Recent Blog Posts
Guest Blogger: Emily Alvarado, Policy Director with Housing Development Consortium Seattle/King County (HDC)
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It’s no secret that the Seattle rental market is booming right now. And that’s especially true in South Lake Union where most one-bedrooms are renting for between $1,500 and $2,000, and it’s hard to find a two-bedroom for less than $4,500 per month. |
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| That’s completely out of reach for thousands of modest wage workers who are an integral part of the SLU workforce! With a rezone proposal on the table that plans to accommodate 12,000 new homes and 22,000 new jobs, housing advocates need to speak up now for equitable growth in Seattle. Without action, modest wage workers will continue to be priced out of the neighborhood and pushed farther from Seattle’s job center in search of homes they can afford, adding to commute times, traffic congestion, and pollution. To borrow a phrase, that’s not just growth that’s just growth. |
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| The current South Lake Union rezone proposal includes support for Incentive Zoning as a way to address affordable housing needs. Incentive Zoning is a popular and proven strategy that links increased density and development potential with public benefits like affordable housing and other valued community amenities. But the current proposal is not strong enough to ensure that an adequate amount of affordable homes are built in the South Lake Union neighborhood alongside market-rate development. When the City gives developers the chance to build bigger buildings (and make a bigger profit) the City should also ensure that the public benefits adequately too. | |
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For years, the Housing Development Consortium Seattle/King County (HDC) has been a steadfast advocate for a strong and smart Incentive Zoning Policy. By strong, we mean it should harness the power of the marketplace and maximize affordable housing development without public subsidy. And by smart, the policy should ensure affordable homes are built alongside market rate development, creating healthy and resilient mixed-income neighborhoods. We believe that when the city increases development capacity, it should require every residential developer to make a percentage of homes affordable to low-income households and require developers to produce affordable housing units in their developments. |
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Seattle's early days of zoning. |
Across the country, we've seen strong, smart Incentive Zoning Policies increase housing for the workforce, integrate neighborhoods and help level the playing field in access to opportunity. Over 170 communities in California, including San Diego and San Francisco have adopted mandatory programs. So have entire states including Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Illinois. And requiring developers to build the affordable homes within the larger development ensures affordable homes are actually built in the neighborhood where market development occurs, instead of in other neighborhoods with lower land costs and lower rents. When implemented well, Incentive Zoning can meet the goals of providing affordable housing to low-income households and promoting inclusive, mixed-income communities. Seattle can do better.Think zoning doesn’t affect you? Think again.For years, zoning has been a tool of exclusion designed to systematically segregate neighborhoods. But, Incentive Zoning can be a tool for equitable growth, helping build economically and racially integrated communities that enable modest wage workers benefit from urban reinvestment and connect to better schools and opportunity networks. |
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Think you don’t care about South Lake Union? Think again (again).The rezone will set the development pattern in Seattle’s city center for years to come. We need to support affordable homes in this community, so that the pressures of rising rents don’t aggressively spill over to surrounding neighborhoods creating a wave of displacement. And, this legislation will set a precedent for the city and the region. If we can’t maximize public benefits in the fastest growing and hottest real estate market in the state, we won’t have as strong of a case for strengthening it in other parts of the city. Together, we can make sure Seattle grows equitably, for all. Tomorrow, January 31, the Seattle City Council will hold its next committee meeting on the South Lake Union rezone. Contact Seattle City Council today and express your support for a strong incentive zoning program to address affordable housing needs. |
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Zoning matters. |
| For more information, contact Emily Alvarado at emily@housingconsortium.org or 206.682.9541. | |
Photo Credits: Transit Nerds, Seattle Municipal Archives, and the Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project
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