City Council passes Fort Lawton affordable housing plan

Seattle City Council has just passed legislation to turn Fort Lawton into an affordable housing community.

The plan includes creating 238 new affordable homes on over half of the 34-acre site, including permanent supportive housing for seniors, apartments for low-wage individuals and families, and home ownership opportunities.

The legislation also includes using a substantial portion — up to 22 acres — of the land for park and park-related uses, and preserving existing natural areas that support wildlife.

Here’s a breakdown of the housing in the plan:

  • 85 supportive housing units for seniors, including veterans, who have experienced homelessness;
  • 100 one-, two-, and three-bedroom flats or rowhouses for renter households with incomes up to 60% of AMI ($42K-60K for 1- 4-person household)
  • 50 three-bedroom rowhouses and townhomes for homebuyers with incomes up to 80% of AMI ($64K-86K for 2-5-person household)

“We must continue to act to address our affordability and housing crisis,” Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan said in a statement. “This plan builds on our commitment to create hundreds of more affordable homes at Fort Lawton on a piece of public property while ensuring that our neighborhoods can be vibrant, livable spaces today and for the next generation.”

*Correction: The original version of this story incorrectly featured the wrong area of Fort Lawton. The above photo is from the parcel of land to be redeveloped.

15 thoughts to “City Council passes Fort Lawton affordable housing plan”

  1. Pretty excited that this went through. I think it will be good for the community and Seattle as a whole to keep some affordable housing nearby.

  2. It’s good they’re developing housing, but they’re doing it in the wrong spot. They are tearing down a perfectly good mid-century building that could be a little school or meeting center and leaving a huge paved parking lot to the parks department. They should be putting townhouses all along the streets the property borders. The mix should be affordable and market rate to pay for itself and perhaps raise money that could be used for homeless housing in a cheaper part of the state. There’s no reason to provide free housing for seniors in the most expensive part of the state.

      1. How is that statement “very bigoted”?
        bigoted:

        “having or revealing an obstinate belief in the superiority of one’s own opinions and a prejudiced intolerance of the opinions of others.”

        Somebody’s post seems hypocritical…

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