Ryan Mello Outlines Comprehensive Vision for Pierce County's Future

Campaign Website - Ryan Mello

[00:00:00] Crystal Fincher: Welcome to Hacks & Wonks. I'm Crystal Fincher, and I'm a political consultant and your host. On this show, we talk with policy wonks and political hacks to gather insight into local politics and policy in Washington state through the lens of those doing the work with behind-the-scenes perspectives on what's happening, why it's happening, and what you can do about it. Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get the full versions of our Friday week-in-review show and our Tuesday topical show delivered to your podcast feed. If you like us, the most helpful thing you can do is leave a review wherever you listen to Hacks & Wonks. Full transcripts and resources referenced in the show are always available at officialhacksandwonks.com and in our episode notes.

Today, we'll be speaking with a candidate for Pierce County Executive. But before we get into that conversation, let's review what the county executive does. The county executive is the chief administrator for the county government - the role is similar to a CEO in a private company. Their key responsibilities include: Executive branch management - they oversee all administrative operations like staffing, budgeting, departments, procedural decisions. If it happens in county government, the buck stops with the county executive. Strategic leadership - so they're responsible for addressing complex county issues and setting long-term goals. Policy implementation - ensuring that the county policies and state, federal, local laws are all properly executed and enforced. Budget preparation - so every year they create and present a comprehensive budget proposal to the County Council outlining the planned operations and expenditures for the upcoming year. And long-term planning - so developing plans for capital improvements like infrastructure projects and economic development initiatives. The Pierce County Executive is elected to a four-year term and they have term limits - so two consecutive terms are the most they can serve, or eight years.

Well, I am excited today to be welcoming Pierce County Councilmember and candidate for Pierce County Executive, Ryan Mello. Welcome!

[00:02:20] Ryan Mello: Crystal, thank you - thanks for having me.

[00:02:22] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely - very pleased to have you. So you are running for Pierce County Executive. This is a very big deal - there's a lot of people talking about this, excited about it. What made you decide to run?

[00:02:36] Ryan Mello: I'm really excited to be running for County Executive - the role is such an impactful role - or it can and should be, as you noted. I decided to run because I've been in local government for some time, and I've really seen the power of local government. We are the unit of government closest to the people and we have the most, I think, to offer to keep folks safe, provide housing options, solutions to the homelessness crisis, and other major challenges facing our communities. So, we are the frontline of defense and the frontline of providing services to people - and it really matters what values we bring to the community and to these real challenges. And I've learned in my time in local government that it really takes bringing all of us together in order to move us forward. Tacoma could be knocking it out of the park on homelessness solutions or the behavioral health crisis or building affordable housing. But if all the other communities in Pierce County - the other 22 cities and towns in the county - aren't also pulling their weight and moving us forward, then I'm not going to say that the work that Tacoma is doing doesn't matter - because it absolutely matters - but it is so much harder. We all need to be rowing in the same direction on these really big challenges. And that's what I'm excited to do as the next county executive - is to help make sure that no matter where you live in Pierce County, that you have the same access to justice, you have housing options, we are really addressing the homelessness crisis and these really big challenges. So I'm excited to roll up my sleeves and make sure every corner of Pierce County is able to thrive.

[00:04:23] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. Well, as county executive, you'd be overseeing those aspects of public safety - including law enforcement, emergency management, behavioral health, and social services. So how is Pierce County doing in those areas? And how would you coordinate these different departments to create a more comprehensive public safety strategy?

[00:04:45] Ryan Mello: We could be doing so much more and so much better. The current county executive, I think, is really holding us back on so many fronts. And his handpicked successor for county executive - because right now, due to term limits, it's an open seat - and his handpicked successor is just going to be more of the same of Bruce Dammeier, more of the backwards kind of policies and not moving us forward. Her record in Olympia for the last six years demonstrates that, and I don't think that's what folks are in the market for. They're in the market for real solutions to community safety, behavioral health, and the challenges that are facing us. So right now, we are working really hard at the County Council to try to bring solutions to the table on these major challenges. But we're constantly met with resistance by the current County Executive, whose job it is to implement the policies that we pass and the funding that we put on the table at the County Council. For example, we have a rise in homelessness in Pierce County. Year over year, we have a 23% rise in homelessness - and that's based on what we call our homelessness Point-In-Time Count. And we really want to bring more temporary housing options - so that folks have options to get out from living on the street or living in their car and into a stable, well-managed option like a tiny home village. Right now, Crystal - in our land use code in Pierce County, we are prohibited from siting options like tiny home villages in Pierce County. And that makes us less safe - your question about safety - there's lots of things the current county executive is doing to meet us with resistance to make us less safe. One of those things is not providing safe, well-managed options throughout Pierce County to get folks living unsheltered on the streets into transitional housing like a tiny home village so that they can stabilize themselves and get themselves ready for the next step in their housing plan. So we can be doing so much more at the county. We want to be coordinating much more to deliver therapeutic court and diversion programs to get at root causes of folks' criminal activity. Right now, we don't have that offering of behavioral health options and therapeutic court options throughout the county like we should. So these are just examples I'm offering to you about how the current county executive continues to meet us with resistance as we try to really get at the root causes of these major challenges.

