In a previous post we established a few important points. First, the housing market isn't a solution to be accepted or thrown out but rather a tool we get to design. In many cities, the market is designed very poorly, including in Seattle. The best way to approach how the...

  It has become a common refrain among anyone paying attention to housing costs that the market simply doesn't work. Many legitimate and important concerns motivate this observation, including rising costs, homelessness, displacement and inequity. Often though, the conversation about housing turns to complaints about the failures of the unfettered...

Last week, Michael Andersen at People for Bikes posted new data based on the most recent Census that shows the poorest Americans are twice as likely to bike as the richest: As we can see, bicycling infrastructure is a clear social justice issue - it provides affordable transportation for those...

The city's draft of microhousing legislation (p. 15) includes a previously proposed regulation for bicycle parking: 1 secure space for every 4 microhousing units. Seattle currently requires one bike space per four dwelling units in multifamily housing, like typical condos and apartments. In congregate residences, as much microhousing is currently defined, there's...

Gabriel Metcalfe from SPUR proposes an all-of-the-above approach to solving the housing cost problem in San Francisco. He nails it with the comment: In the long run, the only solution that will actually benefit the vast majority of people is to fix the supply problem. and has a shoutout to Seattle,...

Sometimes, when having conversations with fellow environmentalists, I find a disconnect in our understanding of urbanization. In the past, cities were regarded as dirty, unhealthy, the source of most of our emissions, and much early environmentalism was focused on rural, self-reliant, self-contained living. One of the most well known tools...

If you're not doing anything on Sunday afternoon, you could help make Seattle a safer place for cyclist and pedestrians, help improve access to lake union and participate in a nice bicycle ride all at the same time. The Cascade Bicycle Club is holding a policy ride on Sunday, January...

In many cities the term NIMBY (not in my back yard) is often lobbed at those opposing changes in their neighborhood. The term is often perceived as an insult but this wasn’t always the case. People don’t want anything near them, especially if it might help someone else - George...