CANIC Needs Your Help!
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The Central Area Neighborhood Impact Collective (CANIC) is a community member group fighting the proposed development of two 7-story towers in the middle of a residential street in our neighborhood. We support additional housing for ALL income levels throughout the Emerald City, but development must be considerate of existing residents and the Land Use rules fairly and consistently applied. Exempting individual properties from surrounding Land Use rules is wrong.
New Hope Community Development Institute (NHCDI) and the Low Income Housing Institute LIHI) have plans to insert these large structures on 21st avenue, between Fir and Yesler. They are allowed to do so by City of Seattle Council Bill (CB) 120081. This bill, supported by both organizations who stand to benefit financially from this legislation, modifies development standards for affordable housing on land owned by religious organizations, circumventing standing land use processes.
CANIC is requesting donations to be used for legal fees. We are pushing for mitigation not only for this development, but other similar proposed projects across Seattle. Religious organizations receiving public funding for project should adhere to the same guidelines as other developers.
We acknowledge the need for housing in Seattle, but to continue to place a the majority of the density in historically underserved areas is unconscionable. Families are facing rising costs across the board – and absent real public investment, packing more people into a neighborhood already struggling to accommodate new neighbors makes it challenging for new and old residents.
This also impacts our desire to retain an urban canopy that helps residents in the Central District be a part of the Emerald City while combating climate change. This project risks harming two mature trees and uprooting street trees that provide shade, enjoyment and provide CO2 sequestration. Losing any of them will impact the air and neighborhood temperature. Low and moderate income Seattlites deserve access to tree canopy just as much as other more expensive areas (Magnolia, Queen Anne, etc.).
Our concerns are:
- The scale of this proposed development is much too large for the site. At 7 stories, the towers are nearly double the height of existing homes and apartment buildings nearby, including along E Yesler Way which is the nearest arterial. 21st Ave is a non-arterial narrow residential street in a Low-Rise development zone. Elsewhere in Seattle, 7 story buildings are restricted to Mid-Rise zones.
- Adding 92 housing units with no resident parking will create significant traffic and parking issues. Increased vehicular traffic and competition for scarce street parking in this residential zone will dramatically escalate hazards to children enroute to the nearby schools, park, and childcare centers. It is unreasonable to assume tower residents will not have cars. The nearest transit along Yesler is a low capacity route operating single coach buses with service roughly every half hour at peak.
- Existing infrastructure is aged and will be strained. Water and sewer lines on this street date back a century. A robust SEPA review is necessary to determine the impact of adding so many more household units.
- Over-height development will have a destructive environmental impact. Surrounding mature trees, characteristic of Low-Rise residential streets, will not survive the loss of sunlight caused by Mid-Rise towers. Shadows potentially prevent adjacent neighbors from having access to solar energy, forcing them to rely on fossil fuels for energy.
- There has been a lack of due process and community engagement for this project. In exempting religious organizations from the usual development and outreach requirements, the City has abrogated its duty of care toward nearby residents who will be directly and permanently impacted.
- Waiving development limits and rules for favored property owners effectively permits spot zoning. Development rules should apply fairly and equally to all based on where a property is located, not on who owns it.
There is still a pathway available to get meaningful resources for affordable housing without making neighborhoods less welcoming and uncomfortable for current and future members. Please contribute today!
Organizer
CANIC Member
Organizer
Seattle, WA