[00:07:30] Crystal Fincher: Yeah, there has been a lot of resistance. There has been a lot of contention. It looks like there may be some management issues that are creating some problems with the delivery and availability of services. On the ground - for people who aren't closely paying attention to news, but who see what's happening in their communities, who've seen the increase in homelessness, who feel like there is more disorder - what difference could they expect to see under a Mello administration?

[00:07:59] Ryan Mello: Under a Mello administration, we're going to take homelessness much more seriously. I'm going to have someone in our administration, who's responsible for coordinating homelessness response throughout the county, report directly to the county executive. So we're going to really elevate the seriousness of our response. We're going to truly bring all 23 cities and towns and 13 school districts together to coordinate in really authentic and meaningful ways on solutions to homelessness. That's going to be different - this county executive is not doing that. And that's really important to understand because we know through our homelessness census, the Point-In-Time Count, one of the first questions we ask is - Where is your last known zip code? And that's an important data point because for so many years now, there's this myth that homelessness is an urban problem - and we both know it is not. We know when we ask that question - What is your last known zip code? - we get data that tells us that folks experiencing homelessness come from each and every zip code in Pierce County, each and every one. This is not an urban issue - folks come from each and every zip code - which means we need to have a delivery system and a homelessness response system that is available throughout the entire county because we know that people have a better chance at succeeding and stabilizing their life when they remain closer to their social network.

So many young people, so many kids are experiencing homelessness with their families. The face of homelessness has changed over the last six or so years. We're experiencing more families with kids and more elderly folks who are experiencing homelessness. And we know that a kid who's still trying to go to school while experiencing homelessness - living in their car, couch surfing and being in a different house every other week, or trying to live in a shelter on the streets - that is not a way to learn. It's not a way to be productive, obviously. So to the point where we need to provide shelter options and stabilizing options in all corners of Pierce County so that folks have a better chance at succeeding and stabilizing themselves when they can stay closer to their social network, closer to the school their kids go to, closer to their work site if they're working. And so many homeless folks are actually working full-time, but still living in their car or living on the street because they can't afford housing. So this is why we need to provide these kinds of options closer to where people have their social network and their social structure. So a Mello administration is going to be - we're going to take it much more seriously. We're going to provide housing options - well-managed, safe options all over Pierce County - and we're going to bring all cities and towns together to participate in solutions.

[00:10:53] Crystal Fincher: How do you work through some of the issues that the current executive seems to articulate and stand up for, in saying - Other communities don't want that there. They don't want issues that are perceived to come with it. This is something that is perceived more as an urban problem. - and being hesitant to site or locate these facilities or services that can help in the communities where they're frankly needed. How do you address that?

[00:11:24] Ryan Mello: The way that I've begun to address it is twofold. First is through data. I think when a lot more decision makers really see the data, see that the folks who are experiencing homelessness are people like you and I. They're folks who are often employed and who maybe had a major health emergency that drew down their financial safety net. And now they're homeless because they had a major medical issue happen - they're still working full-time, but they don't have the income to stay housed. There's actually a pretty large portion of our homeless population that are victims of domestic violence, folks with kids, elderly folks. So again, looking at the data, I think many decision makers begin to change their frame of reference about what it means to be homeless in America, what it means to be homeless in Pierce County in 2024 - and really helps tamper down these myths that homeless folks are drug addicts, they all have mental illness, or they're all suffering alcohol addiction. Now, are some of our homeless population suffering from substance use disorder because they have been living on the streets for so long? Yes, they are and we have to provide better behavioral health and substance use disorder services - 100%. Is that the driving reason for folks becoming homeless to begin with? No, it's not. The data tells us - no, it's not. And I know most policymakers want to deal with facts and reality and data. So that's the first thing - is really dealing with facts and data.

