smart growth seattle microhousing response

7/28/2019 Smart Growth Seattle Microhousing Response

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SMARTGROWTHROWTHSEATTLEDirector

RogerValdez

SmartGrowthSeattle

POBox2912

Seattle,WA98111-2912

206.427.7707

www.smartgrowthseattle.org

[email protected]

June3,2013

To: CouncilmemberTomRasmussen

CouncilmemberSallyClarkCouncilmemberNickLicata

From: SmartGrowthSeattleMicrohousingGroup

TheSmartGrowthMicrohousingGroupismadeupofbuilders,operators,

andalliesofmicrohousinginSeattle.

ThankyouforyoureffortstorespondtothemanyconcernsraisedbyneighborhoodgroupsaboutmicrohousinginthecityofSeattle.Whilewe

understandyourapproachoflisteningtotheirconcernsandours,the

evidenceisoverwhelming:microhousingsafelyandefficientlymeetsa

criticalhousingneedinthecity.Furthermore,microhousingisahealthy

andaffordablehousingchoiceforthemanypeopleofallageswhowant

toliveinthecityandpreferlessspace.Weneedtokeepthishousingchoiceavailableandaffordable.

Anylegislationaffectingmicrohousingshouldavoidaddingcoststo

productionthatwill,intheend,driveuprentsanddiscouragethe

developmentofthiskindofhousing.Currently,theeconomicandfinancialclimatesupportsthecontinueddevelopmentofmicrohousing

projectstomeetsurgingdemandfromcustomersforthishousingoption.Moreregulationandprocesswillmakemicrohousinglessaffordable.

MostimportantlyforCounciltoconsider,however,isthatmostofthe

proposalsespeciallyrequiringdesignreviewwillnotsubstantivelyaddressthemyriadconcernsraisedbyneighbors.Addingmore

regulationandprocesswouldhaveanegativeeffectonthebiggestsellingpointofmicrohousingitsaffordablepricewithoutany

realeffectonneighborhoodconcerns.

Intheinterestsofaddressingyourrequestforlegislation,concerns,and

questionspleaseseethefollowingresponsetoyourmemoofMay24,

2013.TheresponsesbelowtrackwiththeformatofyourmemotoDPD

staff.

AmendmentRequests

AnewdefinitionofmicrohousingforinclusionontheSeattleMunicipalCode

Wehavenosubstantiveobjectiontodevelopingadefinitionof

microhousinginthecodeandachapterdedicatedtoregulationsthat

applyspecificallytothisformofhousing.However,wewonderwhatthis

definitionwillincludeandhowitwillaffectotherformsofhousinglike


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congregatehousing.TheCouncilandDPDshouldbecarefultoconsider

unintendedconsequenceswithadefinitionofmicrohousingbasedon

numberofunitsorrooms.

Newdesignreviewthresholdsthatwouldapplyspecificallytomicrohousing

Wearecurrentlyintheprocessofreviewingwhetherwewouldsupporta

thresholdfordesignreview,butthethresholdshouldbeadjustedupforallkindsofnewconstruction.WhenSEPArequirementswererelaxedto

promoteeconomicdevelopment,designguidelinerequirementswerenot

similarlychanged.

However,aswehavepointedoutmanytimes,thereisbroadconsensus

amongdevelopers,neighborhoods,andevenCitystaff,thatdesignreview

isnotaprocessthatyieldstheresultsparticipantsexpect.Furthermore,

whatlittlebenefitdoescomefromdesignreviewcomesatgreatexpense

toproposedprojects,expensesthattendtodriveupthepriceofhousing.

ArevisedmethodofcountingdwellingunitsinmicrohousingprojectsforthepurposesofSEPAreviewandtrackingprogresstowardtheachievementof2024neighborhoodgrowthtargets.

Weareopposedtothisapproachfortworeasons.Thefirstwevestatedalready:moreprocessmeanshigherpricesforcustomerswhochoose

microhousing.WehaveyettohearwhatbenefitsSEPAreviewwould

provideforneighborhoods,developers,andcustomersofmicrohousing,

butwedoknowthatsuchreviewwouldmeanhighercosts.

