I’m pleased that you have reached our website, designed to give you a sense of the wide range of services we provide at DPD. We hope it will save you a trip downtown, or, at the very least, help you focus your questions in preparation for meeting with our staff, your client, or nearby neighbors.
More importantly, I hope our website demonstrates our commitment to making our services accessible and understandable. Our primary goal is to provide you with quality service as we carry out our mission--managing growth and development within Seattle in a way that enhances quality of life. We're working daily to promote a safe and sustainable environment through comprehensive planning, good design, and compliance with development regulations and community standards.
Like many public service agencies, we're continually making improvements to our processes and to our website. A summary of our department's monthly briefings to Seattle City Council and highlights of recent website enhancements are included below. If you have comments about current services or improvements you would like to see in the future, please don't hesitate to contact us.
Best Wishes,
Diane Sugimura, Director
diane.sugimura@seattle.gov
Monthly City Council Briefings
DPD Director's monthly briefing memos to Seattle City Council's Urban Development and Planning Committee:
Highlights of Recent Website Enhancements
- Downtown Zoning: City Council has adopted new legislation that updates rules for the central office core and adjoining areas. The new zoning rules are an essential component to move Seattle forward on two major policy goals: promoting affordable housing and encouraging 'smart growth' in the city and the region.
- Environmentally Critical Areas (ECAs): The City of Seattle has completed the first major update to its ECA regulations and policies since they were first adopted in 1990. These regulations address how development on and adjacent to Seattle's wetlands, wildlife habitat and other ECAs should be regulated.
- "Center City Seattle: Livable, Walkable, 24/7": Mayor Nickels' strategy for Seattle's downtown core and the nine neighborhoods immediately around it--encourages economic growth, transportation, new housing and great urban neighborhoods.
- Central Waterfront Plan: Planners are working with the public to take advantage of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reshape the city – and to create a waterfront that will meet Seattle’s challenging needs.
- Neighborhood Business District Strategy: The City is proposing a new strategy to reflect changing conditions and goals to strengthen and revitalize Seattle's neighborhoods and business districts. For details visit our South Lake Union, Northgate, Broadway and University District "revitalization" sites.
- City Green Building: The Department strives to make green building standard practice in Seattle through education, technical assistance and incentives. This site provides resources to help homeowners, contractors, construction workers, and business owners and managers build green.
