Fast Growing Issaquah Plans for More Density – and Sprawl
With their Central Issaquah Plan, zoning updates, and planned communities, in recent years the City of Issaquah has experienced a steady increase in new...
The Puget Sound Is Adding More Than 4,800 Jobs Monthly, But Where’s The Housing?
If you thought that regional growth might be petering out, you'd be wrong. Recent data from the Puget Sound Regional Council (PSRC) shows that...
A Follow-Up on the Living Building Challenge
It is impossible to ignore the construction that is happening throughout the Puget Sound region. Cranes and scaffolding are everywhere. In Q1 2023 alone,...
Seattle Public Utilities Is Exacting Impermissible Capital Improvement Fees
Project requirements suggest a pattern of double charging, which nearly sunk a 160-unit affordable housing project in Beacon Hill.
Navigating the Seattle permitting system is...
Navigating Kirkland’s Pedestrian Nightmare — And Paradise
Whenever I write an article or series that charts the development of cities and neighborhoods in the Puget Sound, I always make an effort...
Explainer: What is a Builder’s Remedy and Will It Solve Seattle’s Housing Crisis?
Sometimes there is a concept that pops up out of the blue that sounds like solution to so many problems. Among housing advocates in...
Despite Slowdown Worries, 2021 Sets A Townhouse Production Record in Seattle
Last year, The Urbanist covered a Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties (MBAKS) report suggesting that townhouse development in Seattle might be...
Federal Way Link Stations Not Seeing a Housing Boom
Homebuilding activity is anemic near the three Sound Transit light rail stations opening this month in South King County. The Urbanist reviews the 3,000-plus homes in the development pipeline, and explores the obstacles standing in the way.