New land use proposal pits dollars vs the environment
Building resiliency and fighting climate change are keys to Seattle’s Green New Deal, the manifesto that emphasizes “social and ecological well-being of all people is prioritized over the profit of private corporations.”
But when developers said it was too hard and costly to build on small downtown lots, green principles take a back seat. Council Bill 120153 approves alternative modular construction methods so these parcels can easily be built to maximum capacity.
Currently limited to mixed residential development in Belltown, the bill’s supporting documents acknowledge it’s an incentive for market rate projects. An affordable housing requirement was dropped when developers said it would cost too much.
Among the bill’s environmental impacts is erosion of light available to adjacent buildings and neighborhood streets. Modular construction’s stacked box designs can’t meet current building code for graduated upper-level setbacks. These setbacks provide light and air—natural elements people need for physical and mental health.
Livability downtown is under increasing attack. A few blocks away in traditional construction zones, new towers strive to mimic box construction. Some designs block 75-99% of light to residential neighbors. It’s out of touch with the Green New Deal’s commitment to social and ecological well-being.
How much more can the City take? The Green New Deal estimates energy for heating, cooling, and powering buildings accounted for over one-third of Seattle’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2016. Recent SDCI figures show Downtown residential construction has reached 95% of the capacity projected to be built by 2035. We haven’t studied the impacts of more density.
Relaxing setbacks and encouraging downtown lots as small as 8,000’ sf to reach maximum capacity will not produce a livable, resilient downtown. It will do the opposite.
We’ve seen evidence. Even this bill’s supporting documents says the zones for alternative building standards may “be subject to higher temperatures than Seattle as a whole due to higher levels of impervious surface and lower tree canopy.”
Light, air, open space and trees are essential to urban livability. When will the City’s land use practices follow its green rhetoric?
