Support the Fort Lawton Redevelopment Plan!

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TAKE ACTION: Support Alternative 1 for the Fort Lawton Redevelopment in Magnolia

The final phase of public engagement has kicked off for the plan to redevelop Fort Lawton, a defunct Army Reserve Center located near Discovery Park in Magnolia. Since 2005, the city has planned to transform 34 acres of abandoned buildings and parking lots into a community hub that, as of the second revision of this plan, will be comprised of up to 500 units of affordable housing and almost 22 acres of public parkland. This historic project will help Seattle grow and address critical citywide challenges in a way that balances affordable housing and environmental stewardship.

The City of Seattle has now published its second Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (DSEIS) for the project, identifying two directions for the project: Alternative 1, which would keep the project intact and finally deliver the homes and the parkland that have been planned for over twenty years, and Alternative 2, which would move the project out of Fort Lawton to an already-city owned parcel on Stone Avenue N: squandering this unique opportunity to build affordable and supportive housing in one of Seattle's most expensive and exclusionary, neighborhoods while displacing the existing tiny house village and emergency shelter at the parcel on Stone Avenue N and the people who are transitionally housed there now, with no mitigation measures identified.

We must voice our strong support for Alternative 1 to the Seattle Office of Housing (OH), and keep intact this dream for Fort Lawton over twenty years in the making. We are asking the OH to retain Alternative 1 as the Proposed Action, and complete the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement so that it actually analyzes the harm caused to future residents of the Stone Avenue N site by pollution and noise exposure of living next Stone Avenue N, and the cost to mitigate it, as well as analyze the loss of the existing tiny house village under Alternative 2, and again the costs of mitigate it.

In addition to sending your message to the Office of Housing, please join us in providing public comment in support of Alternative 1 and the Fort Lawton Development Plan. You can do so in the following ways:

Testify Virtually:
A virtual public comment session will be held on Zoom on Thursday, August 27 at 10:00 AM. The information session will run from 10-10:30 AM, followed by a public comment period. You will have two minutes to provide verbal comment. Sign up for the virtual comment session here.
Testify in Person:
In-person verbal public comment can be given at Seattle Municipal Tower in the 3rd floor lobby on Thursday, August 27 from noon to 3:00 PM.
Submit a Written Comment:
From August 6 - September 8, you may submit a written public comment. Comments may be submitted via email to [email protected] or in writing to: Jessica Gomez, Office of Housing, PO Box 94725, Seattle, WA 98124-4725

Thank you for joining us in working to finally deliver the homes and the parkland that have been planned at Fort Lawton for over twenty years.

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Call on the Office of Housing to Continue with the Fort Lawton Redevelopment Plan

Remember to personalize this message; individualized emails receive a lot more attention from elected officials than simple form letters. Talk about why you care about investing in affordable housing and equitable development in Seattle.

Office of Housing

Subject: Fort Lawton Redevelopment 2nd Draft SEIS Comment

Message:

Dear Office of Housing, As a Seattle resident, I am writing in strong support of Alternative 1 for the Fort Lawton Redevelopment in Magnolia. Seattle rarely gets an opportunity like this one. Alternative 1 would build the full spectrum of affordable housing in a high-opportunity neighborhood, next to one of our city’s greatest parks: up to 100 homes for formerly homeless seniors and veterans, 200 affordable rental apartments for low-wage workers, and 200 affordable homeownership units that let families build wealth and put down roots. It would do all of that while creating significant new public park and open space, including two multipurpose fields. Housing and parkland, together, on land that is derelict parking lots and vacant buildings. That vision is far from new. Housing at Fort Lawton has been the City's stated intent since the site was declared surplus under the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure process. Two decades of study, federal approval, and public investment all point the same direction: toward building affordable housing and creating new park space at Fort Lawton. Alternative 2 would forgo the best and only realistic opportunity Seattle has to build a significant amount of affordable housing in Magnolia. The City already owns the parcel at Aurora Ave N & N 130th St site and can develop it whenever it chooses, while Fort Lawton is available only through the federal conveyance now in front of us. Alternative 2 would spend that once-in-a-generation opportunity to entrench precisely the geographic inequities Seattle has committed to undoing. Those commitments are written into the One Seattle Plan. Goal P G1 directs the City to expand public space in ways that address current inequities. Policy P 1.1 calls for new public spaces in areas that lack them. Policy P 1.18 prioritizes recreation investments that reduce disparities in health outcomes and neighborhood environmental quality. Alternative 2 inverts all three city policies, dedicating a rare land acquisition opportunity entirely to new parkland in one of Seattle's most expensive, exclusionary, and park-rich neighborhoods, while siting an estimated 1,600 low-income residents beside a state highway. The DSEIS never asks what that highway would mean for those residents. I ask that the Final SEIS address these gaps: analyze air quality and noise exposure for future residents of the Stone Avenue N site and quantify the additional construction cost of mitigating it; and analyze the loss of the existing tiny house village under Alternative 2, and identify measures to mitigate it, including replacement capacity and relocation for current residents. Please complete the Final SEIS, retain Alternative 1 as the Proposed Action, and move this plan to City Council so Seattle can finally deliver the homes and the parkland that have been planned for over twenty years.

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TAKE ACTION: Support Alternative 1 for the Fort Lawton Redevelopment in Magnolia

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