The second thing is going and touring and seeing homelessness solutions with your own eyes. I hosted a tour, just about a month ago, of a tiny home village here in Tacoma at First Christian Church in a neighborhood in North Tacoma - at 6th and Orchard. First Christian Church has been hosting this tiny home village - it's about 50 tiny homes. It's a site that has families and young kids at it. So there's a little playground for kids and these kids go to school every day. Many of the families go to work every day. So we hosted the county executive and my colleagues on the County Council. We invited folks from Lakewood and Fife and Puyallup to join us on this tour to see firsthand with their own eyes what a homelessness solution like a well-managed tiny home village looks like. So they could clear out some of the myths about what it means to provide homelessness response system - see it with their own eyes, ask questions, see how well-managed it is, how clean it is, how orderly it is. And I think we just need to put in the hard work to do more of that. Because when people see it with their own eyes, they see that there are kids who wake up every day and go to school or parents who get up every day and go to work, but still have to live in this tiny home village because they don't have a better housing option and the alternative is living on the street. So those are my two chief strategies right now, Crystal - is data and having folks see with their own eyes some of our homelessness response system in action.

[00:14:26] Crystal Fincher: Now, another big challenge that the county is facing, the entire state is facing, is that of housing affordability. It's a problem that's exacerbating homelessness. It is fueling displacement. It is pushing people out of the communities where they've built connections and bonds, where they've raised families. It's preventing our seniors from being able to age in place, kids from having stable school communities. What specific strategies can you implement to make sure there's affordable housing available for everyone at all different levels of income?

[00:15:05] Ryan Mello: All those things are so true. And we've learned through our homeless census that the top driving reasons for folks becoming homeless to begin with are actually - number one, the lack of availability of affordable housing - an affordable place to live, just like what you said. The second reason is the lack of income to be able to afford housing. And the third is family crisis. Family crisis is like domestic violence, or a gay or lesbian or transgender young person getting kicked out of their home and no longer being welcome to their home and finding themself homeless. So again, number one reason is lack of available affordable housing. One of the things I'm so proud of is in early 2023, I got to lead the Pierce County Council in passing what we call the Maureen Howard Affordable Housing Act. Maureen Howard is a longtime affordable housing and homelessness champion in Washington state - she's been recognized countless times for her leadership. We lost her to cancer, unfortunately, shortly before we were able to pass this Affordable Housing Act and we named it in her honor. The Maureen Howard Affordable Housing Act - for the first time ever, generates dedicated revenue for permanently affordable housing throughout Pierce County. And we've made our first investments. We are actively building - and families are moving in - to a 256-unit housing development in Spanaway because of the Maureen Howard Affordable Housing Act. Families started moving in in August of this year. And these are units that are big enough for families - more than half of those 250 housing units are two- and three-bedrooms, meaning they're large enough for families. And that's just one example. So what are we doing? We are providing really critical local financial capital for affordable housing developers to build in Pierce County. Leverage those dollars with state and federal grants - we've really learned that, yes, there are state and federal resources, but we cannot compete with those state and federal resources if we don't have local dollars ready to match. Having local dollars is essential to qualifying and competing well for state and federal affordable housing dollars. So people ask - Why does King County get all the money? Why is King County so successful in building affordable housing? Well, one of the reasons is they've had these kinds of local dollars at their disposal, so they compete really well for state and federal dollars - their community is willing to invest in it. For the longest time, Pierce County has not been willing to do that - until recently.

So the Maureen Howard Affordable Housing Act has already demonstrated its ability to build permanently affordable homes, and it will continue to. I get a report, Crystal, every four months. The Council has requested a report from the Human Services Department every four months that asks - How many affordable housing units are in the development pipeline? And the last report I got, which was about three weeks ago now, showed that there are little over 3,200 units in the development pipeline that are permanently affordable. That's really exciting, that's more than we've ever seen. And it's because we have dedicated financial capital that can be leveraged and the development community can count on it. So subsidizing middle-income and lower-income housing, first and foremost, is the role for county government so that we can build more permanently affordable housing. We're doing other things like reforming our affordable housing code and our land use code so that we can build more affordable housing, more housing options - things like duplexes, triplexes, townhomes, more options for folks to afford. Things like townhomes that are a bit more less expensive to build than large lot homes. So we're working hard to help the marketplace build more housing at all price points, but really our attention in government - the for-profit luxury stuff is going to take care of itself, I'm not in the business of subsidizing luxury housing. I am in the business of subsidizing middle-income, lower-income housing so folks can be able to put a roof over their head and that affordable housing developers are incentivized to build in this marketplace and build more affordable housing right here in Pierce County.

