Today Seattle For Growth, an advocacy organization supporting more housing of all kinds in all neighborhoods for people of all levels of income, filed an appeal to the City’s Determination of Non-Significance (DNS) for its proposed changes to the Comprehensive Plan to allow the creation of impact fees on new housing.

“The underlying proposal for impact fees reveals the fundamental incoherence of the the City’s housing policy,” said Roger Valdez, Director of Seattle For Growth. “How is adding to the cost of housing production going to lower prices? It won’t. It will make the problem of housing scarcity worse” 

The appeal asks the Hearing Examiner to make the City evaluate the environmental impact of increasing housing prices which would likely force people with less money to live further outside the city generating more car trips and putting more demand on transit.

The appeal also calls out the fact that the proposed projects to receive funding from impact fees are “existing deficiencies;” projects that won’t serve new people moving into the city but people already here. Some of the projects like the new light rail station at Graham Street already have dedicated funding sources.

The City is also planning to charge all new housing a fee per square foot through it’s Mandatory Housing Affordability (MHA) program, a policy that will make many projects infeasible, will raise housing prices to absorb fees, and is very likely against state law.

Finally, the City is piecemealing the environmental review.

“This determination is poorly done and the underlying proposal will just make life harder for people trying to make ends meet in the city,” said Valdez.

For further comment or information contact Roger Valdez at 206-427-7707