It's sausage making season at the WA state legislature #WALeg. Bills need to be out of their house of origin by Tuesday evening 2/15.
Definitely vote for SHB1782 to advance out of the House of Representatives. RantWoman REALLY does not like the idea of shrinking the area covered by the legislation from within 1/2 mile of transit to only within 1/4 mile of transit. The entire state needs more housing than can be crammed into 1/4 file strips along transit routes and constraining growth of housing supply that way does the opposite of what is needed in terms of making it easier to get around on transit by supporting more service. For now, the bill needs to advance though and then the Senate can tackle some of RantWoman's observations.
RantWoman would like to swim against the apparent tide about SHB1782, the "missing middle" proposal that automatically permits up to 4-plexes in residential areas within half a mile of transit. The intent of this bill is to make it easier to build affordable and more dense housing with good access to transit. RantWoman would like to suggest...drum roll please...expanding the area encompassed to within a mile of transit!
Work with RantWoman on this.
The WA workforce is growing faster than the supply of affordable housing. RantWoman has no projections as the country emerges from the pandemic, but pre-pandemic the combination of terrible traffic and stratospheric housing costs make it difficult for even some large Seattle area companies to induce talent to come here.
RantWoman is used to hearing fears about traffic and parking anytime increasing housing supply is part of conversation. The way to keep more housing from contributing to congestion is to develop residential areas that are as transit-friendly as possible. Fewer cars means less traffic, less need for parking.
Infill is not going to occur instantly. To RantWoman, allowing this infill in wider bands around transit routes has potential to generate more housing faster and to create density less oppressively than trying to cram all the new units into narrow bands near transit routes.
RantWoman has heard voices from some jurisdictions saying some version of "Please, let us do this infill. It sounds great." RantWoman has also heard the howls of some jurisdictions who say they have already done what the legislature asked last year. They could be allowed to apply for waivers of up to 5 years before implementing the new standard. Apply to whom? People who know more about zoning than RantWoman get to figure that out.
RantWoman has noted as well a concern related to SHB1782 that some communities that have assembled based on shared identity could be broken up and dispersed as more dense and possibly more expensive housing enters their neighborhood. RantWoman could think of some criteria allowing such communities also to access waivers.
But why a whole mile from transit instead of only half a mile or worse yet 1/4 of a mile?
One of the reasons transit agencies extend their services into new areas is denser population of people in general and especially people who use their services. So, to me support infilling further out, to at least half a mile and preferably a mile makes it more realistic both to spread infill out and. along with new housing, to expand safe walkable busable lifestyles.
RantWoman thinks about this every time she visits a lovely couple who have a big house on a block with many other big houses in NE Seattle. There is also nice vegetation and in some places well-worn sidewalks. There house is probably half a mile from the nearest bus line. Plus if everyone in their neighborhood just created mother in law apartments, perhaps there would be enough demand for transit to add back some of the service that went away after the Husky stadium light rail opened.
RantWoman remembers a comment at a Senate hearing about the bill: the concern was for the tree canopy in Seattle. In many cases allowing more infill would be a way to preserve trees. That comment also referred to building taller in Seattle. Honestly, allowing infill can meet housing needs without disturbing views as much as taller buildings. RantWoman will opine elsewhere about big trees and sidewalks; RantWoman's not so secret plan for world domination would also always push for more public greenspace, rooftop gardens, and balconies full of pots of herbs and cherry tomatoes to help clear carbon dioxide as trees do.
To look at the problem another way, consider the low income housing in Vancouver where disability Mobility voice Abby Griffiths lives. Cool article about Abby in the WSU Examiner The CLOSEST bus stop is already half a mile away. Really Clark County? In King County Metro specifically aims to get bus service all the way to low income housing where a high percentage of residents are likely to be transit dependent for any number of reasons. RantWoman is mystified as to why Clark County does not do the same.
The point though is not just to make more space for very low income people it's also to make more space for people up the income ladder to live affordably without the outrageous time tax of long traffic-clogged car commutes.
It's a wild idea.
Think of grandparents being able to live near grandchildren. Think cheerful spaces free of car noise and traffic clogs.
Think big. Then do it!
No comments:
Post a Comment