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Seattle Planning Commission Releases “Neighborhoods for All” Report

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Planning Commission: Creating ‘Neighborhoods for All’
Changes to single-family zoning necessary for the city’s future, report concludes

Restoring the flexibility in housing types seen in Seattle’s historic residential neighborhoods is critical if the city is to achieve its goals of being a diverse, equitable and sustainable place to live, according to a new report from the Seattle Planning Commission.

In the report, Neighborhoods for All: Expanding housing opportunity in Seattle’s single-family zones, the commission highlights recent data showing the impacts of current regulations, and presents a set of strategies to allow a mix of housing types that can help neighborhoods retain characteristics of lower-density areas while welcoming a broader range of residents.

The report points out that Seattle’s current zoning map shows three times more single-family land than multifamily and mixed-use land combined. As a result, during this decade of record-breaking population growth, the vast majority of new residents were absorbed in areas zoned for multifamily dwellings, while  areas zoned for one house per lot showed little change, and some even lost population. At the same time, the look and feel of many areas zoned single-family are changing as modest houses are replaced by larger, more expensive ones: The average house size has increased by 1,000 square feet since 1900, the report notes.

“Our current approach to zoning has created a bifurcated city, where two-thirds of residential land is off limits to all but those with the highest incomes,” said Tim Parham, chair of the Planning Commission. “The fundamental goal of this report is to encourage a return to the mix of housing and development patterns found in many of Seattle’s older and most walkable neighborhoods, thereby giving more people a wider array of living options.”

[Read more…]

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Guest Blogger: Incentive Zoning Update by Brennon Staley

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We have released an initial proposal to update Incentive Zoning. This effort began in 2014 but was put on hold due to the Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda (HALA). Using input received in 2014 and recent analysis, we have created an initial proposal for public discussion. We are looking for feedback on this initial proposal through September of 2018, to be used to create an updated proposal and draft legislation that would be available for additional comments early next year. The goal is to submit final legislation to Council for adoption in mid-2019.

Incentive Zoning allows developers to build larger buildings in exchange for providing specific public benefits. Prior to the implementation of Seattle’s new Mandatory Housing Affordability (MHA) requirements, incentive zoning was the primary way that new development contributed to affordable housing. MHA requirements are now replacing incentive zoning for affordable housing; however, incentives to provide other benefits will remain. After MHA is implemented, Incentive Zoning will generally be limited to Downtown, South Lake Union, and portions of the University District, Uptown, and North Rainier.

Incentive Zoning has been implemented piecemeal in different areas of Seattle over the last 20 years with significant expansions in the last 5 years. The program varies substantially depending on the neighborhood and, as a result, has become difficult for developers to understand and for the City to administer. It also means that some provisions may not be achieving their stated goals.

The goal of this update is to create a program that is more clear and consistent and achieves greater public benefits. We are not proposing to expand Incentive Zoning to more areas or increase development capacity where Incentive Zoning currently exists.

Key elements of the proposed Incentive Zoning update include:

  • Merging multiple TDR programs to make them easier to understand and to allow buyer and sellers to find each other more easily
  • Improving open space and amenity benefits by updating standards and removing lower-value, indoor options like public atriums and shopping corridors
  • Evaluating the addition of an option to provide indoor space for Cultural Uses such as arts organizations
  • Extending minimum green building requirements to all of downtown and updating requirements to prohibit fossil fuel use for space heating in buildings that use incentive zoning

 

Brennon Staley is a Strategic Advisor at the Office of Planning and Community Development.

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Mayor, Council Unveil Affordability and Growth Plan

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Mayor Tim Burgess and Councilmember Rob Johnson proposed a plan to implement Mandatory Housing Affordability (MHA) requirements on new development across Seattle that will meet the City’s goal of at least 6,000 new rent-restricted homes for low-income people over the next decade.

“Today we continue our push to address Seattle’s housing affordability crisis,” said Burgess. “With this plan, we will extend our requirement that new developments contribute to Seattle’s affordable housing supply. We’ve already implemented this requirement in the University District, downtown, and elsewhere. Now it’s time to bring this requirement to other high-opportunity neighborhoods so that we can hasten our progress in building a more inclusive and equitable city.”

Councilmember Rob Johnson (District 4, Northeast Seattle) said, “We all want to keep Seattle a welcoming, affordable city for families and people of all incomes, now and into the future. I’m excited to be one step closer on this key strategy which will create thousands of rent and income-restricted homes as we grow. Over the coming months, I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues and the community as we implement MHA citywide.”

The Council has already unanimously implemented affordable housing requirements on new development in six neighborhoods (University District, Downtown, South Lake Union, Chinatown-International District, along 23rd Ave in the Central Area, and Uptown). By extending MHA to Seattle’s other urban villages, as well as all other existing multifamily residential and commercial zones, new development will generate the rent- and income-restricted homes to meet the City’s 10-year goal.

[Read more…]

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City Evaluates Zoning Changes for Mandatory Housing Affordability

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Today the Seattle Office of Planning and Community Development (OPCD) issued a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) that studies three alternatives for zoning changes needed to implement Mandatory Housing Affordability (MHA) in Seattle’s urban villages and other commercial and multifamily residential zones across the city.

MHA helps ensure that as Seattle grows, development supports affordable housing for low-income families and individuals by either building rent-restricted homes on-site or making a payment to the Seattle Office of Housing. To implement MHA, the City would grant additional development capacity to allow for construction of more market-rate housing and commercial space.

“Implementing MHA is one of many actions the City is proposing to address housing affordability,” said Sam Assefa, director of OPCD. “We look forward to community input on the DEIS, especially on our analysis of impacts resulting from MHA implementation. Your feedback will help us finalize our recommendation on how to guide growth with additional affordable housing, while working to reduce displacement risks as Seattle grows.”