[00:19:42] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. I also want to talk about an issue top of mind for so many people in the community, and that is access to the healthcare that people need when they need it - particularly women seeking reproductive care, abortion care, queer and trans communities seeking the care that they need. And just from a general public perspective, just the access to care - which more people have fortunately now, but we still have a ways to go. As Pierce County Executive, you will be managing a sizable public health apparatus. How can you ensure that people will have access to the care that they need when they need it?

[00:20:27] Ryan Mello: Yeah, this is so important. We've been knocking on lots of doors. And when I ask the open-ended question at the door about - What's so important to you? - I hear time and time again that access to healthcare and access to reproductive healthcare. It comes up every day when I'm out knocking on doors. As you noted, I will have the opportunity to help lead the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department as the next county executive, and my opponent does not share my values and the values of most people in Pierce County in this regard. My opponent for county executive has a 0% Pro-Choice Washington scorecard. She's voted repeatedly in her six years in the Legislature to not provide equitable healthcare and provide reproductive healthcare for women. She's voted against the Shield law, which is all about making sure that, especially the women who are fleeing states where they cannot get reproductive health care - come to places like Pierce County, Washington to provide that inclusive healthcare - that their technology will be shielded, their employers won't find them, their states won't find them to do really horrible things to them when they go back home to Idaho or Wyoming or some other state. So that's just one example of the record my opponent holds. So we're going to make sure that our health department is holding the healthcare system accountable in Pierce County. We're going to be raising our voice in Olympia to make sure that we are protecting women's reproductive freedom and transgender inclusive healthcare. One of the things that I got to work on on the Tacoma City Council - which was my role before this - was we were doing bargaining with our employees. And oftentimes in bargaining - when employees are asking for a new benefit, oftentimes management feels like they need to get something in return. Well, we were in the middle of bargaining with our employees. And as an out gay man, I knew that our transgender employees did not have the same kind of healthcare coverage as everybody else. And so I put on the table that we were going to provide transgender inclusive healthcare to all of our employees in Tacoma, and we weren't going to ask for anything in return - this was going to be something we were going to proudly give to our employees. And I convinced my colleagues to do it - luckily, it wasn't a big fight. After several conversations, they understood that this was a really important equity issue. And we were proud to provide transgender-inclusive healthcare at that time in the City of Tacoma. So that's just an example of - who's in the room, who's making decisions - their lived experience really matters. And I'll be bringing those voices and those experiences in all of my leadership roles at the many decision-making tables I'll have the opportunity to be at as the next county executive.

[00:23:17] Crystal Fincher: Now, climate change and environmental conservation are important issues that you've consistently highlighted. What concrete steps would you take as county executive to make Pierce County more environmentally sustainable and to mitigate the impacts that we're currently seeing?

[00:23:36] Ryan Mello: There's so many reasons why I want to serve as the next county executive. Chief among them is making sure we're leaving a planet to our kids and grandkids that is worthy of them, and that we're building communities that are highly livable, healthy, and equitable for everyone. Right now, you can be in one zip code, just a couple of zip codes away, and you will see a life expectancy of close to a dozen years greater. So in white parts of Pierce County, compared to neighborhood zip codes where we have predominantly people of color, you'll see in those communities of color literally a dozen-year difference in life expectancy. Those are just facts. And this gets to your question about climate change and our environment and the place we're building and living for people, because this is all connected. We need to be building communities that are racially equitable - that no matter your race, no matter your income, you have the same ability to live a healthier life, have the same air quality as your white counterparts or your middle income and wealthy counterparts, just a couple of zip codes away. Your zip code should not dictate your life expectancy. And right now it does. And that's unacceptable. We're going to work really hard to make sure that the communities we're building have access to parks, access to a better transportation system so you can get out of your car and not dependent on your car to run your life. That you can be free to walk and bike, to get around, to get to school, to get to work, to go on a walk after dinner with your family and get some exercise. The freedom to do that is so important. The freedom to live a healthier life with your family is absolutely essential. And right now we have different communities that are just built differently, and not everyone has the freedom to live a safe life and a life where they can just live an active lifestyle - and everyone deserves the freedom to do that.

