West Coast Cities Slam Brakes on Housing Production Amid Worsening Crisis Multifamily Construction Starts Fall From San Diego to Seattle After Years of Robust Building (CoStar)
Seattle Is Producing Housing at a Clip Superior to Portland’s "Excluding their suburbs, Portland and Seattle are similar in size. Seattle has 750,000 people, and Portland has 635,000, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Both cities are about 145 square miles in area, including water features. Back in 2017, Portland produced more housing than its larger neighbor, 8,835 units to 6,820, data compiled by Pyszka shows (see graph below). By 2021, Seattle was walloping Portland 8,727 to 1,639." (Willamette Week)
Public transit is now free for youth. But what happens when you turn 19? "Hernandez-Angel mainly rides King County Metro, and they allowed free rides when he began college at 18. But he’s turning 19 soon, and he’ll have to start paying out of pocket. It's a challenge he’s preparing to face." (KUOW)
Harrell Signs Industrial Land Reform into Law The land use code updates will strengthen 'protections for existing industries, allow flexibility for future growth near planned Sound Transit light rail stations, and create healthier transitions from industrial to non-industrial areas,' the Mayor’s office said in a press release 'The updates are estimated to create 35,000 new jobs and 3,000 new homes over the next 20 years.'" (The Urbanist)
Report: Vehicle trips to downtown Seattle aren’t increasing, despite some return-to-office mandates "Seattle, the fifth-most employment-dense downtown, still sits 27% below its 2019 levels of traffic." (GeekWire)
