The common denominator, no more cops on patrol at night. Btw, a lot of the hustlers now use baby strollers to transport stolen merch and drugs. They say it puts people at ease and cops are less likely to check. Why didn’t I think of that? The one lone bright spot, volunteers with Mosaic Church feeding some of the fellas and providing supplies. They come out here every Tuesday night. CLEAR FOR NOW: Tuesday afternoon, Seattle Police patrols remain at 12th Ave & …

People Living Out of RVs in SODO Say They Would Not Move to an RV Lot

Jonathan Choe
October 17, 2023
Recurring Nightmare Remember back in July when the city cleared dozens of RV’s and tents along this stretch of 3rd Ave in SODO? Officials said it was already planned and had nothing to do with the MLB All-Star Game coming to T-Mobile Park. Well, all the fellas are back. It’s the same folks who have been cleared multiple times and know the game. All of them tell me they have been offered shelter and services numerous times. They don’t want to go to any future RV lots either because this is prime location near all the food banks, drug dealers, and it’s easy access to the heart of the city. By the way, this is CM Tammy Morales’ (@CMTammyMorales, @TammyMoralesSEA ) District 2. She’s against the Mayor’s encampment removal strategy. Why …

Homeless Encampment Features Bubble Car Garage

Jonathan Choe
October 4, 2023
Where are they now? Last month, Governor Jay Inslee (@GovInslee) took a victory lap after spending millions of dollars to close down the Myers Way encampment(with the swimming pool) and house many of the homeless for the next year. But some of them are now spending time at a new West Seattle encampment nearby doing drugs and simply hanging out. For the past few weeks, I followed and interviewed these men and women. It was a rare glimpse into what happens after someone exits an encampment. Many of them are thankful for the apartments. But they also say the building is like a “sterile warehouse” with “no community” and “too many rules.” They also say cameras and security are constantly surveilling them each day. Some residents now say they regret …

International District Drug Den Active Hours After Nearby Shooting

Jonathan Choe
October 3, 2023
Slow Night Just hours after a shooting near 12th Ave & Jackson St. Tuesday evening, the open air drug den and black market of stolen goods only had around 60 people. Most nights this place is packed with more than 100 peeps. How low are you willing to go if you are trying to flip a stolen toy kitchen for $10 bucks? For real. I want to say the city’s new drug bill is working, but we’re just in the “educational” phase. No one is really being arrested for smoking fentanyl. They’re just being told to move along. CM Tammy Morales (@CMTammyMorales, @TammyMoralesSEA) voted against this watered down drug bill. But she has no solutions to address this on going disaster in her district. King County already shattered the record for fentanyl overdose deaths …

Homeless Man Shot Outside Shelter in Little Saigon

Jonathan Choe
October 3, 2023
Exclusive Tuesday evening, witnesses say a man carrying a gun unloaded at least 30 rounds in the direction of people sitting on the steps behind DESC’s Navigation Center (@DESCSeattle) in Little Saigon. One homeless man in his 50’s was hit in the buttocks. Victim stumbled to the corner of 12th Ave & Weller St where first responders arrived and took him to Harborview Medical Center for treatment. Apparently he was not the intended target. Shooter is still on the loose. The Navigation Center is one of several problematic homeless shelters in or around Chinatown-ID. It remains a major blight on the community since it feeds the open air drug market right around the corner and continues to attract addicts to the neighborhood. Seattle PD officers are constantly called to …

Thousands of Needles Removed from North Seattle Freeway Encampment

Jonathan Choe
October 1, 2023
Bailing Out Government Again At this point, most of us know about the incredible exploits of We Heart Seattle (@weheartseattle.) This homeless outreach group is consistently one of the most impactful in the region because of the dynamic leadership of Andrea Suarez. She continues to mobilize volunteers and also empowers the men and women living on the streets to help clean up encampments. This weekend, Suarez and her crew focused on one of the most problematic corridors in North Seattle, removing around one million pounds of trash. But they barely scratched the surface. The WSDOT (@wsdot) right of ways in this part of Seattle are now overwhelmed with tents and structures. From Northgate to University District, it’s almost like the government has given up. Just drive by and …

Burien Passes “no camping” Ordinance

Jonathan Choe
September 28, 2023
What’s Next Burien After weeks of contentious debate and public comment, the Burien City Council finally passed a “no camping” ordinance this week. This common sense bill was first championed by CM Stephanie Mora (@CmStephaniemora) and ended up being a close 4-3 vote. Now the heavy lifting begins. More than 60 people remain at the Ambaum Blvd encampment. I went there again this week. The open air drug use and trash is out of control. And sadly, Burien PD has taken multiple reports of young women being trafficked out of this encampment. Meanwhile, listen to Deputy Mayor Kevin Schilling describe what Highline Public School Dist. is doing in response to this situation. The city is now in talks to bring on Kristine Moreland’s (@kmmoreland) homeless outreach group …

Burien Deputy Mayor Clarifies Encampment Law Martin v. Boise

Jonathan Choe
September 28, 2023
Interpreting Homeless Law Once again, I asked Burien Deputy Mayor Kevin Schilling how the city is interpreting the landmark ruling Martin V. Boise that says cities cannot enforce anti-camping ordinances if there aren’t enough homeless shelter beds available. This piece is frequently cited and misinterpreted by FAR-LEFT activists and other homeless advocates against SWEEPS. Even King County Executive Dow Constantine (@kcexec)weaponized it earlier this year and blocked sheriff’s deputies from assisting during the Burien dog park encampment removal. But Schilling makes it very clear, nowhere in the law does it say the offers of shelter must be in the city where the homeless are camping. In other words, if there is an open shelter bed in nearby Seattle or Renton, that …