Program Background

Neighborhood plans were completed between 1995 and 2000 to manage growth in the neighborhoods, especially in light of Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan and growth management strategy, adopted in 1994. Since neighborhood plans were completed, growth throughout Seattle has been generally consistent with expectations but has varied by neighborhood. In some neighborhoods growth has been far different than anticipated.

In September of 2008, the Seattle City Council passed legislation (ordinance and resolution) that authorized the Department of Neighborhoods (DON) and DPD to work with Seattle stakeholders (residents, business owners, etc) to begin updating neighborhood plans where needed. The ordinance and a companion resolution implemented three key programs that together are intended to create a neighborhood-based planning process that is rooted in the foundational work communities conducted in the 1990s.   

Updating Plans — Neighborhood Plan updates began in Autumn 2008 with North Beacon Hill, North Rainier and MLK Jr. @ Holly (Othello)—followed by Rainier Beach and Broadview-Bitter Lake-Haller Lake in 2011. Four of these neighborhoods have stations on the Sound Transit light rail route and have experienced and/or is expecting significant new population and business growth. 

Outreach and Engagement —  For both the updates and the status reports, outreach and community engagement included a broad cross-section of neighborhood stakeholders. Innovative and more traditional tools—from hands-on workshops to smaller-scale interactive meetings with community-based organizations, as well as online communication and surveys—were important strategies towards participation.

During the first two rounds of plan updates, the City sponsored or contributed to more than 390 community meetings and events.  We reached an audience of both long-time veterans of neighborhood planning and a new generation of neighborhood planners, building a broader base for civic engagement.  This included the invaluable efforts of Planning Outreach and Engagement Liaisons (POELs) who partner with the City to support and engage historically-underrepresented communities (immigrants, refugees, youth, seniors, communities of color, people living with disabilities, etc) in neighborhood planning and civic processes.