Second,weareopposedtothenotionthatgrowthtargetsareahard

ceiling,nottobeexceeded.NothinginStatelawmandatesthatcitiesin

ourregionstoptakinggrowthoncegrowthtargetsaremet.Growth

targetscanbeameaningfultoolforplanningandinvestmentin

infrastructure,buttheyoughtnottobearationaleforclosingSeattles

doorstowelcomemorepeople.Economicprosperitywhichbenefitseveryonemeansmorepeople,andmorepeoplemeanademandfor

morehousing.Limitingnewmicrohousingdevelopmentbasedongrowth

targetsisself-defeatingforthecityseffortstogrowandprosper.

PossibleAmendments

YouaskedDPDstafftoprovideananalysisandrecommendationsfororagainstthefollowing:

Establishingaminimumsquarefootsizeforsleepingroomsinmicrohousingprojectsandwhat,ifanyrequiredminimumsquare

footsizeofshared/commonareaspernumberofpeopleexpectedtosharetheuseoftheshared/commonspace


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SleepingroomsarealreadyregulatedbybuildingcodeinSeattle.Whatis

thebasisforrequiringminimumunitsizes?Customersinthehousing

marketoughttodrivethesizeofmicrohousingalongwithsafetyand

otherbasiccoderequirements.Wehavenotseenanyevidenceforhealth

andsafetyconcernsabouttherelativesizeofmicrohousing.

However,weknowthatifthesizeofunitsismandated,manycustomers

willbeforcedtopaymorerentforadditionalsquarefootagetheydont

wantorcantuse.Addingadditionalsquarefootagetomicrohousingtakesawayfromcommonspace,reducesthenumberofunitsinprojects,

andincreasestherentcustomerswouldhavetopayforrent.

Requiringsleepingroomsinmicrohousingprojectstoincludeprivatebathrooms;

Requiringprivatebathroomswouldeliminateaperfectlysafeandhealthy

optionforsomecustomerswhoarewillingtoshareabathroom.Thiskindofrequirementpreventsinnovative,marketdrivenhousing

solutionsfornoapparentreason.

RevisingtheHousingCodetolimitthetenancyofmicrohousingprojectstoonepersonpersleepingroom;

BothStateandFederalfairhousinglawscanprecludeoccupancylimits

withoutcause.Often,microhousingunitsaremarketedwithleasesthat

arelimitedtoonepersonperunit.Limitsonoccupancyarelegally

questionablebutalsolimithousingchoicesforcustomers,including

couples,whowanttoliveinasmallerhousingunit.

Additionally,operatorshavenoincentivetoincreasethenumberof

peopleinbuildingswithoutbeingabletorecoveradditionalrent.The

marketcreatesafinancialincentivetomaintainreasonableoccupancyfor

microhousing,andthatincentivekeepshousingoptionsflexiblefor

potentialresidents.

ProhibitingorlimitingtheconstructionofmicrohousingincertainzonessuchasL1,L2andNC1.

Microhousingisanimportanthousingchoiceformanypeopleandthatchoiceshouldincludeachoiceofneighborhood.Microhousingcanbe

scaledappropriatelyforalmostanyneighborhoodinthecity,andwhile

manypeopleinterestedinmircrohousingpreferdense,multifamily

neighborhoodssomewouldalsoappreciateadifferentsetting.Aslongasprojectsmeettherequirementsofthecode,weseenobasis,inprinciple,

tolimitmicrohousingfromanyneighborhoodinthecity.


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Also,pleasetelluswhatthepossible/allowableunitcountsoverallwouldbeinthesezones,assumingparticulardimensionsformicro

andstandardapartmentsizes;

Theexistingcodehasallowedawidearrayofmicrohousingoptionswith

avarietyofunitsandrooms.Wedontseeanybasistolimitthesupplyofthisoptionbyimposingminimumbuildingsizes,unitorroomcounts.

Microhousingprojectsalreadybuiltandthoseproposedallscale

appropriatelytothezoneinwhichtheyarelocated.Wehavenotseenanyargumentbasedondesign,safety,oranythingelsethatseemstosupport

theideaofimposingaminimumcountofunitsbasedonaprojectbeinga

microhousingproject.Wedsuggestthattheunderlyingzoningis

sufficienttocontrolfordensity.

