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The Port of Seattle sues Boeing over Lower Duwamish Waterway cleanup costs.

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The Port of Seattle sues Boeing over Lower Duwamish Waterway cleanup costs.


The taxpayer-funded Port of Seattle has sued Boeing, claiming it unfairly spent thousands and thousands of {dollars} on years of planning to scrub up air pollution within the Decrease Duwamish Waterway (LWD) that was largely brought on by the aerospace big.

Driving the information: In its 29-page grievance, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Courtroom in Seattle, the port contends it unfairly shouldered the identical whole prices as Boeing to check the waterway’s cleanup underneath an Environmental Safety Company (EPA) consent order.

  • In 2000, the port, together with Boeing, town of Seattle and King County, every agreed to pay one-quarter of the prices for the research that port officers believed “would take no quite a lot of years,” per the lawsuit.

Sure, however: The research has since dragged on for 22 years with prices exceeding $60 million, the go well with says.

  • With planning now nearing an finish and precise cleanup pending, the go well with says Boeing ought to reimburse the port thousands and thousands of {dollars} — and pay for many of the work forward — as a result of the corporate was “by far … the celebration with the best accountability” for polluting the waterway.

What they’re saying: “It’s now time for Boeing to pay its fair proportion,” the lawsuit says. “…Boeing has profited for many years partially by cheap disposal of its wastes by dumping them within the LWD.”

The opposite facet: “The Port of Seattle’s unilateral resolution at present to file a lawsuit in opposition to Boeing dangers upsetting years of good-faith negotiation and collaboration amongst numerous private and non-private events,” Boeing instructed Axios in a press release Thursday.

Background: Generally known as Seattle’s solely river, the Duwamish Waterway flows between the neighborhoods of Georgetown and South Park and thru Seattle’s industrial core into Elliott Bay.

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  • The EPA declared a 5-mile stretch of the decrease waterway a Superfund website in 2001.
  • Pollution that for many years flowed into the river — primarily, the probably cancer-causing toxins polychlorinated bicarbonates, or PCBs — have spawned a number of lawsuits, together with separate claims by town and state in opposition to chemical producer Monsanto.

Particulars: The newest lawsuit from the port recounts Boeing’s huge manufacturing operations for over 100 years close to the waterway at 10 main amenities, the place industrial and army plane, missiles and spacecrafts had been constructed.

Zoom in: It particularly zeros in on Boeing Plant 2, the place the corporate constructed “greater than 10,000 army plane” throughout around-the-clock manufacturing within the World Struggle II period, per the go well with.

  • After the warfare, Plant 2 “continued to function Boeing’s major plane manufacturing heart,” from which the corporate “pumped PCBs” and different toxins into the waterway “for many years,” the go well with says.

In the meantime, Boeing mentioned it has already undertaken “an early cleanup of a giant space” subsequent to Plant 2 at a value of $120 million, in addition to “restored over 5 acres of fish and wildlife habitat alongside the banks of the Duwamish.”



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Seattle, WA

Manhunt underway for Mason County shooting suspect

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Manhunt underway for Mason County shooting suspect


The Mason County Sheriff’s Office is currently searching for a convicted felon wanted in a recent shooting.

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The sheriff’s office says Michael Allen Beyer is wanted for first-degree assault and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.

Deputies believe Beyer was involved in a shooting that happened in Belfair on January 6.

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Beyer is considered armed and dangerous. If you see him, do not approach him and call 911 immediately.

Anyone with information regarding Beyer’s whereabouts is asked to call Detective Helser at 360-427-9670 x657, or Crime Stoppers of Puget Sound at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

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Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national coverage, plus 24/7 streaming coverage from across the nation.

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Two more Seattle restaurants close due to minimum wage hike

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Two more Seattle restaurants close due to minimum wage hike


Two more Seattle restaurants are calling it quits thanks to the untenable minimum wage hike.

At the same time that the Seattle minimum wage rose from $19.97 an hour to $20.76 an hour, the city ended the tip credit of $2.72. Under the previous rules, restaurants were able to pay $17.25 hourly wage if their staff earned at least $2.72 in tips per hour. But as cost of business continues to skyrocket in Seattle, a minimum wage hike without a tip credit is simply untenable for many small businesses.

Jackson’s Catfish Corner in Seattle’s Central District closed its doors in this new year. In an interview with Converge Media, owner Terrell Jackson argued Seattle is too expensive to operate in.

“I know that the minimum wages went up to 20 bucks an hour … I know that’s hard for my business as a small Black business,” Jackson said. “I’m not Amazon or Walgreens or Walmart who can pay their employees that much.”

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Jackson isn’t alone in his complaints.

More from Jason Rantz: Panic as Seattle restaurants may not survive massive minimum wage shift

A second West Seattle eatery closes, citing the minimum wage hike

Bel Gatto, a bakery and café, became the second West Seattle eatery to close its doors over the Seattle minimum wage hike. The owner posted a sign to the front door to thank supporters but said she can’t afford to stay open anymore.

“Our revenues, unfortunately, are not able to cover the close to 20% increase in mandated wages, salaries and payroll taxes put into effect by the Seattle City Council effective 1/1/25. This ruling has made the continuation of our bakery operations untenable,” the sign read.

