Everett City Council Update, Baker Heights: A Chance for More Community
On February 7th, a new item was brought to the council - the Petition for the Proposed Vacation of Larch, Hemlock, and Fir Streets Lying South of 12th Street and North of 14th Street in the Plat of Baker Heights. Everett Housing Authority (EHA) is proposing, as part of their Park District project, to vacate these streets to allow new rights of way in this area to facilitate the redevelopment of this site.
The ultimate goal is to develop the area by creating a mixed-income housing community - with low-income housing making up 139 of the units while other units will be more towards the market-rate part of the housing cost spectrum. This community would also include commercial space for critically needed community spaces such as coffee shops, daycares, grocery marts, and even local businesses.
At this meeting, neighbors brought up support for the project - with some stipulations. Some noted that while they were in support of low-income and affordable-income housing projects, the Delta neighborhood had significantly more of these housing communities than surrounding neighborhoods. Others noted how this project would impact traffic and parking in the area and others that they had heard this project would go up to 15 stories in height (making it the tallest building between Seattle and Vancouver). Others noted that more information was needed regarding the park district redevelopment project itself, that the council members (and others involved in this decision) needed to do more outreach to Delta neighbors to hear their perspectives and needs, and that the neighborhood needs those community supports guaranteed as part of the housing (because adding more housing without the community supports - like daycares and grocery marts - doesn’t help sustainably build the neighborhood up or meet the needs of those living there).
After some discussion, the City Council did vote “yes” at this meeting - though this was not a “yes” to move forward with the project, simply a “yes” to the vacation request with the understanding that commissions and staff would create a package with public comments and the clear plan on what to expect from this project to be brought back to the council in March.
At the Planning Commission meeting on Tuesday, March 5th, there were about 6 hours of public hearing, echoing the needs shared by neighbors at the February 7th meeting. This meeting resulted in a recommendation for approval of the comprehensive plan amendment and the plan development overlap with one added statement: “The Planning Commission recognizes that the capital facilities and utilities element of the forthcoming comprehensive plan update must recognize and address the offsite infrastructure demands such as those at Wiggums Hollow park and sidewalk improvements on 15th that are generated by this project.”
This leads us to our Built Environment Council Committee Meeting at 5 PM on March 13th where we received a Park District briefing. Yorik Stevens-Wajda (the Planning Director) shared the results of the aforementioned Planning Commission meeting and shared that he recognizes the neighborhood concerns regarding infrastructure (and the fact that this project would add about 3,000 residents to our Delta neighborhood) and that the expectation would be to meet those needs, especially as the timing is serendipitous as we are in the middle of a comprehensive plan update.
Lots of factors are being considered for this project - from increased traffic, to updated bus stops (and new bus lines), to green space needs, to the benefits of mixed-income housing, to the right to return (for past Baker Heights residents), to the size of the project itself - and that’s a good thing! We know our city needs more housing and we know more people than ever before are struggling to meet rent so ensuring new housing takes this into account makes it more realistic that this housing will serve the needs of our community. That said, we also know our city needs to approach any new project with sustainability in mind to ensure neighbors can thrive in their communities, access their needs regardless of their ability and mobility needs, and connect with one another in green and third spaces.
The City Council briefing is scheduled for March 27th, with a second reading on April 3rd and a third (and final) reading on April 17th, after the Built Environment meeting on April 10th. If you would like to speak on this subject or email the Council your thoughts, please take advantage of the public comment at meetings or the email found on the city council website.
Angela Di Filippo currently works in State Social Services and recently earned her Masters in Industrial/Organizational Psychology with extensive training in evidence-based leadership coaching. Angela moved from North Carolina to Washington 6 years ago and has proudly called Everett her home for 5 of those years. When not helping others solve problems in creative and strength-driven ways, Angela enjoys her time painting, hiking with her terrier-mix, Indy, and eating waffles.