Requiringpublicnoticesofproposedmicrohousingprojectstolistthenumberofsleepingroomsthatwillbelocatedinthebuilding(s)

Wehavenoproblemwithnotification,butthis,alongwiththequestionaboutgrowthtargets,causesusconcern.TheSEPAreviewthresholdwasraisedoverayearagobecausetheCitywantedtoencouragemore

housingdevelopmentandlowercosts.IfnotificationcomeswithSEPA

review,thentheCityissimplyaddingadditionalandburdensomecoststo

housingwhichsimplyraisesthepriceforrenters.

Distinguishingbetweenandprohibitingthedevelopmentofmicrohousing-styledevelopmentsinallSingleFamilyzonesorplacingfurtherlimitsorcontrolsonboardinghousesthatare

allowedtodayinSingleFamilyzones.

Weareopentodiscussiononthispoint.SmartGrowthSeattlefavors

marketbasedhousingsolutionsinallzonesinthecityofSeattleincluding

single-family.Variousapproachestothis,includingboardinghomes,

DetachedAccessoryDwellingUnits(DADUs),allowingtherentalofspare

rooms,areallanimportantwaysofgivingpeopleofallincomesand

backgroundsasmanyhousingchoicesaspossibleandkeepingpriceslow.

RequestsforFurtherInformation

YourequestedthatDPDstaffprovideinformationonanumberof

questionssurfacedoverthelastyearbyneighborhoodopponentsofmicrohousing.Ourresponsestothesequestionsarebelow.

RestrictedParkingZone(RPZ)permits

WeareveryinterestedinseeingthedatathatisassembledbyDPDin

theirefforttofindouthowmanyRPZpermitswereissuedtoprojects.We

thinkthenumberisgoingtobecomparativelylow.Itisalsoimportantto

notethat,asyourmemostates,ThestandardSDOTpracticeistoallowa


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totalofuptofourparkingpermitsandoneguestpasstobeissuedtothe

residentsofindividualdwellingunits.Sincemicrohousingunitsare

alwaysnumberedfewerthanrooms,thenumberofpotentialpermitsthat

canbeissuedtomicrohousingprojectsis,bydefinition,fewerthana

typicalapartmentbuilding.Forexample,a30-unitapartmentbuilding

couldgenerateasmanyas150permitrequests,whileamicrohousing

unitwithjustasmanyroomsbut6unitswouldgenerate,atmost,30requests.

WhenitcomestotheissuanceofRPZpermits,bydefinition,microhousingshouldgeneratefarfewerrequests,whichisappropriate

consideringthatthevastmajorityofpeoplewholiveinmicrohousingunitsdontdrivecars.

Trashandrecyclablestorage

Trashandrecyclingcanbeachallengetomanageforanymultifamily

dwelling,evenhighpricecondominiums.Non-residentspilinggarbageintodumpsters,trainingresidentstoappropriatelysortgarbageand

recycling,andperiodsofhighdemandondumpsterslikeChristmas,allcreateproblemsformultifamilyhousingprojects.

Certainly,microhousingunitsarelikelynottobemuchdifferent.Adding

requirementstohavelargertrashrecepticlesonsitewouldsimplyreduce

commonandlivingspace.

Itsdifficulttoseehow40or50microhousingresidentswouldhavedramaticallydifferenttrashandrecyclingissuesthanasimilarnumberof

residentsinabuildingwithonebedroomandstudioapartments,butwelookforwardtoseeingtheresponsefromSPU.

Trackingprogresstowardgrowthtargets

Asmentionedearlier,SmartGrowthSeattlesupportstheGrowth

ManagementActandseesgrowthtargetsdeterminedbycentralplannersatthestateasanimportantandhelpfultoolforlocalcitiesandtownsto

planforgrowth.However,thetermtargetisanunfortunateonesinceit

seemstoindicatethatonceaparticularnumberofpeopleandjobsis

reached,thatgrowthshouldstop.Thisviewisneitherrealisticnorisit

mandatedbythestate.Onthecontrary,thedemandformircrohousingisapositiveeffectofmorepeoplemovingtothecitytoworkandliveinour

city.

Theviewthatsomehowmicrohousingiscontributingtobreaking

throughgrowthtargetshastherelationshipsbetweenjobsandhousing

exactlybackwards;microhousingcustomersdontdemand

mircrohousingfirstthenstartlookingforajob,but,instead,theyneed

microhousingbecausetheywanttoliveclosetoajobtheyalreadyhave.


