The availability of housing near everyday amenities is paramount to the sustainability of a healthy community. Working parents need to live near child care and jobs. Seniors need to live near their health clinic and bus stops. And communities need to remain connected.
In order to contribute to healthy communities, The Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority (SCIDpda) has leveraged Seattle Housing Levy funds and other resources to develop and manage 650 units of affordable housing for low-income residents in the heart of the Chinatown International District (CID).
That includes one of our most important projects, Legacy House (now operated by International Community Health Services), which has been providing culturally competent care to our neighborhood’s seniors — many first-generation immigrants — since 1998.
Our investment in affordable senior housing provides clients with the supportive care they need to age in place comfortably.
Unfortunately, the Seattle Housing Levy, which has been the cornerstone of funding affordable housing construction and operation in Seattle is about to expire. It is up to us to renew and scale this proven tool to meet the urgent demands of affordable housing in the CID.
Your vote to R=renew the Seattle Housing Levy will create and maintain 360 affordable homeownership opportunities targeted to BIPOC communities, through new development, foreclosure prevention assistance, home purchase loan assistance, and home repair grants.
It will also produce and preserve 3,500 affordable homes, stabilize housing for 4,500 individuals and families at risk of eviction, allow 1,150 formerly homeless neighbors to live in permanent supportive housing, and provide wage support and career training for care workers.
Please join the Mayor, City Council, housing advocates, labor unions, businesses, service providers, and community leaders in supporting renewal of the Seattle Housing Levy — our single most effective tool to improve housing stability and equity — advancing individual and community health, safety, and wellbeing.
Be sure to vote Yes on Prop 1 by November 7th.
Jamie Lee and Jared Jonson are Co-Executive Directors of The Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority (SCIDpda)
