Seattle's mean streets

It's not just your imagination: Seattle's streets are a little meaner these days. Aggravated assaults, particularly with firearms, and robberies are on the rise. The property-crime rate in Seattle last year was second only to Memphis.

The mayor's budget proposal for six additional Seattle police officers is out of touch with the needs on the streets. Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels proposes only to pick up the salaries of six officers who already work for the department, salaries currently paid by Sound Transit. The mayor's budget assumes the cost of the officers and transfers them from traffic control on Third Avenue to regular patrol. That's a good thing, but not enough.

Over time, crime statistics blip up and down. Aggravated assault with a firearm has increased 26 percent over the first nine months of this year — from 214 the same period in 2005 to 269. Two years ago, the number of aggravated assaults with a firearm from January to September was 169.

In these rosy economic times, the mayor and City Council have the wherewithal to make citizens safer. Hiring the appropriate number of officers is one of the most important jobs the city does.

The number of Seattle sworn officers has been relatively stagnant over the years, even as the city's population has increased.

Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske says long-term prison sentences, which provided a measure of security, are lapsing. Gang activity is increasing.

Few politicians consider safe streets a specific identifiable legacy, but keeping the public safe, telling gangs Seattle is not a good place to do business, is a very important task.

Seattle is not one of the most dangerous cities in the U.S. St. Louis, Mo., owns that title, followed by places like Detroit and Flint, Mich., and Compton, Calif. Seattle is the 262nd most-crime-ridden city of 371 ranked.

But Seattleites never accepted being compared to other, less-livable places. Our residents compare Seattle with the way it used to be.

As Chief Kerlikowske said in a recent letter, "There is no substitute for sufficient police officers."

Councilman Peter Steinbrueck floated the idea of increasing the number of sworn officers by 250 over the next five years, which is too big a ding on the operating budget.

Between six and 250, there is a reasonable number of new officers who can be hired. It's the mayor's and council's job to find the right number and get new officers on the streets promptly.