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Explainers

Explainer

What Happened to Pier 58?

Charting the collapse and rebuild of a well-trodden waterfront walkway.

11/04/2020 By Annette Maxon

Explainer

Seattle’s Decade of Attempts to Fix the Police: A Timeline

Ten years before tear gas subsumed Capitol Hill, calls for an investigation into SPD began. What’s happened since?

07/20/2020 By Stefan Milne

Explainer

How Washington Survives Without a State Income Tax

Unlike other states, we only file one set of taxes come spring—so what fills Washington’s coffers?

04/08/2020 By Nicole Pasia

Explainer

Washington's Battle Against E-Cigarettes

With vaping and e-cigarette use on the rise, our region looks to cool the heat.

12/23/2019 By Ryan Phelan

Explainer

The Wolves of Washington Continue Their Comeback

A look at how the native predator has bounced back from near extinction.

09/24/2019 By Rosin Saez

Explainer

Seattle Spends More Money on Takeout Than Any Other U.S. City

As far as food movements go, we’ve nailed farm-to-table and we’re leading the way in app-to-table dining, too.

08/20/2019 By Sam Jones

Fixing Paradise

An Inside Look at the Paradise Inn Remodel

After a $24.5 million, two-year renovation, the classic Rainier hotel reopened in May 2019.

07/23/2019 By Allison Williams

Explainer

What the Heck Is Blockchain?

If cryptocurrency is virtual cash, blockchain is the security—and it’s only getting bigger.

05/29/2019 By Philip Kiefer

Explainer

Inside the Washington State Convention Center Expansion

That giant hole on Olive Way? All part of a $1.8 billion expansion that recently got underway.

04/23/2019 By Philip Kiefer

Explainer

Seattle Labor Unions Then and Now

Activism is in Seattle’s DNA. The city’s worker movement was, and remains, a prominent force in the political scene. But what’s changed and what’s stayed the same?

03/26/2019 By Rosin Saez

Explainer

How to Cope with Labor Day Traffic

Thanks to a growing population and booming economy, Seattle has some of the worst traffic in the country. So it’s no surprise that drivers have more to fear than the “usual” rush hour come Labor Day weekend. Brace yourself for the gridlock.

08/14/2018 By Jaime Archer

Explainer

Let the Special Olympic Games Begin!

The 50th annual Special Olympics descend upon us this summer. It’ll be the largest citywide sporting event in Seattle history.

06/19/2018 By Rosin Saez

Explainer

How to Move a Museum

The Burke Museum is moving. Here’s what it’ll take to transport millions of artifacts from the old space to the new

05/22/2018 By Rosin Saez

Explainer

How to Save an Orca Whale

The governor has assembled a task force to address Washington’s killer whale crisis. But saving our shrinking orca population is no small task.

04/20/2018 By Allison Williams

Explainer

Why the Hanford Nuclear Cleanup Is Still Happening 73 Years Later

And what the project stands to lose thanks to budget cuts.

03/27/2018 By Hayat Norimine

Convention Reinvention

What's New at Emerald City ComicCon 2018? Lawsuits, Wig Sales, and Doc Brown’s DeLorean

The convention returns for its 16th year of unabashed fandom.

02/27/2018 By Rosin Saez

Explainer

The Name King County Honors Martin Luther King Jr., But It Wasn’t Always That Way

It took a rookie county council member to reimagine the region as a salute to a civil rights hero, not a slave owner.

01/25/2018 By Allison Williams

Black Hole Fun

How Nobel-Winning LIGO Lab Detects Gravitational Waves

The LIGO Hanford facility was part of a breakthrough discovery that won the Nobel Prize in October after scientists “heard” ­ripples in space-time. This isn’t science fiction, though—it’s a cosmic thriller.

11/20/2017 By Allison Williams

Explainer

The Fine Print on Jenny Durkan's Free Community College Plan

Jenny Durkan wants to offer free community college tuition for Seattle public high school students. What does the Seattle Promise plan mean—and what would it cost?

10/20/2017 By Darren Davis

Explainer

Here's What Taxing Seattle's Richest Residents Would Look Like

In July, the Seattle City Council unanimously approved a city income tax, which could help ease the burden on low-income earners. Assuming the bill passes legal muster—and there's a chance it won't—here's how it will work.

08/22/2017 By Hayat Norimine

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