The owner, Peter Levy, explained to the West Seattle Blog that, “we were approaching close to a break even status in the last quarter of 2024, but the requirement to absorb another $4,000 per month in payroll expenses with the new mandate by the city put a break even further from our grasp which is what led to the closure.”

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Last week, a video by Corina Luckenbach, owner of Bebop Waffle Shop in West Seattle, went viral as she said the minimum wage hike was forcing her to close after 11 years. She said she didn’t have an extra $32,000 a year to pay her staff what the city mandates.

More from Jason Rantz: Democrats blame Los Angeles fires on climate change to deflect from their own complicity

Will more restaurants close?

Ahead of the minimum wage hike, restauranteurs offered many warnings over what’s to come.

Ethan Stowell operates a number of Seattle’s top restaurants, including How to Cook a Wolf, Staple and Fancy, and Tavolata. He warned this change would be exceptionally costly for businesses in an industry notorious for razor-thin margins. And restaurants can’t merely raise menu prices again.

“I know everybody wants to say, ‘Just raise things (on the menu) a dollar or two,’ and that’s what it’ll be. That’s very simplified math. I wish it was that easy, but it’s not. This is a large increase that’s probably large enough to be equal to or close to what most restaurants in Seattle profit,” Stowell told “The Jason Rantz Show” on KTTH.

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Portage Bay Cafe co-owner Amy Fair Gunnar noted the minimum wage change will cost her about $45,000 more a month. She said restaurants will have to “seriously change what they’re doing or they’re going to close their doors.”

More from Jason Rantz: Here’s why Seattle residents vow to stop tipping in new year

Ignoring the warnings, mocking the business people

The warnings from restaurant owners were mostly ignored or mocked.

Efforts by the Seattle City Council to address the forthcoming crisis fell apart after activists said they didn’t want restaurants to get an exception. Council president Sara Nelson told “The Jason Rantz Show” they will take up the issue again this year but there’s no specific idea yet to forward for legislation. The Mayor of Seattle, Bruce Harrell, has been almost completely absent from the issue.

Left-wing voices, meanwhile, claim to not care. That if businesses “can’t afford to pay a living wage,” then they shouldn’t be in business.

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One reporter with The Stranger mocked one of the closures, quipping on X, “Has anyone ever eaten at bebop waffle lol.” Left-wing Seattleites condemned the business for “creating a right wing media darling to complain about paying people a living wage.”

KING 5 reporter Maddie White helped elevate this talking point by citing the National Low Income Housing Coalition, claiming “the average renter needs to make upwards of $40 an hour to afford rent.” But she’s quoting a stat for two-bedrooms. Minimum wage jobs aren’t meant to cover the cost of a single person renting a two-bedroom home or apartment.

Ironically, as activists dismiss the concerns of small business owners, they fail to acknowledge the inevitable consequence: when those businesses shut down, people lose jobs. A $20.76 hourly minimum wage — even with a $2.72 tip credit — means nothing if you’re unemployed.

Listen to The Jason Rantz Show on weekday afternoons from 3-7 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here. Follow Jason Rantz on X, Instagram, YouTube and Facebook.

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Seattle, WA

Reports: Seattle Seahawks to interview 2 candidates for OC job

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Reports: Seattle Seahawks to interview 2 candidates for OC job


A pair of candidates have surfaced in the Seattle Seahawks’ search for a new offensive coordinator.

An NFL insider’s view on Seahawks OC change and what’s next

The Seahawks are scheduled to interview Detroit Lions offensive line coach Hank Fraley and Chicago Bears interim head coach Thomas Brown, according to multiple reports. NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero first reported the news Thursday morning.

Seattle will interview Fraley on Friday and Brown on Saturday, according to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer.

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The Seahawks moved on from offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb on Monday after an up-and-down season for Seattle’s offense that included one of the worst rushing attacks in the league.

Fraley, 47, has been on Detroit’s coaching staff for the past seven seasons, including the past five as the team’s offensive line coach. Fraley has coached an offensive line that’s paved the way for one of the NFL’s best rushing attacks. The Lions rank third in Pro Football Focus’ run block grading and finished the regular season sixth in both rushing yards per game (146.4) and yards per carry (4.7).

During his time in Detroit, Fraley has helped develop four-time Pro Bowl center Frank Ragnow and three-time Pro Bowl right tackle Penei Sewell. As a player, Fraley started 123 games at center and guard over a 10-year NFL career with the Eagles (2001-05), Browns (2006-09) and Rams (2010). According to Breer, Fraley has done groundwork in searching for a pass game coordinator that he would pair with as an OC.

Brown, 38, began the season as Chicago’s passing game coordinator. He then was promoted to offensive coordinator when Shane Waldron, a former Seahawks assistant, was fired as OC on Nov. 12, and then to interim head coach when Matt Eberflus was fired on Nov. 29. Brown went 1-4 as the Bears’ interim head coach.

Brown was the Carolina Panthers’ offensive coordinator in 2023. Prior to that, he spent three seasons under head coach Sean McVay in various roles on the Los Angeles Rams’ coaching staff.

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