Seattle Project Gets a Head Start on New Affordability Agenda
As Seattle struggles with housing affordability issues, Mayor Murray is striving to put in place legislation.
By Alex Girda, Associate Editor
In the aftermath of the Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda, a new Seattle multifamily development project serves as a live representation of the act’s recommendations. Local developer Stream Real Estate acquired a small parcel in the Chinatown-International District and is now looking to build an affordable community on the site.
As per the measures included in the agenda, the developer is acquiring the site at fair-market value, with the proceeds being used in the development of other affordable units in Seattle. The company is planning to develop a new community that will remain affordable for the next 50 years. According to The Puget Sound Business Journal, the units will be aimed at residents making less than $46,100 per year. Were the building existing at this moment, rent would be capped at $1,235 per month, PSBJ writes.
The initiatives in the Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda haven’t even been written into law, but are already being put to good use in the current deal. Once elaborated upon by the Housing Affordability and Livability Committee, according to Mayor Ed Murray’s request, the recommendations are being used in the drafting of legislation, which will then be put up for the local council’s consideration.
Seattle is struggling with growing prices, and Mayor Murray is striving to put in place legislation that would ensure the construction or preservation of around 50,000 residential units during the next decade, two-fifths of which would be affordable housing.
