White Center/South Delridge Community Safety Coalition: After the sweeps … what now?
By Tracy Record
White Center Now editor
The monumental arrest/seizure sweeps of last week – and the well-attended meeting on Monday night – were the main topic at tonight’s White Center-South Delridge Community Safety Coalition‘s monthly meeting.
The coalition’s dedicated core group of 10 or so was joined by a few guests. First to introduce herself was Jill Otake, an assistant U.S. Attorney. There was also a couple who identified themselves as White Center residents.
The discussion started low-key. Elizabeth Gordon of Uncle Mike’s Superlicious Barbecue had warm words for the new Storefront Deputy BJ Myers – saying he’s out on the street every day. (He had been invited to the meeting, organizers said, but was not there.)
Also well-received – the news from earlier this week that the dance-club moratorium was reaffirmed by the King County Council.
The business district’s current state, and future, was a hot topic. What about the marijuana businesses? one person asked. What if we had a nuisance ordinance like the one in Seattle? chair Sean Healy wondered.
They all agreed to lobby County Councilmember Joe McDermott for possible laws that could help crack down on some of what is going on. What could be done about the proliferation in marijuana businesses, though, wasn’t clear. Gordon said property owners seem to be getting calls from marijuana entrepreneurs as soon as storefronts open.
“Alcohol, weed, alcohol, weed,” Rev. Timothy Rambo sighed, assessing how the heart of the business district might look as a result.
After that discussion, Otake took the floor, for a followup discussion on “Operation Center of Attention.” She said, “I just want to thank you guys” for their passion and activism, rather than having any prepared remarks to offer. She invited questions. Her colleague Thomas Bates was on his way at the time she stood up. “We’re still working on Papa’s Pub,” for starters, she said. She added that the lead King County Sheriff’s Office detective in the operation will be meeting with the property owners at the heart of the sting to say “You are on notice, if you allow further criminal businesses to operate, your property will be seized.”
Right after that, the marijuana businesses came up again. A debate ensued on whether they were all bad – or whether some were more tolerable than others. Herban Legends, for example, won some praise for not allowing smoking on premises and making sure the location was ADA-accessible. Another opinion: The problem is the density of the locations – with three in the heart of downtown White Center on 16th, and a fourth not that far away in West Seattle (35th/Roxbury).
Then back to the stings, and questions:
Was the owner of Papa’s Pub arrested? No. A bartender was, Otake said.
What are the chance the people who were arrested “are going to make license plates for a while”? Otake said she couldn’t comment, because “you never know.”
And then she had a question:
“A week after the takedown, what are you folks seeing, that we might be able to do something about?”
One woman said she wasn’t seeing “as many regulars” going in and out of Papa’s Pub, not the kind of “open-air drug dealing” she had seen previously. They may have moved to other places, though, it was noted.
Specific anecdotal sighting ensued – known street dealers, for example – and Otake took notes. Discussion veered over to “where do they sleep?” and attendees discussed among themselves. That was when executive assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas Bates arrived. He revealed that the Liquor Control Board announced today that it served a third administrative violation notice against Papa’s, for serving a minor. That would result in a one-month suspension of their license – after a 20-day period for an objection and hearing, Bates said. That was verified by Liquor Control Board rep Lt. Woodrow Perkins. “They can take it all the way up to an administrative law judge, and even the state Supreme Court,” he elaborated, adding that the establishment could stay open through a suspension – just, without selling alcohol.
If you think you see something wrong, be sure to call, it was reiterated. Whether it’s in a residential or business area, it was clarified. “I can’t tell you often enough how important that is,” Otake said.
With the LCB rep up front, he was asked about reports that the GAME Collective “marijuana lounge” was serving alcohol. He couldn’t comment.
Then came another question:
How big was this bust, really? Cheryl Bishop from ATF stood up. “This was unique, in that it lasted 90 days, and focused on a community. White Center doesn’t deserve (what was happening, involving) what I like to call ‘thugs and street slime’ …” She listed the agencies that “came together” to make it happen. “Problems like this cannot be addressed by a single entity – I think you have heard that multiple, multiple times, and that’s true … but the partner I didn’t list there is .. you guys, the community. We had people in the community willing to give us information. …”
She said a detective with whom she worked described this as “the one effort that has the biggest impact in a short period of time,” and that some other operations hadn’t been this successful in just 90 days. “The amount we got points to the obvious problem White Center was enduring,” she said, regarding the amount of guns and drugs seized. “We were all honored to participate in this operation … Our big hope is that we helped the community recognize a place where they can start to contribute themselves to addressing the problem … You see something, say something. Share that with your neighbors … that’s the only way you’re going to keep this down. We can’t arrest our way out of it. We just can’t.”
As a postscript, Bishop noted she’s a former White Center resident. She told the story of having her car broken into where she lives now – and then setting up a surveillance camera, because “they’re like cockroaches, they keep coming back,” and that indeed helped lead to an arrest of a suspect well-known to local police.
The coalition is working on a “long-range plan” about “how to improve White Center” and hopes to connect with other organizations in the area in the months ahead.
Bates said he hopes there will be some help organized regarding root causes – mental health, substance abuse – in terms of preventing future problems.
There were more words of thanks, and more generalized words about future plans. “Think big,” Otake advised.
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