Land Use

In Praise of Dumb Boxes

One of the more, ummm, interesting complaints about new buildings is that they are "too boxy"--as if their form is somehow foreign and boxy...

Wonkabout Washington: Pierce County Doubles Protected Farmland, Next Steps on Sound Transit’s Paid Parking

Submit your nominations for the Futurewise Livable Community Awards! Each year, Futurewise honors community leaders in five categories (Local Government Excellence, Equity and Environment, Protecting...
Wallingford Community Council proposed 2017 Comprehensive Plan amendment to remove more than 50 blocks and only park from the urban village. (City of Seattle)

Urban Village Boundary Contractions? No Thanks.

In my Sightline piece from May, I described how homeowners in Wallingford have worked for decades to block housing via downzones, increasing development burdens, and...

Sunday Video: An Urban Planner Plays SimCity

https://youtu.be/LUQaCoxybW8 In this extended short, Dave Amos of City Beautiful takes on the old school classic SimCity from the perspective of a professional planner 20...

Africatown Designs Its Future: Part 2

This is the second part of a two-part series. The first part is here. When we live in an environment which is dominated by ideas...

Africatown Designs Its Future: Part 1

A year has passed since Africatown Community Land Trust acquired a twenty percent ownership stake of the land parcel at 23rd and Union in...

On-Site Affordable Housing Is a Trend in Seattle’s Early MHA Results

The fruits of Seattle's mandatory affordable housing program for new development are beginning to bear, albeit it’s still quite early. Last Tuesday, the Seattle...

Propel Light Rail Station Area Planning for Unincorporated Snohomish County

Snohomish County is kicking off planning for Sound Transit 3 light rail stations planned at Ash Way Park-and-Ride, Mariner Park-and-Ride, and (provisionally) at the...