Hey folks, welcome back to the Osprey Update, our weekly newsletter and look back on what we’ve had going on in our little stretch off the sound.

We’re coming to you on a Monday morning because tonight’s Shoreline City Council meeting will have a few especially interesting matters that folks may want to keep an eye on.

First, the council will be studying an update to the city’s municipal code that would allow the city to set up speed cameras in school zones. If the council ultimately approves the update (scheduled for the council’s last meeting in March) the first cameras would eventually be installed around Meridian Park Elementary School. More info here.

Second, the council will be discussing the city’s response to ICE actions within city limits — specifically, what the city can and cannot do. A resolution up for debate and possible action Monday would, in part, seek to ban ICE and immigration agents from staging on city-controlled property. We’ve got a preview on that here, and you can read more background (and hear from wary residents) below.

This week’s Shoreline City Council meeting takes place at 7 p.m. tonight, Feb. 23, at City Hall, 17500 Midvale Ave. N. You can find out more, or watch the meeting (live or archived!), at the city’s website.

Thanks for reading. We’re glad you’re here.

— David Mendez

Dozens of people turned out to City Hall on Feb. 9, pressing Shoreline’s City Council to take action against federal immigration agents in the wake of local and nationally traumatic issues. The council will discuss a resolution tonight, but one organizer is especially skeptical of what it may do.

“Unfortunately, it sounds like they feel they don’t have a lot of power and their hands are tied in a lot of ways. It’s hard for me to tell them what to do; I just wish they would lead and tell us what they can and can’t do,” said Nicole Solano, a Shoreline resident who has been organizing neighbors to take care of one another.

Check it out here.

Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal fielded questions from constituents and lobbed attacks at the Trump administration before more than 500 people at Third Place Commons last week. She provided updates on a few federal matters and sent folks to meet with her staff for follow-ups on their problems.

One moment stood out though: LFP resident Vijay Chakravarthy mentioned that a Small Business Administration rule change is going to block immigrant-owned small businesses from obtaining federal loans. Chakravarthy owns Always Summer Cafe, a shop just below Third Place, and as soon as he mentioned its name, people erupted. The shop got quite a bit of business after the town hall as well, despite it being late and cold outside.

Check out the story here.

From 11 a.m to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 28, Urbanist Shoreline is hosting a discussion at the Shoreline Library, featuring The Osprey, as well as our friends Oliver Moffatt of The Interurban Canopy and Teresa Whipple, president and CEO of the My Neighborhood News Group, operating sites covering Edmonds, Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace.

We’ll be talking about hyperlocal journalism, community news, civic engagement and democracy. I promise that I’ll wear my best public speaking hoodie — weather permitting, of course. RSVP here, and bring your questions!

Presented without elaboration, a non-exhaustive list of things we’re looking at for future updates: a hometown grocery store; an ice cream shop under fire; what’s next for a large pile of dirt; a crafter’s paradise; getting green in the neighborhood; a new place to grab lunch; and a quarter century of reshaping nature. What are we missing? Let us know!

Thanks for reading The Osprey’s Weekly Update. Doing this work is a delight, and I’m glad to have this role in our community.

Please reach out to me at [email protected] with any questions, events, story ideas or news tips. (Also: taco recommendations, please and thank you.)

With gratitude and appreciation,
David