So we're going to build communities where folks can do that. We're going to really limit sprawl, which has a direct correlation to climate change. The more we sprawl over our farmlands and forest lands and habitat lands directly correlates to greenhouse gas emissions and the pollution we put into the atmosphere - really bad for the environment, really bad for climate change, and makes us less resilient for impending climate crisis. But urban sprawl, as we continue to build and build and build across the landscape - not only is it really bad for climate change and causes greenhouse gases, but it's really bad for taxpayers. We cannot afford to serve sprawling housing developments with all of the necessary services. It's really expensive for taxpayers. All those sprawling housing developments need roads and utilities like water and power and sewers. They need schools and they expect the sheriff to come when they call - and parks. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. So sprawl is not only bad for the environment, but sprawl is really bad for taxpayers. So how we grow, how we build our communities is really top of mind for me, as the next county executive - to build much higher quality neighborhoods, neighborhoods where people can have the freedom to live high-quality, safe, healthy lives and be much better for taxpayers.

[00:27:10] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. And I just have to say, I'm so just happy and gratified to hear you talking about not only how it is great for the environment, but that it is really expensive. Sprawl is hugely expensive for cities. And as so many cities and counties are talking about budget challenges that they're having, addressing one of the root causes being sprawl is so important. And I'm pleased to hear that that's on your radar to be managing - that will certainly pay off in a way that is meaningful and reflected in the budget and beyond. Now, you've also advocated for improved public transit and transportation infrastructure. So what is your plan to work with other regional entities to enhance transportation and mobility options throughout Pierce County?

[00:28:04] Ryan Mello: A lot of folks don't understand what the county executive does. I get that all the time - What does the county executive do? - and that's also why I'm so grateful for opportunities like this to be able to share. The county executive - its job is to be the chief executive officer of county government, make sure county government works, make proposals to the county council on budget and policy. And one of the major roles of the Pierce County executive is to play a leadership role on a myriad of governing boards. We already talked a little bit about the public health department and leading the public health department. But another major role of the county executive is to serve on the Sound Transit Board and the Pierce Transit Board. So you're on these governing boards - the current county executive, Bruce Dammeier - in his eight years as county executive, has never taken his turn being the Chair of the Sound Transit Board. Not once. And it is customary and tradition to rotate between the three counties - that the county executives from the three counties take their turn to be Chair of the Sound Transit Board. Bruce Dammeier has not done that. Instead, he lobs bombs and criticism - but never takes the leadership and responsibility to help lead this really important agency, which is building out a 21st century transit system to connect all corners of our three-county central Puget Sound region, which is growing massively. We are growing in population and we're growing in jobs, and we need a transit system that matches the need in this region. So I'm going to be eager to serve on the Sound Transit Board. I'm going to be eager to take my turn to be Chair of the Sound Transit Board. We're going to dig in - the south Puget Sound absolutely deserves its fair share of services. And again, I'm not one of those leaders who - I don't believe in just throwing bombs and making criticism without doing the hard work to try to correct things. Sound Transit absolutely needs to pay attention to south Puget Sound - we absolutely deserve our transit access and we're going to work hard to get it.

