With dozens of business buildings unused or underused in Seattle, metropolis officers are proper to discover methods to fill these areas and convey folks again into the town, primarily downtown.
Changing some industrial buildings into residential areas may make sense. That’s the plan Mayor Bruce Harrell proposed to the Metropolis Council as a part of his Downtown Activation Plan.
Many industrial areas emptied throughout the pandemic when staff started working remotely, leaving downtown retailers and industrial landlords in want of assist. The result’s a downtown emptiness price of about 20% with fewer staff patronizing companies apart from vacationers.
Housing advocates see the glut of vacant workplace house as a part of an answer to the nationwide housing disaster. And it might be that for Seattle.
Such conversions will be rare and challenging as a result of some massive buildings aren’t designed in methods conducive to residential items.
The opposite consideration for the town is to go fastidiously in giving up a significant device in creating inexpensive housing simply to lure builders to transform buildings.
Harrell is proposing to exempt builders from taking part within the metropolis’s Obligatory Housing Affordability program, which probably would forfeit thousands and thousands of {dollars} for inexpensive housing. He additionally proposes providing exemptions to constructing design guidelines, permitting rezones of sure areas of downtown to accommodate taller buildings and different incentives.
Beneath MHA, builders who construct flats and condos in sure areas are required to incorporate inexpensive items or pay right into a fund devoted to constructing inexpensive housing.
The fund has been profitable for the town, which wants greater than 10,000 items of inexpensive housing. In 2021, it generated $75 million and funded 990 flats.
In 2022, Seattle used $77.5 million in MHA {dollars} to assist fund 902 inexpensive flats and 30 properties.
If the town might help builders minimize by purple tape and paperwork, it ought to. Harrell’s plan builds off the state Legislature’s approval of Senate Bill 6175, which is able to permit the town to ascertain a gross sales and use tax deferral for conversion of a industrial constructing to inexpensive housing.
Changing industrial buildings into personal dwellings will change the feel and appear of neighborhoods, which in some areas is likely to be a welcomed transformation. And, extra folks will assist downtown proceed its restoration.
That’s laudable purpose, however the stream of funding that has efficiently constructed tons of of inexpensive properties serving to these in want of housing shouldn’t be forfeited calmly.
