Seattle is More Expensive that ever
It felt somewhat surreal returning to a city holding so many memories for me, first arriving in January 1973, and finally permanently departing in July 2024. Given that I now live in middle-of-nowhere southwest New Mexico, I was first struck, upon landing at Sea-Tac, how instantly I was surrounded by more people in the terminal than live in my general vicinity of San Lorenzo and the Mimbres River valley, no longer accustomed to shoulder to shoulder, elbow to elbow communication with my fellow human species.
The inherent noice associated with the modern American urban environment is overwhelming. Better are birdsongs and the mooing of cows and dogs barking and the singing of our ever insistent winds. Urban life might contain what could be described as a kind endemic dissonance and disorientation, ultimately confusing all who share the city's cacophony, a mechanically blended distorted symphony of engines roaring, tires braking and buses rumbling down uneven streets, daily assaulting and numbing the brain.
In a very roundabout way, that might explain the very genesis of why the medallion were retired in the first place: stress, a kind of mental psithurism, susurration rustling, impacting everyone involved, creating a amusement park bumper-car mentality of everyone indiscriminately banging into each other, causing unavoidable societal concussions, permanent injury to the fragile cognitive psyche. And worse, one must pay "through-the-nose" for all this displeasure. There must be a better explanation than simple incompetence. One must have hope. And a prayer.
The History
Before I report on my meetings, three solo and two comprised of taxi veterans, some history is necessary, some of which I am not clear upon, because it appears that some confusion emanates from 2014, when the City of Seattle and King County's appeasement with Uber and Lyft opened the TNC floodgates, inundating Seattle and King County taxi.
One oft repeated comment I heard during my three days in Seattle from many is that " I believed I owned my medallion," which is far different from the City's view that it is a leased property subject to governmental control and whim. Many claim to remember that back in 2014, in a compromise with the local taxi industry, they were issued permanent "real property" licensed medallions How can there be such a large discrepancy in memory?
It clear that original documentation must be uncovered and examined to assist in any kind of coherent determination of what is true or not but it appears that what we are addressing is something called "intangible property rights," a kind of "real property" but then again, not at all, not the same "private property rights" for instance, assigned to NYC medallions.
If the Seattle/King County taxicab industry had really been paying better attention in 2014, maybe we would not have agreed so readily to what was being offered. I still laugh that the City conceded that cabbies would no longer have to look like waiters, clad in white shirts and black slacks. Now that was important!
My Five Meetings with City of Seattle and King County Regulatory and Policy Staff
Two Solo Meeting April 29th with Sean Bouffiou, Administrative Services Manager (RALS) King County & Creagan Newhouse, Manager, Consumer Protection Division, City of Seattle
Both meeting were on the informal side. Sean Bouffiou, someone I have known for a number of years, met me on the morning of my arrival at Homestyle Dim Sum, 664 S. Weller Street, in Chinatown/ID. Sean, along with Matt Eng, Port of Seattle, wrote the policy changes affecting the Seattle/King County taxi industry that were enacted in December 2023, some at the behest of the industry. These of course included the retirement of inactive taxicab medallions.
I would consider Sean a proactive advocate for the cab industry but of course he is focused on the government side of the equation. In a later telephone conversation I had with Sean, he clarified that in 2014, in the change from license to medallion, the paper and physical medallion fell into the category of something termed intangible property.
Upon hearing that, it explained the confusion the vast majority most have had concerning the legal status of their taxicab medallions, to this moment not clearly understanding the status of what they consider their personal property. I want to remind everyone that Sean, Cregan and others are just following the legal guidelines provided for them. If there are changes to be made, and I believe there are, it is up to individuals that make up the Seattle/King County taxicab community to effect wanted policy changes.
Cregan Newhouse in the Afternoon, 3:30 PM, Seattle Municipal Tower, 700 Fifth Avenue
I met Cregan in the Fifth Avenue lobby, where we then proceeded to negotiate the inner labyrinth that is the SMT to the Starbucks located within. Cregan, like Sean, is tasked with following the dictates created by the voted Seattle and King County elected representatives. Cregan is a sympathetic fellow, only wanting the best for cab drivers and the industry in general.