So right now, we've extended Link Light Rail in Tacoma - just last year, we extended by about one and a half miles. It previously just served downtown Tacoma. It now serves Stadium District and Hilltop, and connects the major employers of our healthcare system on the Hilltop of Tacoma. So thousands of jobs and many neighborhoods are now connected by light rail in Tacoma, thanks to Sound Transit. We have more to do - to bring light rail from SeaTac Airport to Tacoma, absolutely. And Sound Transit offers many other critical services like Sounder commuter rail, which is already in existence. And we have in our plans to extend Sounder commuter rail through Tacoma, Lakewood, and DuPont to the south part of our county. A lot of people just think about Sound Transit and light rail. Yes, it's important. Yes, we're going to work hard to connect us in the South Sound with light rail - absolutely. And Sounder commuter rail is a big service that connects a lot of people to opportunity, to job centers. And Sounder Express bus service is also a current service of Sound Transit that thousands of people ride in Gig Harbor and Puyallup and Lakewood and Tacoma today, Sumner. So these are really important services that we need to keep our eye on - continue to expand them so that more people have access to transit. And Pierce Transit, our local service, is really important so that people can lead independent lives. About 20% of people in Pierce County - I think more than people know - 20% of people do not have a car. One-fifth of our population doesn't have a car - they're either too young to drive, maybe they're aging - they still deserve to live a long, independent life and having access to transit allows them to do that. Or part of that one-fifth of the population that doesn't have a car is because it's so expensive. The cost of a car payment, insurance, maintenance of the car, parking, all of it - it's really expensive to have your own car. So when folks can take transit to run their life, they can pocket that savings and spend that money on their housing or their education or their kids' clothing or to put food on the table. So it's really important that we build out a transit system that meets people's needs so that people can really have access to opportunity and be able to afford to run their life.

[00:32:34] Crystal Fincher: Are you planning on participating in the Week Without Driving this year?

[00:32:37] Ryan Mello: I am - yeah, I've done it before and will do it again. Have you done it?

[00:32:41] Crystal Fincher: I have done it. Lots of insights-

[00:32:43] Ryan Mello: So much insight.

[00:32:45] Crystal Fincher: -when you do that. I don't commute, I drive occasionally for this and that. I do own a car. But it is nice to have the option not to drive, to not be forced to drive everywhere. If I need to go into downtown, that I don't have to park if I don't want to - if there's a convenient option. Light rail throughout Tacoma is fantastic and wonderful - I've been on it several times. So yeah, big, big, big fan - it does so much for so many people in the community when people can get around by whatever method works best for them.

[00:33:21] Ryan Mello: And it's incredibly humbling to participate in the Week Without Driving - as I think, in my world, policymakers have a responsibility to walk in other people's shoes. And the Week Without Driving is one of those experiences that humbles you. Is it inconvenient? Yes, because you have to rearrange your world to run your life for that week. For those of us that are so privileged to own our own vehicle and can just hop in it to run our life, it humbles you big time to walk in someone else's shoes and forced to really experience - Oh my gosh, I have to plan so much extra time to get to that meeting or that event or get my groceries. There's no substitute to walking in other people's shoes to see what it's like.

[00:34:07] Crystal Fincher: There isn't. And I wonder if that has informed your opinion and advocacy for making sure streets are safe for people walking, riding bikes, driving. There've been some horrific tragedies that we've seen of people being hit and killed by drivers on bikes, we've lost children. Has that helped form your understanding and fueled your advocacy in that way?

[00:34:35] Ryan Mello: Oh, 100% - again, no substitute. And it's gotten me to be a more passionate advocate for a safer transportation system for all modes. And it allows me to be, I think, a better advocate in the board room - right now I do currently serve on the Pierce Transit Board, as an example. So I can be a much more passionate advocate for simple things like bus shelters. We're in the middle of rolling out improvement of bus shelters. Like when you do the Week Without Driving in October, you have an appreciation for the weather in the Northwest - and so I am that much of a better advocate for better shelters that get you out of the elements while you're waiting for your bus. A simple thing like a bench and a better shelter - how it's designed to be more hospitable for sitting in the rain in the Northwest in October and November. I've become a better advocate for more frequent bus service because I know what it's like to stand there - and when your trip is missed and you're waiting a whole 'nother 45 minutes for your bus. It's really inconvenient - makes you miss your meeting, makes you late to work, makes you late to class. And what it's like to have to cross the street to change buses and how inconvenient it is to have to transfer buses.

