Eric Aderhold
@eric.aderhold.us
Curler/software engineer/dad/Scouter/urbanist in Seattle.
This mindset that tries to find fault with anyone other than the driver—even to the point of holding cyclists and pedestrians to a higher standard than any law requires—seems like exactly the motivation behind this protest.
December 15, 2025 at 7:35 AM
This mindset that tries to find fault with anyone other than the driver—even to the point of holding cyclists and pedestrians to a higher standard than any law requires—seems like exactly the motivation behind this protest.
So many of these questions are simply irrelevant. Were they hit in the bike lane? Irrelevant. Riding in the bike lane is not required. Were they wearing black? Irrelevant. The rules of the road don't regulate attire. Was the cyclist using a headlight as required? That's a more relevant question.
December 15, 2025 at 7:35 AM
So many of these questions are simply irrelevant. Were they hit in the bike lane? Irrelevant. Riding in the bike lane is not required. Were they wearing black? Irrelevant. The rules of the road don't regulate attire. Was the cyclist using a headlight as required? That's a more relevant question.
Include a photo of the property while it was in the permitting phase. "Given that design review made the block look like this for an extra X months, do you believe the process improved the design of the development enough to make up for looking at this grafitti-covered eyesore that much longer?"
December 15, 2025 at 7:14 AM
Include a photo of the property while it was in the permitting phase. "Given that design review made the block look like this for an extra X months, do you believe the process improved the design of the development enough to make up for looking at this grafitti-covered eyesore that much longer?"
At some point the zoning gets out of the way enough that the minimum amount of land per home is relatively affordable, so you're mostly paying for building materials and labor. These things can be expensive too! There's no good reason to have local regulations add a six figure sum on top of that.
December 7, 2025 at 6:31 AM
At some point the zoning gets out of the way enough that the minimum amount of land per home is relatively affordable, so you're mostly paying for building materials and labor. These things can be expensive too! There's no good reason to have local regulations add a six figure sum on top of that.
One home per lot was actually the rule not too long ago. More recently the limit on homes per lot was three, so you're paying almost $200k/home just for land. That's less than $500k to be sure, but it's still a pretty significant cost for the legal minimum amount of land per home.
December 7, 2025 at 6:31 AM
One home per lot was actually the rule not too long ago. More recently the limit on homes per lot was three, so you're paying almost $200k/home just for land. That's less than $500k to be sure, but it's still a pretty significant cost for the legal minimum amount of land per home.
There's not One True Cause of housing unaffordability. Many factors combine. One of those definitely is local regulation. Here in my neighborhood in Seattle an individual ~0.1 acre lot costs upward of $500k. If you could only build one home there, you're starting at $500k just to pitch a tent.
December 7, 2025 at 6:31 AM
There's not One True Cause of housing unaffordability. Many factors combine. One of those definitely is local regulation. Here in my neighborhood in Seattle an individual ~0.1 acre lot costs upward of $500k. If you could only build one home there, you're starting at $500k just to pitch a tent.
It is a numbers game, yes. If you have two bright red districts and one bright blue district each of those districts is quite safe for its majority party. If you change the lines so you have three reddish-purple districts they could all go blue in a sufficiently large wave election.
December 4, 2025 at 11:30 PM
It is a numbers game, yes. If you have two bright red districts and one bright blue district each of those districts is quite safe for its majority party. If you change the lines so you have three reddish-purple districts they could all go blue in a sufficiently large wave election.
What I read elsewhere is that the appeals court doesn't seem to agree with that order. The plaintiffs would rather dismiss the case than risk an adverse ruling after oral arguments at the appeals court.
December 4, 2025 at 9:03 PM
What I read elsewhere is that the appeals court doesn't seem to agree with that order. The plaintiffs would rather dismiss the case than risk an adverse ruling after oral arguments at the appeals court.
This exactly. The options that involve putting the international district station right next to the existing train stations for easier transfers have been deprioritized because apparently inconveniencing businesses and drivers for a few years is worse than inconveniencing train riders forever.
November 19, 2025 at 9:17 PM
This exactly. The options that involve putting the international district station right next to the existing train stations for easier transfers have been deprioritized because apparently inconveniencing businesses and drivers for a few years is worse than inconveniencing train riders forever.
You can buy a lot of steel for $1.6 billion.
November 19, 2025 at 8:41 PM
You can buy a lot of steel for $1.6 billion.
Add onto this $1,100 all the other costs of operating a parking lot (lighting, security, cleaning). Also they're sitting on >$100k of land value per parking spot and they surely want to get a return on that capital investment.
All this goes into the price of groceries whether you drive or not.
All this goes into the price of groceries whether you drive or not.
November 14, 2025 at 10:25 PM
Add onto this $1,100 all the other costs of operating a parking lot (lighting, security, cleaning). Also they're sitting on >$100k of land value per parking spot and they surely want to get a return on that capital investment.
All this goes into the price of groceries whether you drive or not.
All this goes into the price of groceries whether you drive or not.
The parking lot for the QFC near me is its own separate tax parcel because it's across the street. They pay about $1,100 per parking space just in property taxes each year.
blue.kingcounty.com/Assessor/eRe...
blue.kingcounty.com/Assessor/eRe...
