BUILD MIDDLE HOUSING.
NOT TOWER HOMES.
Join us for a free Community forum where we will explore Seattle’s growth and densification history, the current One Seattle Plan and its impacts on Seattle’s urban tree canopy, property taxes, housing affordability. There are ways to deliver densification without destruction and displacement; affordability without axing the mature tree canopy; and ways you can help keep Seattle, well, Emerald.
ReVision Seattle 2.0
November 9th, 7:00PM - 8:30PM
Maple Leaf Lutheran Church - 10005 32nd Ave NE
Legislating for Luxury
SRTG’s latest report on how Seattle turned a middle housing bill into a giveaway for luxury developers.
The city promised residents nine forms of smaller, attached, more affordable housing under HB 1110. Then it legislated for the one form that wasn’t on that list, which happens to be the most profitable: the single-family home. That’s what developers are building.
Of the 1,138+ new homes built after a teardown, 67% are luxury homes, with an avg square footage of 1,700—that’s 37% larger than new homes built just 2 years ago. Since size determines price, likely future prices for these homes will be proportionately higher.
ACT NOW: DON’T LET THE CITY SILENCE THE ORCA APPEAL
The City Attorney can file a motion to dismiss the Orca Appeal between now and November 2.
Write the City Attorney’s Office today!
READ: Tree Action Seattle report
The City of Seattle has a credibility problem when it comes to trees. The City hired a University of Vermont geospatial team for its 2021 canopy study, then hired a separate consulting firm to help with “strategic messaging” for the final report.
Should blackberry bushes be included in our tree canopy calculations? You decide.
MISSION
A growth strategy for Seattle that results in housing attainable to middle income households, protects the environment, and supports livable neighborhoods.
WHO WE ARE
We represent over 30 Seattle organizations and neighborhood groups that advocate for legislation that encourages smaller, more affordable market-rate housing that working- and middle-income families can afford. Seattle's growth strategy must prevent displacement, protect the environment, preserve livability, and ensure growth is supported by funded infrastructure. We also advocate for upzoning strategically, rather than blanket upzoning, and taking steps to reduce inflating land values and land speculation.
Empirical evidence shows that upzoning and land speculation increase land values, making new market-rate housing out of reach for working- and middle-income families. The One Seattle Plan is legislating upzoning that encourages larger luxury homes and demolition of naturally occurring affordable housing (NOAH), with the belief that trickle-down economics will make that housing affordable, eventually, to middle-income families. SRTG believes we can create affordable housing while we grow through legislation that preserves NOAH, encourages low impact conversion development (LID Conversions), develops grey zones, limits hotel-like short-term rentals in neighborhoods, and incentivizes for commercial-to-residential conversions.
SMART CitiES LEGISLATE,
NOT JUST HOPE FOR,
THE HOUSING THEY WANT TO SEE
VANCOUVER “went big” with their plan, and tripled its housing stock in hope of driving down costs. After growing more than any other city in North America, Vancouver is now the 3rd least affordable city in the world, sharing the “most expensive city” podium with Sydney and Hong Kong. Renowned professor and growth strategist Patrick Condon, author of Broken City, shows how foreign investment and speculation, which increased the cost of land, were at the root of the exacerbated affordability problem. Condon now speaks out on how “Abundance” is a fallacy in housing.
PORTLAND, OR literally “went small” with their plan, focusing upzoning with affordable density as the explicit, intended outcome. They did this by only allowing the building of affordable density types (attached, smaller homes). It resulted in affordable density, and on average, housing prices have gone DOWN. Let’s learn from what they did: See article
BELLINGHAM, WA realized that given the choice, developers would build McMansions instead of multifamily housing. They had to issue a one-year moratorium on permits for single family homes within multifamily housing-zoned areas. The details may differ—but the point remains: as with Portland, legislate what you want to see.
Legislating for Luxury
Read the SRTG whitepaper on how Seattle turned a middle housing bill into a giveaway for luxury developers.
State Mandate: Build Middle Housing,
not Tower HOMES anD LARGE, EXPENSIVE SINGLE FAMILY HOMES
Washington’s HB1110 upzones every lot in its largest cities from “single family home” designation to multi-family zoning, with up to 4-6 homes depending on its size and proximity to transit. Why? To grow middle housing, which the state defines as: “compatible in scale, form, and character with single-family houses and contain two or more attached, stacked, or clustered homes including duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, fiveplexes, sixplexes, townhouses, stacked flats, courtyard apartments, and cottage housing.” Source: HB1110, lines 32 - 35
In late 2025, Seattle City Council approved the Seattle version of HB1110, which in addition to the basic requirements, grants developers the opportunity to build homes with greater lot coverage, taller heights, and smaller setbacks. Because of the generous entitlements given to developers, we’ve seen this result in teardowns of homes (many were duplexes and triplexes), and building multiple detached $1M+ single-family “tower homes” standing on 1,250 sq ft of land. We also see huge luxury single family homes taking advantage of legislation meant for multiple families. Phase 1, as this is known, does not align with the spirit or intent of Middle Housing.
When developers replace older, modestly priced homes with luxury units, they eliminate existing Middle Housing, erase tree canopy, and drive up land values. Working families seeking housing are left with even fewer options.
If we continue down this path, we risk accelerating the destruction of true Middle Housing—ironically, under the banner of creating it.
NEWS / RESOURCES
SEATTLE ZONING MAPS FOR PHASE 2 (CENTERS ONLY)
Seattle’s history shows why zoning appeal process matters | OpEd, Lois Martin - July 21,2026
Seattle an enviro city? Doesn’t seem that way at City Hall | The Seattle Times July 20, 2026
Ezra Klein needs to look more closely at his housing chart -CEPR Nov 2025
Seattle likes its eco-friendly cred. But housing plan hides dark truths - Orca Appeal - May 24, 2026
On being called a NIMBY: A word about that word by Lois Martin
Seattle Times: No more closed-door City Hall meetings on Seattle growth strategies - May 8, 2026
Seattle Times: More Concrete, Less Green: A Cautionary Tale about upzoning from South Park - Jan 2026
Washington’s Missing Middle Housing Bill Misses the mark March 2026
Seattle growth plan lacks creativity: How to repair it Sept 2025
Amazon pledged to support affordable housing. How has it fared? - Sept 2025
Make it One Seattle, full of trees, in Comprehensive Plan - Sept 2025
Seattle’s Affordable Housing System is Crumbling, and Roots to Roofs- Aug 2025
Over 30 Seattle organizations and neighborhood groups agree: Seattle can do better. The City’s HB1110 Permanent Legislation, which applies to every single-family lot in the city, unnecessarily shrinks setbacks, raises roof heights, and expands lot coverage—changes that will fast-track demolition and large-scale redevelopment across neighborhoods – to the benefit of developers and investors and to the detriment of affordable Middle Housing, current residents, and the environment. There are many examples of middle housing in Seattle today that respect the scale, character, and tree canopies of their neighborhoods – the true intent of HB1110. Let’s do more of that!
Capitol Hill | Central District | Columbia City | Green Lake | Greenwood | Haller Lake | Madison Park | Madrona |
Magnolia | Maple Leaf | Montlake | Mt Baker | Phinney Ridge | Queen Anne | Tangletown | Wallingford |
Washington Park | Wedgwood | West Seattle – Fauntleroy | West Seattle - Seaview/Fairmount | Whittier Heights
Take action today
Write to your Council Member (email list here), as well as at-large Council Members.
Ask a question? info@seattlethoughtfulgrowth.org
Press/ media inquiries: press@seattlethoughtfulgrowth.org