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Tacoma is striving to pick up its pace of housing growth. The City hopes newly enact multiplex zoning while help it hit 325,000 residents in a few decades time, a population gain of nearly 50%.
Recent Posts
Washington Legislature Wants to Rein In Historic Landmarking to Spur Housing
In Seattle, any person can nominate just about any building for historic landmark status — even without the consent of the building owner — which can delay or upend housing projects. The Washington State Legislature is advancing legislation that would place guardrails on historic landmark programs.
Rinck Urges Seattle Leaders to Defend Against Trump Attacks
At a protest Monday, Seattle City Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck urged Seattle leaders to take on Trump to defend against attacks on federal workers, civil liberties, and constitutional rights. After earlier talks of collaborating with Trump, Mayor Harrell struck a more defiant tone in "State of the City" speech today, but was light on specifics.
Bellevue Pushes to Open Up Bus-Only Lanes to Private Shuttles
Framed as a way to increase the efficiency of new transit lanes being eyed for the RapidRide K Line, the move could give transit agencies across the state less control over one of the biggest tools they have to increase speed and reliability.
State Bill Would Circumvent SPOG, Clear Path for Seattle Civilian Responder...
Seattle is seeking a fix at the state legislature to grow its civilian crisis response program following resistance from the Seattle Police Officers Guild that has blocked expansion. To stay alive, Rep. Shaun Scott’s HB 1816 will need to pass out of committee before a February 21 deadline.
Sound Transit Pulls Sounder Cars Out of Service, Temporarily Reduces Trips
Sounder commuter rail service will continue to operate on reduced schedules, with no firm timeline yet for the full restoration of service, Sound Transit said. The reductions stem from a maintenance lag revealed on Wednesday.
Sunday Video: Why Is The Public Land Survey System So Important?
Dave Amos of City Beautiful dives into the history of the Public Land Survey System and how it has affected much of the United States in big and small ways.
Dow Constantine Reveals Sound Transit CEO Bid
After serving as a leader on the Sound Transit Board for 15 years, Dow Constantine revealed Friday he is seeking the job as the agency's CEO. Some transit advocates remain skeptical.
Join The Urbanist for Our February Social Events
Join The Urbanist for our February social events in Seattle, Redmond, and Shoreline. Next up is our Big Time Brewery meetup on February 20.
Eastside Coffee Outside: Brewing Community, One Cup at a Time
Community members gather every Wednesday morning from 7am to 9:30am in Kirkland for Eastside Coffee Outside. Here's how they came together.
Rolling Out The Urbanist 2025’s Advocacy Agenda and Early Events
The Urbanist unveils top advocacy priorities for 2025 and offers some ways to get involved.
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Bellevue Pushes to Open Up Bus-Only Lanes to Private Shuttles
Framed as a way to increase the efficiency of new transit lanes being eyed for the RapidRide K Line, the move could give transit agencies across the state less control over one of the biggest tools they have to increase speed and reliability.
Constantine’s King County Parks Levy Proposal Would Expand Trails, Programming
On Tuesday, King County Executive Dow Constantine unveiled his $1.5 billion proposal to renew the King County Parks Levy, which expires at year's end. The levy funds parks and regional trail expansions, educational programming at partner organizations, and operations and maintenance.
Join The Urbanist for Our February Social Events
Join The Urbanist for our February social events in Seattle, Redmond, and Shoreline. Next up is our Big Time Brewery meetup on February 20.
More Eastside Coverage posts »
Seattle’s Most Exclusive Neighborhoods File Appeals to Delay Harrell’s Growth Plan
The appeals, filed by residents in Madison Park, Mount Baker, and Hawthorne Hills, seek to require additional environmental review, pushing back the City's plan to allow more housing.
Housing Advocates Outnumber ‘One Seattle’ Opponents, Moore and Rivera Back Opponents
Housing advocates outnumbered opponents by a margin of 89 to 75 during a five-hour public hearing Wednesday on the One Seattle housing growth plan. Nevertheless, several councilmembers made it clear they sided with slow-growth advocates, rather than the majority demanding more housing options.
Harrell Growth Plan Would Produce Fewer Affordable Homes Than Alternative 5
The 1,300-page environmental review of the One Seattle plan shows that the Mayor's preferred plan would increase hardscape, tree removal, and greenhouse gas emissions, while decreasing affordable housing over broadly supported Alternative 5.
More One Seattle Plan posts »
Ryan Packer Talks Vision Zero, Traffic Safety on Hacks and Wonks...
Ryan Packer broke down local "Vision Zero" traffic safety campaigns on a recent episode of the Hacks and Wonks podcast.
Rian Watt Talks Primary Results on Hack and Wonks Podcast
The Urbanist's Senior Advisor Rian Watt discussed primary election results and the latest happenings at Seattle City Hall on a August 9 episode of...
Urbanist Publisher Doug Trumm Discusses Transportation Levy on Hacks & Wonks...
The Urbanist’s Publisher Doug Trumm was recently on Crystal Fincher's Hacks and Wonks podcast to discuss the Seattle transportation levy proposal, which came in well short of where safe streets advocates were pushing the mayor to go. The episode is a good primer on the levy debate.
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