Gov. Gavin Newsom on Saturday signed a law that requires large California retailers to maintain gender neutral toy and childcare sections. The new law, Assembly Bill 1084, requires that retailers with 500 or more employees in the state of California “maintain a gender neutral section or area, to be labeled at the discretion of the retailer, in which a reasonable selection of the items and toys for children that it sells shall be displayed, regardless of whether they have been traditionally marketed for either girls or for boys,” according to the legislative counsel’s digest. Assemblyman Evan Low, D-Campbell, and Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia, D-Bell Gardens, introduced the bill.Low in an interview with The Sacramento Bee earlier this year said he was inspired to introduce the bill after he learned of Target’s 2015 decision to abolish gendered children’s sections. The bill was sponsored by gender-free fashion brand The Phluid Project,Join your host Sean Reynolds, owner of Summit Properties NW, and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal as he takes a look at this developing topic.https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article253949518.htmlSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/seattlerealestatepodcast)

Only in Seattle - Real Estate Podcast

#792 - Big California retailers must offer gender-neutral children’s aisles under new law

The days are quickly ticking down to next Monday&apos;s deadline when most Oregon and Washington teachers, health care workers and public employees need to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.Especially in more conservative swaths of the Pacific Northwest, elected officials remain fearful of a "mass exodus" of firefighters and health care professionals. They are trying different avenues to get governors Brown and Inslee to back off the vaccination deadline. But there are no signs the governors are open to delays.Spokane County Sheriff Ozzie Knezovich took to the department&apos;s YouTube channel the other day to deliver a 13-minute monologue directed at Washington Governor Jay Inslee."At the height of the pandemic, does it really make sense to terminate our health care workers, our firefighters, our EMS personnel?" Knezovich said.Knezovich said he is vaccinated against COVID-19 and encourages others to get the shot. But the sheriff said he can&apos;t stomach dismissals of hard-to-replace emergency responders who refuse the vaccine.Join your host Sean Reynolds, owner of Summit Properties NW, and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal as he takes a look at this developing topic.https://www.kuow.org/stories/pacific-nw-governors-hold-fast-on-vax-deadline-as-more-local-officials-warn-of-worker-exodusSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/seattlerealestatepodcast)

#791 - Pacific NW governors hold fast on vax deadline as more local officials warn of worker exodus

Business and civic leaders on Thursday called for immediate action and investment to address the mental health and substance abuse crisis in downtown Seattle.Executives from Amazon.com Inc., Vulcan Inc. and Weyerhaeuser Co. were among the approximately five dozen signers of the letter, which the Downtown Seattle Association sent to the City Council and Metropolitan King County Council. It was full of hair-raising tales of assaults, vandalism and other crime.Among other things, the letter asked the city to adopt all of the public safety and housing investments, including increasing the number of Community Service Officers (CSO), proposed in Mayor Jenny Durkan&apos;s 2022 budget.Join your host Sean Reynolds, owner of Summit Properties NW, and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal as he takes a look at this developing topic.https://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/news/2021/10/07/business-civic-leaders-downtown-action.htmlSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/seattlerealestatepodcast)

#790 - Seattle Business Leaders Demand Swift Action to Dire Situation in Downtown

Tesla says it will relocate its headquarters from Palo Alto, California, to Austin, Texas, though the electric car maker will keep expanding its manufacturing capacity in the Golden State.CEO Elon Musk gave no timeline for the move late Thursday when he addressed the company’s shareholders at Tesla’s annual meeting.Musk noted that cost of housing in the Bay Area has made it tough for many people to become homeowners and that translates into long commutes. Last year, tech giant Oracle Corp. decided to move its headquarters from Silicon Valley to Austin, saying the move would give its employees more flexibility about where and how they work.Join your host Sean Reynolds, owner of Summit Properties NW, and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal as he takes a look at this developing topic.https://fortworthbusiness.com/business/tesla-will-move-hq-from-california-to-texas/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/seattlerealestatepodcast)

#789 - Elon Musk says Tesla will move HQ from California to Texas

A Tacoma resident was sentenced to two years in prison Tuesday for setting fire outside the Seattle Police East Precinct during the CHOP occupation on Capitol Hill in June 2020.Isaiah Thomas Willoughby, who previously lived in Seattle, admitted he used gasoline to soak a debris pile outside the abandoned police precinct on June 12 and set it ablaze, as part of a plea agreement, according to a news release from Acting U.S. Attorney Tessa Gorman.The U.S. District Court in Seattle also imposed a three-year period of supervised release following the two-year sentence, according to the release.Surveillance video showed Willoughby, 36, lighting the fire and walking away. The fire, the U.S. attorney’s office said, put some protesters who were camping in the area at risk and scorched the side of the police building before it was extinguished by other protesters.Join your host Sean Reynolds, owner of Summit Properties NW, and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal as he takes a look at this developing topic.https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/crime/chop-protester-sentenced-2-years-in-prison-for-lighting-fire-outside-seattle-police-east-precinct/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/seattlerealestatepodcast)

#788 - CHOP protester sentenced to 2 years in prison for lighting fire outside Seattle police East Precinct

Drivers heading south on U.S. Route 183 in Austin, Texas, have become familiar with a billboard urging city police officers to relocate to Spokane, Washington, to become deputy sheriffs and collect a $15,000 bonus. The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office has targeted Texas’ capital city, already in a personnel crunch as the homicide rate reached a record high, along with other jurisdictions that recently slashed police budgets. Amid the “defund the police” movement in 2020, the Austin City Council cut the police budget by about one-third and eventually lost 150 officers. In August, shortly before the city reached its all-time record for annual homicides, the council restored the funding. “Austin is an incredibly fast-growing city. So we have more people coming in. We are losing about 15 police officers a month,” Lars Trautman, national director of the Right on Crime program for the Austin-based think tank Texas Public Policy Foundation, told The Daily Signal. Join your host Sean Reynolds, owner of Summit Properties NW, and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal as he takes a look at this developing topic.https://www.dailysignal.com/2021/10/01/heres-what-happened-to-murder-rates-when-texas-capital-defunded-police/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/seattlerealestatepodcast)

