Katie Wilson has full power to shape OPCD’s direction and if the zoning code amendments that they propose suck, that will be her fault! She will be the executive, and every planner’s boss. The buck will stop with her. Don’t let politicians off the hook for bad choices.

I’m not gonna argue that every planner is great, that planning consultants always generate amazing plans, or that I agree with the director of OPCD on everything. I’m mainly arguing that you seem to always discount the impact of politics on planning decisions.

The Overton window for this topic has shifted massively since Murray and McGinn. What is popular and politically achievable now for upzoning is massively different than what was possible 15-20 years ago. State housing bills demonstrate that.

So you disagree with Doug’s take here:

www.theurbanist.org/2024/04/16/p...

Do you think the original comp plan drafted by OPCD, revealed by public records request and buried by the mayor’s department, was more or less ambitious than the final result that was pushed by Harrell?

National and WA APA’s official policy platforms have been advocating for increasing housing supply and liberalizing zoning for decades. Seattle’s planners proposed an ambitious comp plan that was rolled back by the Mayor’s office. Why do you blame planners over decision makers?

King County Metro’s real time bus arrivals are broken today- they’re working on it.

Yes- in 1882, by a Spanish urban planner. It’s certainly not something planners are taught now, nor is it an urban form that any US planning organization is advocating for. Linear corridors of density in Seattle are a political choice.

Van has tower spacing requirements. The Broadway plan limits towers to 80’ apart, and largely limits the number of towers per block.
Even the towers in this photo are planned to have an 80’ minimum separation.
You managed to find one issue where Seattle is probably more permissive than Vancouver.

The governor has unnecessarily ruled out new revenue, even though our state has a remarkably regressive tax structure. Washington’s economy is booming- why is our government forced to make cuts? Why can’t we capture more of the productivity of our state and use it to fund our priorities?

Who is asking you for cuts? Where is this impulse coming from? You are not meeting the moment. When the feds promise to give us less, you should respond by providing more.

Washingtonians didn’t vote for austerity- and you’re making a lot of us regret voting for you.

No one knows what you’re talking about

Queen Anne is unique in Seattle- it’s incredibly accessible to downtown, and yet it feels like a far flung neighborhood. How does he see Queen Anne transitioning into a real central Seattle neighborhood over the horizon of the comp plan period?