And your question about a safer transportation system - I've renewed my advocacy for a safer transportation system when in 2022, we lost Michael Weilert on the streets of Parkland in Pierce County. He was walking his bike in a crosswalk in Parkland with his buddy - he was trying to get to a park. This is a young man, about 12 years old, Michael Weilert. He was hit and killed in a crosswalk walking his bike - just crossing the street in Parkland, Washington. That galvanized our community to take much more seriously setting an ambitious goal to have zero traffic-related deaths and serious injuries by 2035. So Michael Weilert's tragedy emboldened us to, within two months - which is lightning speed in local government - we gave direction to embark on a Vision Zero planning program, which is going to chart the way forward for how we get zero traffic-related deaths and serious injuries by the year 2035. It's a very ambitious goal, but one worth setting and figuring out how we get there. And that's because of the tragedy of Michael Weilert, and his mom, Amber Weilert, who's been the face of this work and she's not giving up. And she's with us every time we ask - to come to a hearing or make an impact in a public setting to champion Michael's life and memory. So we are working really hard on Vision Zero. And as the next Pierce County executive, one of the things I'm going to do is appoint a chief safety officer in our Planning & Public Works Department. I think we need to lead with safety. We should not be leading with how quickly can we move cars from point A to point B. Of course, everybody wants to get to where they want to get to, but I think it's more important that people get to where they're going to get to safely. And that is why I'm going to appoint a chief safety officer in our Planning & Public Works Department - so we have someone who wakes up every single day to make our transportation system demonstrably safer than it is today.

[00:37:55] Crystal Fincher: Absolutely. Now I want to talk about economic development - what are the biggest challenges facing Pierce County businesses? And what's your plan to help them attract new business and fuel the creation of living wage jobs in Pierce County?

[00:38:11] Ryan Mello: I love this question. We've been doing some good work with some one-time dollars we've received from the federal government to support new entrepreneurs and new businesses. We've said to ourselves that we want to come out of the pandemic stronger than we went into it. One of the areas that we've been able to do just that is in economic development. We've started a program we call the Community Navigator Program, where we partner with Black, Indigenous, people of color-led organizations like the Tacoma-Pierce County Black Collective, like the Asia Pacific Cultural Center, like Mi Centro. We're partnering with them to deliver this Community Navigator Program that helps new entrepreneurs - BIPOC entrepreneurs, folks who want to start a business or grow their business - have access to all the things that it takes to start a business. Because it is hard to start a business - it is not straightforward. And having peers to talk to about the intricacies of starting a business, just having that cohort model and having other people to weather those storms and talk about what barriers you have and how you're clearing those barriers. Helping pay for consultant help, like access to a lawyer and human resources professionals, to help with that first lease for that business or how to hire employees and what taxes do I need to pay and what permits do I need to open this business? All of that is not intuitive and not straightforward. So helping people navigate that with cultural competency - and that's why we're investing in BIPOC-led organizations to help do that - buy-in for organizations is so important. And we're getting real results. We have, with our Community Navigator Program that I'm talking about - it's about three years old - and we have a little over 400 new businesses that have started up or grown because of that. And it's really exciting. So doing more of that, continuing what's working, like supporting our Community Navigator Program.

When I go and visit an employer, I always ask - How's business and what can we do to help? And consistently, I get an answer of two things - I can't find a skilled workforce, I can't find employees who have the skills I need to hire. And I also get a response about the need for an improved transportation system so that folks can get, employees can get to work on time, can get to work, and that they can get goods to market. So those are the two reoccurring things I hear. So paying attention to those issues about a skilled workforce and continuing to work with - in our case here in Pierce County, our workforce development agency is called WorkForce Central - and we have great leadership there. The county executive has the pleasure of serving on the WorkForce Central board - there's a theme here, Crystal - so I'll be serving on the WorkForce Central board as the next county executive. And really continuing to make sure that we are thinking about our workforce for a 21st century economy. And that we're really listening to employers, doing what we need to do to upskill and reskill employees so that our employers have access to a skilled workforce. So I'll be spending a lot of time and attention on that. And then on our transportation system, we already talked a lot about transit - that's a really important thing that I'm hearing employers need to get employees to work. And we have a lot of transportation investments to make for all modes of transportation in Pierce County.

[00:41:41] Crystal Fincher: Now, I also want to touch on childcare because that is something that so many families are dealing with, that is impacting whether or not people can work, can become one of those skilled people who businesses can then hire. But the average cost of childcare is more expensive now than in-state tuition for college. It is so expensive for so many families. A lot of families - it's their number two expense, right behind housing. How can you help more families in Pierce County afford childcare?

