Category: UW News

We’re pleased to share news of a joint partnership that will yield additional affordable housing units in the U District. Here’s the story from the UW News office:

September 5, 2017

UW, Seattle Housing Authority plan to build affordable housing in the U District

UW News staff

The University of Washington and the Seattle Housing Authority (SHA) have signed a memorandum of understanding for the two organizations to develop affordable housing in the University District.

The goal is to create a minimum of 150 affordable units that will be income restricted to those making 60 percent or less of area median income­­. Units will be offered first to University faculty and staff who meet income requirements before being made available to the general public under the same income requirements. The project will also include housing and services for homeless young adults, and possibly other services such as childcare.

“At the UW, we’re part of this community, and we see what Seattle’s growth has done to rents and mortgages. This partnership creates the opportunity to provide a new, affordable option to UW employees who could otherwise be priced out of living near where they work. It’s an expansion of our commitment to our employees, but it’s also the right thing to do for them and for the city we all call home,” said UW President Ana Mari Cauce.

“This project represents a significant contribution to two of our community’s most urgent needs: affordable housing and housing for homeless youth,” said SHA Executive Director Andrew Lofton. “We are pleased to partner with the University to help make this important project a reality.”

The two organizations will launch an RFP/RFQ process later this year to identify a development partner to construct and potentially manage the building. Contingent on financing, the goal is to have the facility open by 2021. The University already owns the property at 42nd and Roosevelt on which the building would be located.

This project represents the University’s ongoing commitment to support an inclusive and thriving University District and responds to the growing housing affordability crisis in the Seattle region.

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For more information, contact:

Aaron Hoard, UW Regional & Community Relations
206-953-5486
ahoard@uw.edu

Kerry J. Coughlin, Seattle Housing Authority
206-615-3506
kerry.coughlin@seattlehousing.org

University of Washington geography professors Victoria Lawson and Sarah Elwood are leading the effort to alter how we perceive and study poverty around the world. Co-founders of the Relational Poverty Network, they are looking to shift thinking about “the poor and poor others” to thinking about relationships of power and privilege at a time when issues of economic inequality are part of the national and local dialogue.

Read about this important work on UW Today or visit the Relational Poverty Network’s site.

(Article By Victor Balta, Director of UW Today)

Sally J. Clark, who has served on the Seattle City Council since February 2006, has been appointed director of regional and community relations at the University of Washington, effective May 18, 2015.

“I am thrilled to welcome Sally to the University,” said Randy Hodgins, UW vice president for external affairs. “She brings a wealth of leadership experience to the office not only from her time on the Seattle City Council, but also in her neighborhood and economic development work. All of us are looking forward to the creative ideas and energy she will bring to the university.”

Clark is wrapping up nearly a decade of Seattle City Council service and announced in February that she would not seek reelection. She most recently served as the chair of the Council’s Committee on Housing Affordability, Human Services, and Economic Resiliency. She also worked on local hiring for city construction projects and the city’s minimum wage legislation. She served as council president from 2012 to 2013, and, among other appointments, serves as vice president of the Puget Sound Regional Council Economic Development District.

Prior to joining the city council, Clark was director of community resources at the Lifelong AIDS Alliance, a nonprofit agency serving people living with HIV/AIDS in King County. She held several legislative aide positions, as well as neighborhood development posts, from 1997 to 2004.

As UW’s director of regional and community relations, Clark will lead the University’s effort to link with surrounding neighborhoods, civic groups and local government. The Office of Regional & Community Relations works to build collaborative relationships between these groups through information sharing, and looks for new opportunities to match the UW’s academic capital with needs in the region and community.

Clark’s annual salary will be $155,000.