The Seattle City Council voted unanimously yesterday to approve land-use regulations intended to preserve the historic character of Capitol Hill’s Pike-Pine neighborhood.
The legislation provides incentives for developers to restore or to incorporate the neighborhood's unique, older buildings into their redevelopment plans and to limit the size of new buildings in order to keep development in scale with existing older buildings. Generations ago, the neighborhood had been Seattle’s auto row, and many of its older buildings were built as automobile dealerships or for businesses related to them.
The stated goals of the legislation are to promote mixed-use development; encourage small, diverse local businesses; to save older buildings of character; and to retain and attract arts and cultural organizations.
The new regulations allow projects that retain buildings that are 75 years or older to be eligible for an additional 10 feet for residential floors, which will allow a somewhat larger building on the site. In addition, projects that provide for small commercial uses at a building’s street level and for arts facilities and theaters will be provided exemptions from some size limits.
“This is an important step in the city's work to fulfill the neighborhood plan to retain the unique character of the Pike/Pine and yet not stifle or discourage development,” said councilmember Tom Rasmussen, who sponsored the legislation.
Addressing concerns that the legislation does not go far enough, he added that “work has begun on the next phase of Pike-Pine legislation to create stronger incentives to restore and reuse the older buildings including the possible creation of a transfer of development rights program or to strengthen the neighborhood design guidelines.”
