Ideas for Seattle

On behalf of Mayor Mike McGinn, welcome to Ideas for Seattle. The strength of our city comes from our talented citizens. We need your input so that we can work together to make Seattle a better place for all of us. Join in the conversation. Sign up today.

City Forum

Welcome to Ideas For Seattle. Here you can contribute your ideas for the future of our city. You can also vote on existing ideas submitted by your fellow citizens.

To get started, simply choose a category from the list on the right. Then search to see if your idea has already been submitted. If it hasn't, you can then submit it for others to discuss or vote on.

  1. 1,061 votes

    Revitalize Pioneer Square

    There is some talk that Elliott Bay Book Company may move to Capitol Hill. I love EBBC and would hate to see them move, but I wouldn’t blame them. If they move I blame the city which has allowed Pioneer Square to rot. Bremerton Mayor Cary Bozeman was right when he criticized Seattle for the ne... more

  2. 776 votes

    Install sidewalks throughout Seattle

    Many Seattle streets do not have sidewalks or curbs installed, especially in south Seattle. Pedestrians, children, dogs and dog walkers, are forced to share the road with cars that go too fast and pay too little attention. For the safety and ascetics of neighborhoods throughout Seattle, a sidew... more

  3. 323 votes

    Support creation of minipower grids with solar/wind power for homeowners

    City should provide technical expertise, low cost loans for installation of solar panels, so users could sell power back to the grid when they have an excess.

  4. 319 votes

    SIDEWALKS SIDEWALKS SIDEWALKS !

    Get our neighborhoods outfitted with Sidewalks for walking routes. You obviously can sidewalk everywhere, but have steady, gradual improvements with new major walking routes identified by groups like FEET FIRST set up with sidewalks every year. Quadruple the funding for this.

  5. 268 votes

    Clean-up Chinatown/International District

    I love going down to the "ID", which is really comprised of Chinatown, Little Saigon and Japantown. Seattle has one of the best and largest Chinatown's in the US. Most other ones in the US are going downhill quickly.

    Our ID celebrates our very diverse Asian culture here in the US. T... more

  6. 176 votes

    Incentives for locally owned businesses

    Lets incentive-ize locally owned shops, restaurants, and businesses

    Create city wide ordinances to limit sineage (ever been to Hawaii's north shore to see the mini 76 ball and tiny golden arches?)

  7. 163 votes

    Increase pedestrian safety by lowering speed limits

    Chance of fatality at 40 mph: 85%, chance of fatality at 20 mph: 5%. We need to lower the speed limit on neighborhood arterials.

  8. 142 votes

    Clean up Pioneer Square

    The Elliot Bay Bookstore closing isn't about book sales, it's about the decay of the Pioneer Square neighborhood. To fix:

    * Close down the Saveway minimart
    * Encourage the missions to relocate. They do good work but should they be one of the most beautiful and historical neighborhoods of Seattle... more

  9. 136 votes

    Listen to neighborhood councils

    Most neighborhoods have at least one group that meets regularly to discuss safety, transportation, parking, etc.

    There should be at least a couple of people at the City who are responsible for reading the minutes of these meetings and following up with Council concerns. A designated point of co... more

  10. 136 votes

    Develop neighborhood bike arterials

    Make it so more people can get around within a couple of miles of home without getting into their cars. Designate certain non-arterial streets within neighborhoods for bikes. Restrict parking to one side of the street and stripe a bike lane on the other side. Follow Eugene's lead and make fewe... more

  11. 132 votes

    More and better neighborhood parks

    We need more parks and parks with a wide variety of programed and unprogramed activities. These need to be out in the neighborhoods, particularly those that have seen a large increase in density.
    Also look into innovative micro-park ideas like the Bell Street park or even green street edges which... more

  12. 94 votes
  13. 75 votes

    Expand P-Patch Program (more urban agriculture)

    Expand the existing p-patch program to establish and support more community gardens AND to establish and support in-city farm spaces, where people can rent plots and grow food for use by or sale to restaurants or sale at local farmer's markets.

  14. 69 votes
  15. 66 votes

    Create "safe, well-lit" communities

    Bring together green jobs, public safety and neighborhood leaders to put youth to work (for pay) and clean up neighborhoods that need it most.

  16. 44 votes

    Create Interactive, Online "Seattle To-Do List" to help our Volunteers Self-Organize

    Building on ideas like those of Clay Shirky http://bit.ly/dmmVu , employed by the Obama Campaign to great success and using technologies we already have like the Voter Activation Network, Seattle can create the best, smartest volunteer network in America.

    We have the tools. We have the talent. ... more

  17. 37 votes

    Volunteers

    Bellevue makes use of thousands of hours of skilled volunteer time every year to deliver municipal services. This has two key benefits: (1) it enables the City to provide a more comprehensive range of services at a lower cost to taxpayers; and (2) it fosters a strong sense of civic ownership an... more

  18. 31 votes

    Increase Recycle Bin in Parks

    Increase Recycle Bin in Parks

    Install more recycle bins in public parks and pubic spaces.

  19. 31 votes

    PICKLEBALL on the Maple Leaf Reservoir

    The Maple Leaf Reservoir is being capped and we have the opportunity to put a pickleball court on the reservoir.

  20. 28 votes

    Composting toilets everywhere!

    Seattle needs more public toilets and composting toilets are an affordable, eco-friendly, simple, odorless and low-maintenance solution.

    According to Wikipedia, "composting toilets are often used as an alternative to central wastewater treatment plants (sewers) or septic systems. Typically ... more

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