(The Center Square) – Despite an overall drop in crime from an all-time high in 2022, Seattleites’ top concern is now public safety over homelessness.
The Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce’s survey – titled “The Index” – revealed the latest findings of what Seattle residents think of their city. According to the data, the combined issue of “crime, drugs, and public safety” is the emerging top concern for residents with 41% of votes.
Homelessness dropped to 37% of votes from 50% last spring when the previous survey was conducted.
The change in priorities for Seattle residents is complex, as more voters listed their top concern with “Government, Politicians, and local leaders.” In fact, that issue jumped from 4% last spring to 15% in the latest survey.
This coincides with residents’ growing frustrations with the work that Seattle city officials have done so far to address some of the top issues.
For instance, the survey data shows that residents are not satisfied with the work being done by the city to address homelessness, with three-fifths of the 700 survey respondents not agreeing that the city has made any meaningful progress on reducing the number of homelessness encampments throughout.