The recent news that Tukwila is "America’s most dangerous city" was alarming to say the least.
The report, based on stats complied by a website called Safewise.com had statistics that suggested crime was out of control in the community. That kind of publicity could affect real estate prices, rents, investment and tourism. The report can be found here:

http://www.safewise.com/blog/the-30-most-dangerous-cities-in-america-20…

With 8.18 violent crimes per 1000 people and 165.75 property crimes per 1000 people it suggests that even neighboring communities like Renton and Burien could see some some effects. But the City of Tukwila says the report and the stats it is based on can lead to the wrong conclusions.

Rachel Bianchi, City of Tukwila, Communications/Government Relations Manager responded to the report.

"This is based on comparing crime statistics to solely the number of people who are actual residents to the City – in our case, that is 19,000. However, we have anywhere between 150,000 and 200,000 people in Tukwila every day due to the presence of Westfield Southcenter, the largest mall in the Pacific Northwest, as well as the other retail and employment areas in the City. Making per capita comparisons such as this just doesn’t make sense when you look at the unique nature of our city. For instance, if you look at the amount of sales receipts in Tukwila (in excess of $2 billion in 2015) on a per capita basis you’d think Tukwila residents do an amazing amount of shopping – to the tune of over $105,000 per person. Each of our residents would have gone to 51 movies a piece in 2015 according to our ticket sales. I think these stats give you an idea of why using per capita statistics doesn’t work when evaluating a regional shopping and entertainment destination that has a small residential population.

One last note, the FBI specifically cautions against using these statistics in this way. If you go to their website you will see the agency’s specific wording on why the data shouldn’t be used like this.

As to crime in Tukwila, you should know that we have had a 56% reduction in residential burglaries over the past five years and last year represented a 15-year low in robberies."