Update: Council committee OKs West Seattle Triangle rezoning

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(This is now the archived video of today’s meeting, time-coded to start when this agenda item began)
10:40 AM: Click the “play” button and you’ll see the Seattle City Council’s Committee on the Built Environment, talking about the West Seattle Triangle rezoning proposal for the second time this month. (The agenda includes links to the documents and maps they’re discussing.) They may or may not vote today; they need to vote on it before it can go to the full council. Whatever decision is made by the city will affect the face of that section of West Seattle for decades to come – part of the area, including some lots around the Triangle edges, including the west side of Fauntleroy for a stretch south of SW Alaska, is proposed for upzoning to 85 feet. We’ll note highlights and the meeting results, as this goes along. (The meeting started at 9 am, but the committee had another weighty item to get through first – a zoning change in the Roosevelt area of North Seattle – so they didnt get to the Triangle till 10:40 am.)

10:45 AM: They’ve just voted to amend the proposal to include 85-foot zoning on both sides of Fauntleroy for the stretch between Alaska and Edmunds. (See this “map amendment” here.)

10:56 AM: They’ve just approved some amendments, including extending the “pedestrian” zone to 35th, whereas previously it ended at 36th SW. As they get ready to vote on the entire bill, Councilmember Sally Bagshaw says not everyone is happy with everything, but it’s a “give and take” process. Councilmember Tom Rasmussen, who’s been involved in Triangle planning for more than three years, says he’s excited, “while there are still some outstanding issues … and I don’t think we’re going to get back to that … the community was heard (relating to height issues, in that some areas will stay at 65-foot zoning).” He thanks the community for spending “a lot of time on this.”

10:59 AM: The rezoning proposal passes the committee with a unanimous vote. The committee also has approved a resolution calling for SDOT to do a parking study in The Triangle as the result of issues that came up during the last leg of the planning process. Next step: This all goes to the full Council next month.

Herman December 1, 2011 (12:01 pm)

85-feet. 8 story buildings packed into the Triangle. Ridiculous. What a gift to the landowners and developers.

pjmanley December 1, 2011 (11:34 pm)

West Seattle folk need to go and speak. Roosevelt had about a dozen speakers, while West Seattle had none. Is this our neighborhood, or the City’s playground?

JoAnne December 2, 2011 (9:21 am)

Unfortunately we don’t have anyone who can devote full-time attention to advocating against the city. This vote was typical and I’m sure the full council vote, if there is one, will be the same. If they want something, they will ram it through eventually even if neighbors yell their heads off.
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Note the way they introduce “proposals” at these meetings as if they had nothing to do with it.
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They scrupulously avoid any statement about who exactly proposed the 85 ft height and why the hell it was suggested in the first place.
Slimy weasels know all the tricks.

Chetan December 8, 2011 (2:25 pm)

Which one do you want? Slightly tall buildings, or a housing supply thats too low, and therefore makes housing prices skyrocket.

I for one am all for the rezone.

pragmatic December 8, 2011 (3:51 pm)

I’m glad we will have more housing supply in the neighborhood! This rezone is a good thing for making the neighborhood more vibrant and allowing more people to live here and patronize restaurants, shops, etc.

Cascadianone December 9, 2011 (4:13 pm)

I’m all for the rezone as long as the city plans on approving funds for new gondola/subway/light rail lines… I’m pro-density with the proviso that we’ll need real, grade-separated electric transit to meet West Seattle’s needs.

Sorry, comment time is over.