TACOMA, Wash. — Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards touched on public safety, pandemic recovery, homelessness and housing in her 2022 State of the City address Thursday night.
In the first portion of her address, Woodards acknowledged rising crime within the city.
Homicides remained the same year over year, with 31 both in 2020 and 2021. However, the city saw a 15% increase in vandalism and property destruction, a nearly 20% increase in assaults, a 66% increase in motor vehicle theft and an 85% increase in arson, according to city data.
"We know that everyone is feeling the effects of these crimes," Woodards said.
Woodards also drew attention to the current vacancies at the Tacoma Police Department, with 50 jobs open out of 364 positions. The current vacancy rate at the department sits at 14%, while the city normally averages a 4% vacancy rate.
"When it comes to this issue, the state of our city is unacceptable," Woodards said.
Woodards said the new Tacoma Police Chief Avery Moore is actively working on recruiting more officers and the city council approved $25,000 hiring bonuses for qualified lateral officers in order to compete with other cities whose departments are also understaffed.
"We cannot keep our community safe without police," Woodard said. "They are part of the solution."
Woodards also referenced a program intended to help shoulder the impacts vandalism and crime are having on businesses, including funds for temporary private security enhancements and a window replacement fund.
However, local business owners have previously urged the city and police department to do more to address crime, saying the fund itself is not enough to mitigate the negative impacts of crime on their businesses.
The mayor also announced a new program, Tacoma's Police-Community Reconciliation. Funded by a grant from Microsoft, the program involves an acknowledgment from the city of past and present harm and "specific and concrete acts of repair."
Woodards touched on homelessness and affordable housing in her speech, saying the city must "do more" to address the homelessness crisis. The mayor said 57 units of permanent supportive housing are slated for construction and more than 480 permanent supportive housing units were provided funding for construction and are slated to be completed in the next two years.
The city is close to doubling its shelter capacity, and implementing a program to train more qualified shelter staff, which has limited the amount of shelter available in the past, Woodards said.
The mayor confirmed the city purchased a former Comfort Inn, which will be turned into 120 units of emergency housing and transitioned into permanent supportive housing after a period of two years.
In her speech, Woodards also touched on COVID-19 pandemic recovery.
Woodards said the city will continue to focus on investments in alternative career pathways, like the Healthcare Apprenticeship Pilot program, which pairs residents in Tacoma Housing Authority accommodations with training and apprenticeship options, including wrap-around services and a cash stipend.