Action Alert: Last Chance to Comment on HALA Before the Election

The missing middle. (Classic brick condos near Volunteer Park, illegal in most of Seattle.)

Apologies for the short notice, but tonight (September 30) at 5:30 is your last chance to testify before the City Council on the HALA Grand Bargain and the Council's related workplan. The Council's Select Committee on Housing Affordability will hear public comment on the proposed Affordable Housing Impact Mitigation Program (aka the Commercial Linkage Fee).

After tonight, the budget and the election will consume the energies of the council, so your turnout tonight is important, especially if you did not have a chance to testify at the September 9 hearing.

New development capacity is critical to ensuring that people who want to live in Seattle will be able to find a place to call home, and the core of HALA is a Grand Bargain of mandatory inclusionary zoning, commercial linkage fees, and dozens of other recommendations. It is not a purist document - its proposals chafe both pure supply-side urbanists and hardcore social justice advocates alike - but a remarkable coalition has come together to recognize that its net impact would be very positive for the City, with more units built at more levels of income than ever before. If you cannot make it tonight, you are encouraged to email your comments to council@seattle.gov.