Plans and Policy

A photo of two young children on a beach with more children visible in the distance.

Outdoors For All Act Could Fund Better Park Access in South King County

As a coordinator for an outdoor preschool, Eya Lazaro helps families of color find greenspaces across the Puget Sound for their young children to...
A close up view of a highway in an arid landscape.

Washingtonians Oppose Funding for Highway Expansion, Poll Indicates

In a recent poll released by the Northwest Progressive Institute (NPI), fewer than 20% of respondents agreed that the Washington State Legislature should prioritize...
A photo of a man wearing a suit in a senate chamber standing and speaking while other people in suits sit and listen.

Transpo Notes: No Extra Gas Tax, Metro Staffing Challenges, Governor Makes High Speed Rail...

This week's Traspo Notes highlights: schedule changes to Link, statewide transportation package funding policy, a new trail segment in Bellevue, staffing challenges at King...
Look carefully, what appears to be a single family residence here is actually a duplex. (Photo by author)

Bateman, Macri, Das Propose Missing Middle Housing Bill Tackling Exclusionary Zoning Statewide

Washington could follow in the example of Oregon and California by chipping away at the predominance of single-family zoning across the state with new...
A view of Stone Way from the 38th crosswalk. Nothing is cleared but one car travel lane in each direction.

Seattle Needs a Truly Multimodal Snow Clearance Plan

Puget Sound cities cannot continue to neglect sidewalks, bus routes, bike lanes, and multimodal trails when winter storms hit. Today King County Metro finally (mostly)...
A photo of a grey triplex with red doors that maintains the scale of a large single family house.

Equity Analysis Favors Broader Home in Tacoma Rezone

Note: This article was updated on 1/4/22 to insert the correct map for City Council District 2. Tacoma’s affordable housing initiative, Home in Tacoma,...
Ballard Bridge in a up position to allow a gravel filled barge to go by.

Dubicki: It Is Not Too Soon

Middle age, quarterbacks, and "Don’t Look Up" Here we are at the threshold of the most important celebration of the year: my birthday. As it...
A photo of fireworks at an illuminated space needle

The Urbanist’s Biggest Hits of 2021

Qualifying something as the "best" simply because it is the most popular is an idea that I've always pushed back against. But as I...