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Tryingtolimithousingsupplybasedongrowthtargetsdoesnothingto

reducethenumberofpeoplefindingjobsinourcity(andwouldwewant

todothatanyway?)butitwouldattenuatehousingsupplyatatimewhen

thedemandisgreatest,contributingtoscarcityofhousingandleadingto

higherpricesforexistingvacancies.

Weopposeanyefforttolinkmircrohousingdevelopmenttogrowthtargets.

Parksandopenspace

Welookforwardtotheanswerstothequestionsyouveaskedaboutpark

andopenspace.Certainlyithasbeenaperiodofgrowthforthe

microhousingsector,somethingweseeasapositiveforthecity.Do

microhousingresidentscreateaneworexponentiallyhigherdemandfor

parksandopenspace?Arelocalparksfindingplayequipment,park

benches,andrecreationalfacilitiesoverwhelmedbymicrohousing

residents?Wedontthinkso.However,welookforwardtothedata.

Therewouldseemtobewideconsensusontwothings,first,wecanalwaysusemoreparkandopenspaceasthecitygrows.Asthecity

becomesincreasinglydense,theaveragesizeoflivingspaceinthecityislikelytodropforallformsofhousing.Thatisapositivethingforthe

environment.

Second,growthalsomeansthatcityresidentswillexpectmanyoftheir

spaceneedstobemetbypublicopenspacewhetherpubliclikeaparkorprivatelikeatableatacaf.

SmartGrowthSeattlesupportsmorepublicinvestmentinparksand

publicopenspaceandalsobelievesthatasweprovidemorehousingfor

thecitysworkers,thoseworkers,inturn,willprovidethedemandfor

evenmorejobcreationinservicesectorwhichprovidesmuchofthe

privatepublicspaceintheformofrestaurants,cafs,andotherretail

establishments.

Designreview

Wevemadeourpositionclearondesignreview:everyoneagreesit

doesntworktomeetitsstatedobjectives.Wealsoknowitwilladdsignificantcoststhatnegativelyaffecthousingpriceforpeoplewhowant

toliveinprojectsaffectedbydesignreview.

WelookforwardtolearningmoreaboutDPDsviewsonwhytheythink

designreviewwillsimultaneouslyaddressneighborhoodconcernsand

avoidcostlyprocessthataddsdollarstomonthlyrentsforpeoplewho

liveinmircrohousingprojects.


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Bathroomcomponents

DianeSugimura,DirectoroftheDepartmentofPlanningand

DevelopmenthasstatedpubliclythatPublicHealthSeattleKingCountyhasfoundmicrohousingperfectlyhealthy,includingthoseunitswithone

sink.Thereisntanyevidencethatweveseenenteredintothepublicrecordthatlinksthespreadofcommunicablediseasetothenumberof

sinksinmicrohousingorinanyotherformofhousing.

Theargumentthatrestaurantsandbarsarerequiredtohavesinksand

thereforemicrohousingshouldtooisaspeciousone.Theprinciplesof

foodsafetyarebasedontheideaofreducingcommunicabledisease.

Businessestablishmentsthatservefoodarerequiredtoimplementa

regimenoffoodsafetyrequirementsbecausetheyservealargenumber

ofpeople.Individuals,intheirownhomes,areexpectedtopracticetheir

ownpersonalhygienepractices;untilnowtherehasnotbeensignificant

pressuretoimposeagenerallegalrequirementforhandwashing,for

example,onapersonmakingdinnerfortheirownfamily.Wedontseewhysuchrequirementsoughttobeimposedonpeoplewholivein

mircrohousinginparticular.

Fireandlifesafety

WelookforwardtohearingabouttheoutcomeofyourmeetingscheduledwithDPDaboutfireandlifesafetyinmicrohousing.TheDirectorofDPD

hasalreadystatedpubliclythatrequirementsfordesign,building

materialsandconstructionmakemicrohousingsafe.Webelieveshell

confirmthatfactwithyouinmoredetail.

Wethinkimpositionofadditionalhealth,fire,andsafetyrequirements

beyondthosethatalreadymakemicrohousingverysafe,wouldsimply

addunnecessarycoststopeoplewhopayrenttoliveinmicrohousing.

smart growth seattle microhousing response

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