Though we have had many email exchanges, this was the first time we were able to personally meet, coming to the conclusion we were similar characters. Cregan once aspired to be WA State governor, having run unsuccessfully in a primary. I don't know if I voted for him but certainly I would in the future. Consider Cregan as a good resource for those trying to untangle the puzzle of what to do when your inactive medallion is retired.
Group Meeting, 2:00 PM April 30th with the City: Abdi Jama, the Mayor's Special Advisor on Immigrant and Refugee Affairs & Kerem Levitas, Senior Labor Policy Advisor
Taxi Attendance: Myself, Solomon Alemneh, Parminder Tiwana, Kasem Novan, Mohammed Abouzied
The meeting with the City was mostly informational, as 2014 is nearly ancient history. There was much note taking, especially by Mr. Levtias, a lawyer by training. I attempted a quick history tutorial while my fellow taxi participants presented their personal experiences. If I had been aware at that time that medallions were designated as intangible property, it would have enabled me to say even more succinctly that paying $100,000 or more, as some have, for a revokable lease made no sense whatsoever. I can only hope that the City understands that essential fact as we head toward, in how many months or years, to an equitable solution.
My biggest disappointment was the absence of the fellow cabbies I was relying upon to tell their story. Too typical is my obvious response to this kind of irresponsibility. The vast majority have little ability to take care of themselves when it is necessary, which explains why so many medallion owners failed to respond for years to the City and County's notices concerning their medallions.
Anyway, the meeting, only a quick hour, ended on a cordial note. I am guessing there will be more in the future. I can only hope for better attendance.
Group Meeting, 3:30 PM April 30th with Erik Schmidt, Director of Operations for Seattle Councilmember Rob Saka
Another informational meeting, with Mr. Schmidt taking lots of notes. Friendly but only 30 minutes long. Hopefully in the future, we will be given more time.
Solo Meeting 9:00 AM May 1st wiith Lilly Hayward, Chief of Staff for Metro King County Councilmember Steffanie Fain.
I met with Ms. Hayward in a coffee shop in the Fremont neighborhood. Again, another informational, note taking meeting. She was very pleasant and attentive, a true professional. What all these five meetings told me beyond any doubt is that the Seattle/King County taxi community has done little to no self-advocacy over the past 12 years. When you operate in a vacuum you end up disconnected, floating up into the ether. When you are nowhere, you are nowhere. In a very real sense, that is the current condition of the Seattle/KC taxi industry. I will try to bring them back to earth.
Conclusion
I saw all these meetings as first steps, especially the last three, Sean Bouffiou and Cregan Newhouse being fairly acquainted with taxi, more intimately involved than other members of the Seattle and King county political and regulatory establishment. Do I have a goal?
The first is to get all the retired medallions reinstated. The second is to have their status changed to permanent real property. The third to have viable, comprehensive regulation, not the piecemeal enforcement now in place. The fourth, along with that, is a real recognition of the Seattle/KC industry in total, its needs and wants. A fifth would be a functional association system. One can wish.
The Seattle/KC taxi community needs to understand that it has been kicked down the street, now little more than a transportation stepchild. All my efforts, whatever they might be in the future, will be for naught unless everyone wakes up to themselves, understanding they must become equal partners when working with the City of Seattle and King County. Acting delirious, like you have just been bonked on the head is not constructive. Rub your heads, Seattle cabbies, and open your eyes. If you don't, the world is gonna pass you by, with Waymo knocking you off the road. Believe me, it will happen.
And a Postscript: Thanks everyone, for those four Chinese meals. Here in my dusty, sunny corner of SW New Mexico I can't head down to Chinatown and chow down at Tai Tung and the Honey Court and Homestyle Dim Sum. And that's it, that's what I miss from Seattle. And HK Dim Sum at 130th & Aurora North was good too, though I could do without their waitstaff. My favorite waitress wasn't there. She knows how to handle a table.
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