City leaders in Federal Way say the number of reported crimes have drastically reduced over the past few years.
Federal Way had nine murders in 2016, seven in 2017, and one in 2018.
Mayor Jim Ferrell credits officers and the community for the improvement. For a city of nearly 100,000 people, he says it’s quite the accomplishment.
But it’s not just the murder rate. Ferrell says crimes that affect the quality of life are way down.
“Residential burglaries are way down, car theft is down 16 percent, regular theft is down 18 percent, violent crime is down 24 percent,” Ferrell said. “We’ve really got a strategy that we’re employing to make sure that we have a great presence, that we have a number of officers down there, and a lot of the key indicator crimes are down.”
Ferrell said the reduction in crime helps with general progress too. As the crime rate goes down, the city is making other improvements too. The light rail will go through town in a few years, and the city just finished a new arts and entertainment center.
“Federal Way is really changing before our very eyes,” Ferrell said. “That’s one of the things, we’re really building the future in Federal Way right now, and with new businesses coming in and the infrastructure coming in, it really is fascinating to see this growing right in front of us.”