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12th Ave bagel shop owner says CHOP inspired run for West Seattle seat on city council

This week, CHS reported on the nine(!) candidates already lined up to vie for the District 3 seat on the Seattle City Council. There is another council candidate you will also find on Capitol Hill.

Stephen Brown, founder of the Capitol Hill-born Eltana Bagels, is making a run for the council’s District 1 seat representing West Seattle. Take it away, West Seattle Blog:

In his announcement – which you can read in full here – Brown vows “to bring a pragmatic approach on issues such as urban vitality, small business support, and transit” and says, “I began to seriously consider running a few years ago when I decided to keep Eltana Bagels open and un-boarded during the height of the Black Lives Matter, George Floyd protests, and ensuing CHOP occupancy. I could have followed many businesses at the time and closed my doors or joined some of my neighboring businesses in their lawsuit against the city. Instead, I listened to the community and to my employees. We worked to keep people employed and keep our doors open for our customers. I think that kind of collaborative leadership is desperately needed on the Council right now.”

While the field includes two pot entrepreneurs, no Capitol Hill business owners have yet joined the D3 race.

 

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No more sawant or that ilk
No more sawant or that ilk
1 year ago

We had too many activists running this city for a while and it about destroyed us. Let’s never do that again. No more sawants or the activist ilk again.

Capitol Hill Resident
Capitol Hill Resident
1 year ago

Disagree, but I do think we have too many idiots like yourself

Your Neighborhood Socialist Nogoodnik
Your Neighborhood Socialist Nogoodnik
1 year ago

Im just losing my mind at half the vacuous Liberals too shook to walk around in D3 in broad daylight being described as ‘activists’, like how dissociated is the term between how the OP uses it and how anyone else uses it.

Let's talk
Let's talk
1 year ago

I agree no more. Activists can play an important role in the city and their access to political leaders is important but pragmatic leaders that approach leadership from a perspective of using their time in office representing all elements of the city is important.

TaxWaste
TaxWaste
1 year ago

At least this guy has had to make payroll for a business. I can’t quite tell if he is saying he was supportive of CHOP or not though…almost like he’s worded his statement to be palatable to both sides…

Martin
Martin
1 year ago

Stephen is a self-righteous opportunist. Many businesses stayed open during CHOP, and many of those same businesses were part of the lawsuit against the city for negligence. Eltana offered free bagels to anyone who identified as antifa as a way to chum up and avoid damage to his business. Will he look after the best interest of District 1 and Seattle, or does he see opportunity for himself to promote his own world view on the council as a populist chasing the weathervane of opinions that got us here in the first place.

Pike Pine
Pike Pine
1 year ago
Reply to  Martin

His business is across from the East Precinct. He found a way to survive a month of occupation by anarchists which occurred in the void created by the negligence of our elected leaders. CHOP security executed a teenager on his block. I can see how the things he witnessed due to the feckless leadership of the city could inspire a run for office. I don’t know his politics, but I think your characterization is unfair.