[00:42:15] Ryan Mello: Yeah, great question. I hear this all the time. We have access to a relatively new funding stream. In my opinion, it's a weird name - it's called the Puget Sound Taxpayer Accountability Act. It's weird because that doesn't say anything - it's a bunch of gobbledygook, in my opinion. But this Puget Sound Taxpayer Accountability Act - dollars, they actually flow through, believe it or not, Sound Transit sales tax - off the construction sales tax. The Legislature put this in place when they authorized Sound Transit 3 - the acronym is PSTAA, Puget Sound Taxpayer Accountability Act. What does this have to do with childcare? This account flows through county government and the instructions from the Legislature - we can use it very broadly for anything related to helping with K-12 education and K-12 outcomes. Again, what does this have to do with childcare? This county council chose to make our very first investments of this PSTAA account for childcare businesses. So what can we do in county government? Well, we can make sure that there are many more high-quality, affordable childcare businesses providing childcare in Pierce County. We do that by helping more people open business. And we've already done that - we've made an allocation of the PSTAA account that I'm talking about of about $8 million. In 2022, we made this investment to help start up more childcare businesses - and we're seeing some results. First 5 FUNdamentals is a major organization in Pierce County who helps lead this work. So there's a lot going on in this space. We need to continue to incentivize and support new childcare businesses to start so there's more folks offering high-quality, affordable childcare here. We can continue to help invest in ECEAP - early childhood education - so that more folks can have access to free and low-cost, high-quality childcare through ECEAP and new business childcare startups, as an example. We're also scrubbing our land use code to make sure that childcare can be sited and offered in more parts of Pierce County so that our land use code is not a limiting factor to childcare businesses.

[00:44:35] Crystal Fincher: That's important. Now, I want to talk about the race itself - versus you and your Republican opponent. How are you going to win this race?

[00:44:47] Ryan Mello: We are running a really robust countywide campaign. We are really talking to as many voters as we possibly can through as many different platforms as possible - everything from knocking on people's doors and introducing myself, to in their mailbox, to where they listen to podcasts. So we have a growing campaign of staff and volunteers to do that. And that's really what we're doing - we're meeting voters where they're at, where they get information - sharing about us, sharing about the contrast between myself and my opponent. I do not believe my opponent shares the values and priorities of the people of Pierce County. She's extremely partisan and extremely conservative. When you look at her voting record for the last six years in Olympia, you'll see her extremely partisan and conservative voting record. Most things in Olympia pass in a very bipartisan way. The few things that get the most attention are the hotly contested, controversial votes - but those are really far and few between, as you know, Crystal. Most items that our Legislature pass are unanimous or wildly bipartisan. In the State House, where my opponent serves today, oftentimes when there's a 86-yes to 11-no vote - that's an example of a wildly bipartisan vote. If you look at my opponent's voting record, you'll see she's regularly - almost every time - one of the 11. That's evidence that she is too extreme for Pierce County, does not hold the values and priorities of the people of Pierce County. And we're going to talk to everyone who's going to vote before Election Day about who I am, my record of bringing bipartisan accomplishments for the issues that matter - housing, homelessness, the opioid crisis, the climate crisis - passing bipartisan solutions, really tackling, taking head on the issues that matter. And that my lived experience and my background really match the values and priorities of the people of Pierce County.

[00:46:50] Crystal Fincher: Well, I certainly thank you for taking this time with us today to share your vision, what you've done, what you're looking to do. If people want to get more involved with your campaign, where can they go?

[00:47:02] Ryan Mello: Well, Crystal, thank you for having me today and giving me the opportunity to share more with your listeners about our vision for Pierce County. I would invite anyone to go to RyanMello.com for more about me, who's supporting us, and how they can get involved. There's ways to volunteer with us and come to one of our campaign events. My mom says - Mello like Jello. So RyanMello.com - there's no W at the end - folks can just go to RyanMello.com and find out more about us.

[00:47:30] Crystal Fincher: Well, thank you so much, Ryan Mello - appreciate the time and we'll certainly be following your campaign as it progresses. Thank you.

[00:47:38] Ryan Mello: Thanks for having me.

[00:47:39] Crystal Fincher: Thank you for listening to Hacks & Wonks, which is produced by Shannon Cheng. You can follow Hacks & Wonks on Twitter @HacksWonks. You can catch Hacks & Wonks on every podcast service and app - just type "Hacks and Wonks" into the search bar. Be sure to subscribe to get the full versions of our Friday week-in-review shows and our Tuesday topical show delivered to your podcast feed. If you like us, leave a review wherever you listen. You can also get a full transcript of this episode and links to the resources referenced in the show at officialhacksandwonks.com and in the podcast episode notes.

Thanks for tuning in - talk to you next time.