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City Moving Closer to Raising Height Restrictions

SEATTLE, WA-This week's city council meeting failed to produce a vote on Mayor Schell's plan to raise height restrictions--and contributions developers must pay to build taller structures. The ultimate decision could come next month or next year.

By Janet Parker | Updated on June 26, 2001

SEATTLE, WA-Seattle’s city council met on Monday to discuss Mayor Paul Schell’s proposal to raise height restrictions up to 20%in selected owntown areas. If the proposal is approved, current height limits set by voters through the 1989 CAP initiative would be increased overall by about 20%.

The tradeoff for developers having the option to construct taller buildings would be an increase in contributions to a city fund to be spent predominantly on the development of low-income housing, open spaces and the preservation of historic properties. In the past, the fund has been targeted at more cultural amenities such as Benaroya Hall, but Mayor Schell is pushing hard to provide the city with some affordable housing, given the exorbitant residential prices in Seattle.

As the regulations now stand, developers may build their first eight floors with no surcharge for the fund. The present ceiling in the Downtown core is 45 stories. The proposal would raise it to 49 stories. The south edge of Downtown, where construction of 24-floor developments is now permitted, would receive a two-floor increase. And, in the Denny Triangle, the limit would be upped from 30 to 33 flights.

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