Pat runs for Seattle City Council because of frustration at the inattention to issues affecting livability and at the urging of neighbors, friends, and community leaders. As a mother, she wants to ensure Seattle is a place our children are proud to call home.
Pat’s lifelong commitment to community engagement and consensus-building is extensive: as Cleveland H.S. PTSA President, board member of numerous nonprofits, and long-term President of the South Seattle Crime Prevention Council, where cooperation between diverse communities and police result in increased public safety and engagement.
A seasoned and successful small business owner (IT firm), Pat has a BA in Sociology and an MBA. Her IT work with companies of various sizes, industries and regional locations gives her invaluable insight into what businesses need to flourish and create living-wage jobs.
If elected, Pat will be the only Councilmember with business experience.
Pat brings solid expertise and a commitment to the greater good for positive solutions:
• Affordable Housing: We graciously tax ourselves to provide affordable housing, only to see rents soar and our property taxes price us out of the City. Councilmember Gonzalez voted in favor of developers -- ONLY 2% affordable units in the University District and South Lake Union -– for which they receive huge tax breaks. Pat will ensure we have INCLUSIONARY development that serves a diverse socio-economic populace.
• Homelessness Crisis & Drug Epidemic: How can our City Council allow intolerable living conditions in tents/sheds? We currently lack coordination between the 100+ agencies dealing with homelessness. Pat wants our City to create an indoor-living campus with all necessary social services, on-site, to assist and empower the homeless, mentally ill and drug addicted, thereby encouraging individuals to reach their potential, find jobs and attain proper housing.
• Infrastructure: Explosive growth comes at a cost. Developers haven’t been held accountable for impact fees, forcing residents to pay for schools, roads, increased police & fire staffing, water treatment, etc. It’s time to end corporate welfare.
• Public Engagement: Pat will actively seek residents’ input on all major issues. She will be your representative at City Hall.
• Economic Development: The City’s narrow focus on development has resulted in social inequity and disparities in wealth. Pat has creative solutions to boost other sectors of the economy, create jobs, and restore neighborhood vibrancy without gentrification or displacement.
"I will restore the voice of neighborhoods at City Hall."
Visit votepatmurakami.org for list of endorsements.
This statement was provided by the candidate, who is solely responsible for the contents therein.
Permanent link to this statement