Multiple speakers during public comment on Dec. 2 urged the Seattle City Council to go further than the emergency ordinance the council proposed to address restrictive covenants that block grocery and pharmacy openings after the Lake City Fred Meyer closed.

Alondra, who lives near Magnuson Park, said the Fred Meyer’s closure removed the nearest full-service grocery and pharmacy for seniors, people with disabilities and low-income families, creating daily hardship. Several other in‑person and remote speakers echoed that the draft ordinance (referred to in the transcript variously as "ordinance CB 121094" or other similar strings) only prevents new covenants and expires in a year, leaving existing covenants in place.

Speakers including a Lake City community representative and Brad Elke urged the council to make protections permanent, to void covenants already blocking new grocers, and to consider local models such as the Seattle Restored program to repurpose large sites for smaller, locally owned businesses. One Lake City speaker also asked the council to consider a city-run grocery model as a longer-term solution.

The comments called for urgent action to address food access, noting the loss of prior neighborhood services and urging stronger and longer-term legislative fixes; several speakers asked the council to strengthen ordinance language and to explicitly address existing covenants rather than only pausing new ones.