King County’s small cities providing much-needed housing – PSRC says no!
REALTORS® have been supporting efforts by small cities to allow more housing for working families. The supply of homes is far less than what’s needed to meet the market demand evident to everyone in the region. As we well know, the result of this demand is skyrocketing home prices and rental rates that families can’t afford.
In an article published June 21st in the Seattle Times, author Lynn Thompson explains the ongoing disagreement between the Puget Sound Regional Council (PSRC) and the small cities:
“Regional growth plans call for small cities in King County’s rural areas to take just 5 percent of the growth during the next 20 years, while large cities including Seattle, Bellevue, Kirkland and Redmond absorb 73 percent.
That’s put Duvall and four other small cities in King County at odds with the [PSRC]…whose policies seek to limit sprawl and reduce the carbon emissions associated with more highways and long commutes.
The council has told the cities they must revise the growth and employment forecasts in their comprehensive plans or risk losing a share of the $700 million in federal transportation funds the agency will administer over three years”
REALTORS® are strongly opposed to the PSRC actions to force small cities to reduce affordable housing opportunities. “The PSRC refuses to recognize its actions are based on stale, inaccurate data from 2012, rather than accounting for the current real estate market realities confronted by working families,” said Patti Hill, 2016 President of Seattle King County REALTORS®.
The PSRC’s actions actually create more multi-county sprawl, harm the environment, increase congestion from multi-county commutes and crush economically vulnerable families. The PSRC is organizing a work group in 2017 to address these issues and make further recommendations. “You can expect the REALTORS® to continue to be involved in this issue and to seek reasonable solutions.” said Hill.
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