#787 - Here’s What Happened to Murder Rates When Texas’ Capital Defunded Police

The Seattle City Council on Monday unanimously voted in favor of a resolution supporting the decriminalization of psilocybin and other psychedelics.The resolution, which is nonbonding and serves only as a recommendation to the Seattle Police Department, declares "that the investigation, arrest, and prosecution of anyone engaging in entheogen-related activities should be among The City of Seattle’s lowest law enforcement priorities." The council supports "full decriminalization of these activities."Psilocybin, or "shrooms," is a hallucinogenic drug that falls under the most restrictive Schedule I, which the U.S. federal government defines as "drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse."Join your host Sean Reynolds, owner of Summit Properties NW, and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal as he takes a look at this developing topic.https://www.foxnews.com/us/seattle-city-council-unanimously-supports-decriminalizing-psychedelic-mushroomsSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/seattlerealestatepodcast)

#786 - Seattle City Council unanimously supports decriminalizing psychedelic mushrooms

Amazon.com Chief Executive Officer Andy Jassy is open to a reset in his company’s sometimes-contentious relationship with Seattle, but made clear that he’s hedging his bets with plans to expand in neighboring cities.The world’s largest online retailer is by far the biggest private employer in Seattle with more than 50,000 workers. That distinction has proved a headache in recent years, with some residents and government officials blaming the company for exacerbating homelessness and traffic. “I’d say the last five years, the city council has become less enamored with business or with Amazon,” Jassy said during an event hosted by technology news site GeekWire. “It’s just been rougher.”Join your host Sean Reynolds, owner of Summit Properties NW, and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal as he takes a look at this developing topic.https://www.seattletimes.com/business/amazon/amazon-ceo-citing-rougher-patch-with-seattle-looks-to-burbs/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/seattlerealestatepodcast)

#785 - Amazon CEO, citing ‘rougher’ patch with Seattle, looks to ’burbs expansion

Portland officials are rolling out a novel strategy to curb gun violence: traffic barrels.City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty has ordered the Portland Bureau of Transportation to install the traffic-calming devices across a six-block area in the Mt. Scott-Arleta neighborhood that has been plagued by shootings — some of which have been linked to high-speed drivers.In a statement, Hardesty admitted there is “no simple solution” to the shooting spike recorded here and nationwide. Gun violence is going up even as other types of crime are decreasing. Hardesty said that officials must bring an “all-hands-on-deck” creative mindset to combat the problem.Join your host Sean Reynolds, owner of Summit Properties NW, and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal as he takes a look at this developing topic.https://www.koin.com/news/portland/hardesty-barrels-to-calm-portland-high-speed-shootings/Support the show (https://www.patreon.com/seattlerealestatepodcast)

#784 - Portland's Solution to Gun Violence & High-Speed Drivers: Installing Traffic Barrels!

Workers at a local Starbucks store said they feel like they are at the mercy of a man who has repeatedly threatened employees and customers, prompting managers to shutter the location for a few days because of safety concerns.According to Seattle police, the workers are worried the man who has been terrorizing them would once again be released from jail and return to the store at First Avenue and Pike Street to carry out his threats to kill them.The most recent incident occurred Friday at the normally busy Starbucks location.The 32-year-old suspect, who KOMO News is not naming, came into the store with a knife and made thrusting motions as he approached employees, according to a police report.Join your host Sean Reynolds, owner of Summit Properties NW, and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal as he takes a look at this developing topic.https://komonews.com/news/operation-crime-justice/police-say-repeat-offenders-threats-led-to-closure-of-starbucks-storeSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/seattlerealestatepodcast)

#783 - Repeat offender's threats led to temporary closure of Seattle Starbucks store, police say

#782 - Here’s What Happened to Murder Rates When Texas’ Capital Defunded Police

#781 - Seattle City Council unanimously supports decriminalizing psychedelic mushrooms

#780 - Amazon CEO, citing ‘rougher’ patch with Seattle, looks to ’burbs expansion

#779 - Portland's Solution to Gun Violence & High-Speed Drivers: Installing Traffic Barrels!

Chinese property developer Fantasia Holdings failed to repay a $206 million bond payment due Monday, said the company, just two weeks after it said it had no liquidity issues.The missed payment adds to the already immense strain on China&apos;s real estate sector, which has been left exposed to the $305 billion credit crunch from property giant Evergrande, the most indebted company in the world.Fantasia is worth $415 million, reported Reuters, a drop in the ocean compared to Evergrande&apos;s crisis. But its bond default contributes to fears that an imminent major collapse in China&apos;s property market could destabilize the whole Chinese economy.Join your host Sean Reynolds, owner of Summit Properties NW, and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal as he takes a look at this developing topic.https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/chinese-property-developer-fantasia-just-025112615.htmlSupport the show (https://www.patreon.com/seattlerealestatepodcast)

#778 - Chinese property developer Fantasia just missed a $206 million repayment deadline

Welcome to Only in Seattle - Real Estate Unplugged, hosted by Sean Reynolds CEO and founder of Summit Properties NW and Reynolds & Kline Appraisal. On this podcast, we explore current hot-topic issues in the greater Puget Sound real estate market. If you want critical information about what's really going on in the Seattle real estate market, check out this podcast.

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Only in Seattle - Real Estate Podcast

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