Seattle is currently the fastest growing large city in the United States. The average rent for a Seattle two-bedroom, one-bath apartment is $1,863. The average rent in Seattle has increased 55 percent since 2010. Twenty percent of Seattle renters now spend more than half their income on housing.

The DEIS issued today examines the potential effects of zoning changes that will implement MHA in multifamily and commercial zones in Seattle, areas currently zoned Single Family Residential in existing urban villages, and in urban village expansion areas identified in the Seattle 2035 Comprehensive Plan.

The three alternatives considered in the DEIS include:

  1. “No Action” that does not implement MHA requirements on new development, but maintains current zoning and building heights as Seattle grows.
  2. Changing zoning to guide additional housing and job growth to urban villages in a similar pattern as the Seattle 2035 Comprehensive Plan, but without specifically considering displacement risk or access to opportunity.
  3. Continuing the urban village strategy, but varying zoning changes and development capacity based on each urban village’s relative level of displacement risk and access to opportunity, as identified in the Seattle 2035 Growth and Equity Analysis.

Both action alternatives would generate at least 5500 new affordable homes from development in the study area over 20 years. The No Action alternative, however, would generate only about 200 additional affordable homes in the study area through the City’s existing Incentive Zoning program. The Draft EIS identifies environmental impacts and mitigation measures for each alternative.

You can learn more and provide your feedback on the Draft EIS through July 23 at http://tinyurl.com/HALA-MHA-EIS.

OPCD will host an open house and public hearing at 5:30 p.m. on June 29 in the Bertha Knight Landes Room at Seattle City Hall. The public will have an opportunity to learn more about the alternatives, ask questions and provide public comment.

The City’s Final EIS and a preferred alternative will be developed based on community comments received to date and input on the three alternatives in the DEIS. OPCD expects to complete the Final EIS of the preferred alternative in September before transmitting a proposal to the Seattle City Council for consideration.

MHA was a key recommendation of the Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda (HALA) Advisory Committee. In 2015 and 2016, Mayor Ed Murray proposed the ordinances that established the framework for MHA, which the City Council adopted unanimously.

The City Council has already implemented MHA in the U District, Downtown, and South Lake Union. The Council is currently considering MHA legislation for the Chinatown-International District and three key intersections along 23rd Ave in the Central Area. Legislation to implement MHA in Uptown will be considered separately.

OPCD, the Department of Neighborhoods, and the Office of Housing have held more than 165 public meetings, open houses and group discussions on implementing MHA throughout Seattle’s urban villages. From February 2016 to October 2016, community focus groups, HALA open houses, online surveys, and neighborhood pop-ups worked to inform principles to help guide the implementation of MHA. Draft maps for implementing MHA in Seattle’s urban villages have been the focus of open houses and community feedback since October 2016.

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Preliminary Proposal for Uptown Urban Center

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PRELIMINARY PROPOSAL FOR UPTOWN URBAN CENTER

After more than three years of engaging community members in envisioning a vibrant future for the Uptown neighborhood, OPCD has issued a preliminary rezone recommendation. The proposal will result in an estimated 600 new affordable homes, neighborhood design standards that respond to community priorities, incentives for new arts and cultural spaces, improved connections to Seattle Center, and enhanced walkability in the Uptown Urban Center.

“Seattle continues to grow as our strong economy attracts new workers from across the country and around the world,” said OPCD Director Sam Assefa. “While we have done a great job of guiding that growth to our urban centers like Uptown, we have failed to grow affordably. We are implementing Mandatory Housing Affordability in Uptown, so that new development contributes to affordable housing options for low-income families.”

The proposal allows new building heights for many areas of the neighborhood already zoned for multi-family residential and mixed-use commercial buildings, providing much-needed capacity for market-rate and income-restricted housing within walking distance of South Lake Union, Belltown and Downtown. No zoning changes are proposed outside of the Uptown Urban Center or in single-family zones nearby. The iconic public views of the Space Needle and the Seattle skyline as seen from Kerry Park and other key view corridors are protected under the proposal. New development standards will support Green Streets with better connections to Seattle Center for a more walkable neighborhood.

Written public comment on the preliminary rezone recommendation can be submitted by writing to jim.holmes@seattle.gov.
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City issues preliminary proposal to guide growth in Uptown Urban Center

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After more than three years of engaging community members in envisioning a vibrant future for the Uptown neighborhood, the Seattle Office of Planning and Community Development (OPCD) today issued a preliminary rezone recommendation. The proposal will result in an estimated 600 new affordable homes, neighborhood design standards that respond to community priorities, incentives for new arts and cultural spaces, improved connections to Seattle Center, and enhanced walkability in the Uptown Urban Center.

“Seattle continues to grow as our strong economy attracts new workers from across the country and around the world,” said OPCD Director Sam Assefa. “While we have done a great job of guiding that growth to our urban centers like Uptown, we have failed to grow affordably. We are implementing Mandatory Housing Affordability in Uptown, so that new development contributes to affordable housing options for low-income families.”

Over 20 years, the upzone will result in an estimated 600 new income-restricted and rent-restricted homes for low-income residents through the City’s new Mandatory Housing Affordability (MHA) program. Under MHA, Uptown development will be required to include between 7 percent and 10 percent affordable homes in each building, or contribute between $8.00 and $29.75 per square foot to the Seattle Office of Housing to support affordable housing, depending on the specific location in the neighborhood.

[Read more…]

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City Council: Understanding the University District Rezone

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Understanding the University District Rezone

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