Title
PROPOSED ZONING CODE AMENDMENTS REGARDING THE SITING OF NEW EMERGENCY SHELTERS
COUNCIL STRATEGIC INITIATIVE ADDRESSED:
Preserve and enhance neighborhoods, address quality of place issues
CITY ATTORNEY REVIEW: N/A
SUMMARY STATEMENT:
The city council has concerns regarding the siting of new emergency shelters and the impacts they could have on surrounding neighborhoods. On October 22, 2015, the city council adopted Ordinance No. 3302 that implemented a six-month moratorium on the siting of emergency shelters within the city. The council appointed a four-member committee consisting of council and planning commission members to review the existing zoning code regulations and develop recommendations on the siting of emergency shelters. The committee met five times. The meetings included discussions with service providers and video-conferencing with State agency representatives. At their fifth meeting, the committee produced draft recommendations.
On May 5, the planning commission held a workshop on the committee’s recommendations and then a public hearing during their July 6 regular meeting. The planning commission heard from persons who said the proposal was too restrictive and from others who said the proposal was not restrictive enough. After closing the public hearing and discussing the matter the planning commission voted four to one (with one abstention) to forward the committee’s recommendation to the council with a recommendation for approval.
Since the planning commission’s public hearing, additional comments and/or questions have been received by staff. They include the attached letter from Suzanne Skinner representing the following organizations: Seattle University School of Law’s Homeless Rights Advocacy Project, the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, Columbia Legal Services, and the Interfaith Task Force on Homelessness. Councilmember Melink had also received a series of q...
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