By Aaron Allen, The Seattle Medium
Mark Solomon may be a new name to some, but for residents of South Seattle, he’s someone to watch. Last month, Solomon was appointed to the Seattle City Council to represent District 2, filling the vacancy left by Tammy Morales, who resigned in January—two years before her term was set to end. After five rounds of voting, Solomon was selected from a pool of seven finalists to represent the district, which stretches from the Chinatown-International District to Rainier Beach.
Solomon has made it clear he won’t be a candidate in November’s election.
“I made it clear that I want to focus on getting the work done and not be distracted by trying to do the work and running to keep the job,” Solomon said. “There are great candidates, all of whom serve our communities well. I look forward to whoever rises to the top. I look forward to being able to do a warm handoff to them and set them up for success.”
A lifelong Seattleite, Solomon brings a long record of public service, including a career in law enforcement with the Seattle Police Department and years as a community advocate. His motivation to step into this temporary council role is rooted in a deep respect for those who came before him.
“I wanted to emulate the great Sam Smith,” said Solomon. “The former and first Black city councilmember, Smith, who to me was an icon. He was the epitome of community service. When you called his office, a lot of times Sam was the one who would pick up the phone. As a councilmember I want to be that accessible to the people in this community.”
“If you need something, call me, and if I am unable to get back to you, someone in my office will. I have made it very clear to people in my office that when someone calls us, I expect that we call them back within 24 hours,” he added.
Solomon said the idea of applying gained traction after encouragement from friends, family, and community members.
“I also started getting calls from folks who said, ‘You know what? You should really consider this, you should really consider going for the appointment,’” Solomon said. “Having thought about it and doing some real deep thinking about it, and running before, I thought, why not?”
Now into his ninth week on the job, Solomon has set his sights on some of the city’s toughest challenges—from housing instability and gentrification to safety and equitable development.
“My comprehensive plan and those issues that are on the table—one of the biggest things that stand out for me is anti-displacement. I want to keep people in their homes,” Solomon said. “I don’t want to see our families being priced out, gentrified out. So one of the things I’m going to be doing is organizing an anti-displacement resource fair.”
He believes part of the solution lies in connecting families with available assistance.
“Because there are a lot of resources out there right now that are available for families, whether it’s utility discount programs, home repair programs, tax breaks for seniors—there are a lot of resources out here available through government agencies,” he said. “Community-based agencies that can help people stay in their homes.”
Solomon also aims to address generational wealth building and ensure Southeast Seattle isn’t left behind in the city’s growth.
“I want to make sure that our families can build generational wealth, and I am looking at using whatever resources are available to do that, including designing a comprehensive plan to make that reality,” he said. “I want to ensure that the rest of the city shares in the density that is coming. Because when I look at Southeast Seattle, when I look at District 2, we have the density. That density needs to be shared.”
He strongly supports Mayor Bruce Harrell’s “One Seattle” vision, especially its public safety focus in neighborhoods hard-hit by the pandemic, including Little Saigon, 12th and Jackson, and the downtown core.
“I support the mayor’s ‘One Seattle’ agenda and really addressing the public safety concerns of Little Saigon and what’s going on there,” Solomon said. “Because it’s not just going to be a law enforcement fix, it’s going to be a community holistic approach that’s really going to address this issue.”
“And it is not just about the drugs, it is also about the kids that are going to school in the area. They have to walk through this stuff every day,” he continued. “It’s about the human suffrage of the people who are in their addictions and what are we going to do to help those people.”
Solomon is especially vocal about the need to regulate after-hours clubs, which he says have become magnets for violence in District 2.
“Another priority is we have to do something to bring these after-hour clubs that are operating between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. in some form of regulation,” he said. “Because they are not supposed to be selling alcohol but they are and they are completely unregulated. And in District 2 there are at least three of them and all three have had extremely violent incidents that have occurred. Including several homicides. Just the other morning a shooting occurred in a club in the Rainier Beach area with one injured and one deceased making this issue even more urgent that we pass legislation to bring these clubs under regulation.”
While energized by the role, Solomon admits the adjustment hasn’t been without its challenges—especially when it comes to managing time.
“I’ve been at this gig coming up on nine weeks now, so I am still relatively new,” he said. “I am still learning a lot, still learning the lay of the land. I have to tell you though that I am having fun with this and enjoying interacting with my colleagues. Yes, there are policy differences and differences in opinions, but all those can be worked through.”
“The one challenge I am finding is time,” he added. “There’s so many people that I want to meet with, and there are so many people that want to meet with me, that it is just making sure that I carve out the time to do that and do the job of being a legislator.”
Solomon knows his time in office is temporary, but he’s determined to leave a lasting foundation for his district and its future leadership. His focus remains on protecting the vibrancy, culture, and resilience of the community he’s always called home.
“I keep thinking about in the face of what is happening on the national level, with the Trump administration, there seems to be a concerted effort, a blatant effort in my mind to erase the history or existence of certain individuals and cultures,” Solomon said. “I refuse to be erased. We should refuse to be erased.”
Source: Seattle Medium
