Downtown Zoning Ordinance
On April 12, 2006, Mayor Nickels signed the new Downtown Zoning Ordinance.

Final Environmental Impact Statement
On Jan. 6, 2005, a Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) was issued by DPD, and will be followed by a meeting to brief the public on Jan. 13 (see Events & Activities). The FEIS defines a Preferred Alternative that will change development regulations in ways that will enhance the best qualities of Downtown districts and also encourage slimmer, more attractive building designs. 

The chapters and appendices of the Final EIS are available in PDF format below.

• Preface: provides introduction, fact sheet with background information, table of contents, and list of figures and tables
• Chapter One (3.3MB): Description of the Preferred Alternative
• Chapter Two (2.4MB): Description of Alternatives 1, 2, 3 and 4
• Chapter Three: Key Issues and Findings
• Chapter Four (9.8 MB): Summary
• Chapter Five (20.5MB): Response to Comments on the Draft EIS
• Appendices:
• • A. Transcripts of Two Public Meetings and Response to Comments
  • B. Discussion of Transportation Demand Management Strategies
  • C. Seattle Urban Form Study – Otak, Inc. (9.7MB)
  • D. Preferred Alternative Project List

Additional Documents
The Mayor presented his proposal to shape the future of Seattle’s greater downtown area and set a new direction for dealing with the significant growth coming to Seattle on Wednesday, May 11, 2005:

• Executive Summary
• Director's Report

Objectives
The Preferred Alternative's overall approach is to update and reinforce the purposes of Downtown zoning through strategic changes that will:

• Enhance opportunities for housing development to create a vital mixed-use Downtown environment, reduce sprawl in the region, and protect the city's existing residential neighborhoods.
• Accommodate as broad a range of household incomes as possible
• Maintain Downtown Seattle as the major regional employment center and concentrate employment growth where it can best be served by transit
• Ensure that added height promotes less bulky development for both residential and non-residential projects
• Provide a transition in development intensity and scale between the office core and adjacent neighborhoods
• Promote historic preservation
• Simplify the Downtown Code