Downtown Sees Big Growth, And That’s Good for Seattle

The Downtown Seattle Association released their 2015 State of Downtown Economic Report and things are looking good. We’re number one in, well, a lot:...

County May Require Shops to Offer Cash Payment Option to Protect Unbanked Residents

Shops in unincorporated King County may have to accept cash as payment if the King County Council moves forward with a proposal meant to...

The Urbanist Podcast: Time to Talk About Washington State Taxes

Every one knows there are two things you can't escape in life, death and taxes. While I'd add a few more items to that...
Youth climate activists organized the first Fridays for the Future rally on March 22, 2019. District 4 City Council candidate Shaun Scott attended and gave a brief talk encouraging activists. (Photo by author)

It’s Well Past Time We Ditch Fossil Fuels

Yesterday, Mayor Jenny Durkan announced executive action ending the use of fracked gas infrastructure in City buildings. It represents a small step toward decoupling...
Recreation of the Seattle flag. Cent sign on a blue back ground with text "Penny Wise Pound Foolish"

Op-Ed: Seattle is the Capital of Toxic Frugality

Next week is standardized testing at the kiddos’ school. The normal seven-class-a-day schedule will be reorganized to allow morning and afternoon blocks long enough...

Sunday Video: How Fracking Became America’s Money Pit

https://youtu.be/jFWHxZpF9rc It turns out that fracking is not as lucrative as it was once thought, Bloomberg Quicktake explains.
A triplex in Magnolia. (Photo by Doug Trumm)

Conventional Conforming: The Quiet Hurdle to Increasing Density

How Federal Subsidy of Loan Interest Rates Block Missing Middle Housing Earlier in the pandemic, I was searching around Zillow. Looking at houses was a...
A sign says 4,128 square feet of retail are available.

Seattle to Boost Downtown with Additional Street-Level Uses

On Monday, the Seattle City Council unanimously passed an ordinance to energize Downtown Seattle and South Lake Union (SLU) with new street-level uses. This...