Save the West Seattle Neighborhood Centers
Seattle City Council
Seattle is experiencing a crushing housing affordability crisis due to decades of insufficient building. The city’s draft comprehensive plan, which determines how the city will be allowed to grow over the next twenty years, has some promising changes for West Seattle. We expect to benefit from eight new Neighborhood Centers: Brandon Junction, Delridge, Endolyne, Fairmount, High Point, Holden, South Park, and Upper Fauntleroy. In addition, the Admiral Junction, Morgan Junction, and West Seattle (Alaska) Junction Urban Centers are due to be expanded. This would mean there are more places where the city allows (but never requires!) more homes, corner stores, and more affordability.
However, anti-housing activists are lobbying to prevent this needed affordable housing from being allowed in our neighborhoods. Your voice is key to fighting back by affirming our commitment to the values of inclusivity, generosity, and altruism. West Seattle is for all of us.
Sign our petition to let your Councilmembers know that we want and need more homes in West Seattle!
In addition to signing this petition, please consider sending an email to your Councilmembers: Rob.Saka@seattle.gov, AlexisMercedes.Rinck@seattle.gov, and Sara.Nelson@seattle.gov by clicking here. Councilmember Saka represents District 1. Councilmembers Sara Nelson and Alexis Mercedes-Rinck both represent all of Seattle.
Also, consider attending and speaking at the public hearing for these changes! That public hearing is at City Hall, February 5 at 5 PM.
Sponsored by
To:
Seattle City Council
From:
[Your Name]
West Seattle says Yes to Housing and Yes to People
We, the undersigned, are Seattle residents who are deeply concerned about the future of the West Seattle. We live here. We work here. We eat and shop here. Our children and pets play here. We use services here. We have deep roots here. This is our neighborhood.
We are writing to ask that all of the neighborhood centers in West Seattle proposed in the draft comprehensive plan be kept, or even expanded. Seattle is experiencing the worst housing shortage in its history, yet it’s currently illegal to build more homes in most of West Seattle due to overly restrictive zoning.
Neighborhoods with most of life’s daily needs within a short walk, such as North Admiral and the Alaska Junction, are incredibly popular places to live. Unfortunately, areas with such a diverse mixture of uses and amenities are currently unaffordable to too many Seattleites because we allow so few of them. The proposed neighborhood centers would create more such walkable communities. They will be places where seniors can age in place and young families can walk to schools and parks. Thoughtful pockets of increased density will support more frequent transit and vibrant small businesses — improvements that tend to increase property values through better amenities and services.
Additionally, too many areas throughout West Seattle are currently “food deserts” where it isn’t possible to easily access fresh and healthy food. By planning for these neighborhood centers in Seattle’s once-in-a-decade comprehensive plan we can solve the “chicken and egg” problem where a lack of customer base prevents new grocery stores from opening, which in turn limits housing production in that area. Let’s build an equitable city where every neighborhood has what it needs!
Thanks to the vision and leadership of Mayor Harrell and Transportation Chair Saka, Seattle recently approved historic investments in housing and transportation through the 2023 Housing Levy and 2024 Transportation Levy. West Seattle also stands to benefit from the generational investment of three new light rail stops in our part of the city. By providing more housing options in West Seattle’s neighborhood centers, we will allow more Seattlites to benefit from this improved infrastructure and affordable housing, while also spreading and reducing the financial burden of paying for it.
More than 60% of Seattle residents are renters, and two-thirds of young and senior renters are rent-burdened. A bold comprehensive plan is an opportunity to start to meaningfully address this issue in West Seattle, but only if our neighborhood centers aren’t removed by minority opposition.
City Council should keep the Brandon Junction, Delridge, Endolyne, Fairmount, High Point, Holden, South Park, and Upper Fauntleroy neighborhood centers and re-introduce the Alki neighborhood center that was studied but not included in the city’s draft. Allowing these areas to grow naturally over the next two decades will make Seattle a better city.
Please keep all of the proposed neighborhood centers in West Seattle!