Disgusting video shows how Seattle's new $800m waterfront has already descended into squalor and despair
Discovery Institute Senior Journalism fellow Jonathan Choe shared a video to X, which showed a rogue, shirtless bather practicing basic hygiene in the newly renovated fountain.
Seattle launched the $806 million Waterfront Seattle Program in 2010 to reconnect the city to its waterfront along Puget Sound - a large saltwater inlet of the Pacific Ocean.
The city is set to open a new waterfront park and walkway which includes rebuilt piers and elevated connections to downtown.
It recently opened the Joshua S. Green Sr. Fountain to the Columbia Street waterfront, now set amid new public art added as part of the revitalization.
But despite the extensive efforts - and the hundreds of millions invested - the city's homelessness crisis continues unabated.
The shocking video of the newly-minted waterfront showed police confronting the disheveled man bathing in the sudsy public fountain.
'Seattle spent more than $800 million on its waterfront revitalization project,' Choe wrote on his post.
'Mayor Bruce Harrell said it would create a vibrant, accessible and engaging public space,' he added.
'Today, new water fountains are being used as bubble baths for homeless drug addicts.'
In the footage, the man sits with his legs sprawled, scooping handfuls of sudsy water and scrubbing himself in plain view - turning the public fountain into an impromptu bath.
Meanwhile, at least three police officers stand behind metal barricades surrounding the fountain, while bicyclists pass by on the nearby paths, seemingly unaware of the unusual scene unfolding just feet away.
At one point, an officer calmly said, 'Dude, you've got to come out,' while gesturing for the unidentified man to leave the water.
However, the man remained fixated on the water beneath him, repeatedly scooping it with his hands and staring intently as he continued to cover his legs in bubbles.
Seattle's extensive central waterfront transformation includes a new park promenade along the shoreline, a redesigned surface street on Alaskan Way, renovations to Piers 58 and 62, an elevated connection from Pike Place Market to the waterfront and improved east–west links between downtown and Elliott Bay.
But as the busy tourism season approaches - especially ahead of the July 4th weekend - locals say little has improved in how the city is managed.
Some believe officials are ignoring the city's most urgent problems, choosing instead to focus on crafting the illusion of a perfect city through cosmetic renovations.
In 2010, Seattle launched its $806 million Waterfront Seattle Program to remove the Alaskan Way Viaduct and reconnect the city to its waterfront along Puget Sound - a large saltwater inlet of the Pacific Ocean (pictured: renovation of fountain)
As the busy tourism season approaches - especially ahead of the July 4th weekend - locals say little has improved in how the city manages the rampant crime and drug-addled homelessness (pictured)
On Wednesday, Choe shared another video to X, capturing chaotic scenes as he walked through the busy streets of downtown Seattle.
'Visitors are being greeted by brand new tens and open-air drug use,' Choe wrote on the post. 'What an absolute embarrassment and disgrace for the city right before July 4th festivities.'
'Even the elderly with walkers are struggling to navigate through this urban decay,' he added.
In the footage, visitors with suitcases in hand navigate 3rd Avenue and Stewart Street, where tents line the sidewalks and the ground is strewn with cardboard and worn household items.
At one point, an elderly woman using a walker slowly tries to reach the edge of the sidewalk, forced to navigate around tents that occupy more than half the available space.
Throughout the video, no matter which block Choe walked down, tents and people crowded tightly against storefronts, saturating every street corner.
'Seriously, how can Mayor Bruce Harrell and D7 Councilmember Bob Kettle abdicate their responsibilities during one of the most important times of the year?' Choe wrote on his post.
'Meanwhile, the drug den in front of controversial housing provider REACH is worse than ever,' he added.
'The only ones trying to save lives right now are outreach workers with We Heart Seattle. And they don't even have a taxpayer funded city contract. Wild.'
Long-standing businesses in the Democrat-led city have also been driven away by Seattle's rampant crime and drug-addled homelessness, recently causing a major tech conference to leave the Pacific North West for the first time in nearly a decade.
Last month, Microsoft confirmed that they will relocate its flagship Build conference from 2026 following mounting concerns over dystopian scenes of open-air drug markets and violence.
The intensifying issues have dramatically changed the city's character since the company's first conference in 2017.
The decision followed mounting concerns over public safety, visible drug use, and deteriorating conditions in the city's downtown.
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