Last Thursday at the end of a long day, someone sent me a message about a story on the 11PM KING 5 News about the Roosevelt neighborhood and zoning. It turns out that the City Attorney, Mayor, and Council were having a big press conference the next morning announcing they are going to seize some property held by the errant owner (he has many judgements against him for violating the land us code) and turn it over to the Parks Department to create a park. This may seem like a great idea, but the parcels in question were at the center of an epic land use battle years ago.

Many of us were shocked and, frankly, angry that all that progress was being reversed without the least bit of process. I’m not a fan of lots of process, but it seems like we always have to go through it to get things done. But when the City decides it wants to move on something, it happens lightening fast. Here’s the letter we sent asking the City Attorney, the Mayor, and the Council to stop and explore other ideas. When we’re supposedly in a housing crisis, shouldn’t we be putting that first in line when we’re looking at seizing someone’s property?

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March 15, 2015

Dear City Attorney Holmes, Mayor Murray, and Councilmembers,

Many people were surprised and disappointed to learn—only at the 11^th hour, literally—that the City intends to turn key property zoned for housing, in the Roosevelt neighborhood, into a park.

While you touted the proposal as an example of people at the City working outside their bureaucratic “silos,” the proposal ignores many years of discussion and about the property in question.

More than two dozen activists and leaders in the city signed a letter in the summer of 2011 asking that these parcels be used for housing, specifically for transit oriented housing. Here is an excerpt from that letter which is also attached:

The creation of transit-oriented communities supports the significant public investment in transit that will occur in Roosevelt as a result of the new station. Transit investments are most effective when combined with opportunities for more people to live, shop and work near the stations. The Planning Commission’s recent Transit Communities Report identified several communities, including Roosevelt, as areas in which more housing and infrastructure should occur to take advantage of the investment in transit. Futurewise’s Blueprint report made similar recommendations related to the Roosevelt neighborhood.

You never consulted any of the signers of this letter before making the proposal to create a park here. Furthermore, the park proposal—largely a positive one that moves on an errant property owner—never engaged the community about housing. Keep in mind, that all sides of the debate 4 years ago spent a lot of time and energy reaching a compromise on these parcels, agreeing they be zoned for housing.

You ignored that debate, discussion, and process and in a matter of a day reversed course. Remember, also, that we are currently discussing how we create policy to ensure we have affordable housing options for people of all income levels, especially near transit. While the Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda (HALA) Committee has been earnestly, and seriously looking at housing issues, you have been in a different silo planning to turn prime land zoned for transit oriented housing into a park.

Please take a step back, engage the many, many people who discussed this issue before, and let’s find a way to create housing and amenities in Roosevelt.

Sincerely,

 

 

Roger Valdez

Director