King County Department of Assessments: eReal Property
blue.kingcounty.com
November 14, 2025 at 10:25 PM
The parking lot for the QFC near me is its own separate tax parcel because it's across the street. They pay about $1,100 per parking space just in property taxes each year.
blue.kingcounty.com/Assessor/eRe...
blue.kingcounty.com/Assessor/eRe...
Same. It gets washed whenever I notice the dishwasher is almost full and has room for exactly one more glass.
November 14, 2025 at 10:09 PM
Same. It gets washed whenever I notice the dishwasher is almost full and has room for exactly one more glass.
I personally voted for Wilson because I agree with her goals for the city, and yet I do have some concerns about whether she has the management experience necessary to steer thousands of city employees toward bringing those goals to fruition. I wish her luck and hope those concerns are unfounded.
November 13, 2025 at 10:00 AM
I personally voted for Wilson because I agree with her goals for the city, and yet I do have some concerns about whether she has the management experience necessary to steer thousands of city employees toward bringing those goals to fruition. I wish her luck and hope those concerns are unfounded.
Sure, 60% ahead is an exaggeration, but Wilson undeniably got a much lower percentage of the votes than other citywide winners. There were a lot of Rinck/Harrell voters, a lot of Foster/Harrell voters, etc.
November 13, 2025 at 10:00 AM
Sure, 60% ahead is an exaggeration, but Wilson undeniably got a much lower percentage of the votes than other citywide winners. There were a lot of Rinck/Harrell voters, a lot of Foster/Harrell voters, etc.
I also wonder about whether collecting sunlight in solar panels and then generating waste heat when the electricity is used in devices actually creates more waste heat than you get by just letting the sunlight hit the ground, but I'm not a physicist.
November 12, 2025 at 6:31 PM
I also wonder about whether collecting sunlight in solar panels and then generating waste heat when the electricity is used in devices actually creates more waste heat than you get by just letting the sunlight hit the ground, but I'm not a physicist.
I remember biking myself to a day camp in the summer when I was 10, at a park about a mile from my house. I'm not sure there's any day camp in my city that would even let a kid leave by themselves at that age.
November 12, 2025 at 6:08 PM
I remember biking myself to a day camp in the summer when I was 10, at a park about a mile from my house. I'm not sure there's any day camp in my city that would even let a kid leave by themselves at that age.
Does car dominance play into this shared perception we have that kids alone are ipso facto in excessive danger? I'm sure it does, and yet there was at least as much car dominance during my childhood when I remember much more liberal attitudes toward kids being alone.
November 12, 2025 at 6:08 PM
Does car dominance play into this shared perception we have that kids alone are ipso facto in excessive danger? I'm sure it does, and yet there was at least as much car dominance during my childhood when I remember much more liberal attitudes toward kids being alone.
Right now I have no confidence I wouldn't have the authorities called for neglect if I sent my 7-year-old to buy milk at the convenience store five blocks from my house. All street crossings on the way have pretty low traffic volumes, and the only one with even 25 MPH speed has a marked crosswalk.
November 12, 2025 at 6:08 PM
Right now I have no confidence I wouldn't have the authorities called for neglect if I sent my 7-year-old to buy milk at the convenience store five blocks from my house. All street crossings on the way have pretty low traffic volumes, and the only one with even 25 MPH speed has a marked crosswalk.
I once toured a house on 24th a bit south of there and the road noise was a red flag even without 520 in the mix. It is a pretty short walk to UW though, plus there's an elementary school and library and pretty nice park within a few blocks too.
November 12, 2025 at 5:19 PM
I once toured a house on 24th a bit south of there and the road noise was a red flag even without 520 in the mix. It is a pretty short walk to UW though, plus there's an elementary school and library and pretty nice park within a few blocks too.
We vote by mail. A big chunk of ballots arrive after election day as the requirement is just that they be postmarked by that day. Many outcomes can be determined on election day, but not for close races such as this one.
November 8, 2025 at 12:32 AM
We vote by mail. A big chunk of ballots arrive after election day as the requirement is just that they be postmarked by that day. Many outcomes can be determined on election day, but not for close races such as this one.
Here's how it's done at Roosevelt. A few parking spots on the streets next to the station are designated loading zones. That's it, and that's enough. Most riders find it more convenient most of the time to get there by some other method than spousal chauffeur. Why? Better land use.
November 7, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Here's how it's done at Roosevelt. A few parking spots on the streets next to the station are designated loading zones. That's it, and that's enough. Most riders find it more convenient most of the time to get there by some other method than spousal chauffeur. Why? Better land use.
I say the same thing every time I see someone suggesting rich people will leave Washington en masse over our estate tax. If you have so few ties to where you live that you'd retire to Idaho just to ensure your kids inherit $10 million instead of $9 million, don't let the door hit you on the way out.
October 31, 2025 at 5:55 PM
I say the same thing every time I see someone suggesting rich people will leave Washington en masse over our estate tax. If you have so few ties to where you live that you'd retire to Idaho just to ensure your kids inherit $10 million instead of $9 million, don't let the door hit you on the way out.