An in-depth look at how Seattle is changing as it grows under the City’s Comprehensive Plan is available in two new reports released by DCLU’s Comprehensive and Regional Planning section.

The first report, titled “Monitoring Our Progress: Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan,” is the third in a series of reports that monitor changes in the Seattle urban environment since the 1994 adoption of the Comprehensive Plan. These monitoring reports use a set of indicators based on the city’s core values of community, environmental stewardship, economic opportunity and security, and social equity to track change in Seattle. The reports also present useful information about how and where the city has grown.

The second report, titled “Urban Village Case Studies,” presents the findings of case studies on five of the City’s 38 urban villages. Urban villages are the locations where the Comprehensive Plan expected to see the greatest amount of growth and change over 20 years. This report is based on discussions with community stakeholders and data from a wide range of sources. It presents portraits of how growth and change are effecting five unique urban villages: 12th Avenue, Belltown, Greenwood-Phinney Ridge, Rainier Beach, and the West Seattle Junction.

These reports provide background material for a discussion the City will engage in during an update of the Plan that state law requires by the end of 2004. The reports point out successes, but also raise questions about whether the City is taking the actions necessary to achieve the goals laid out in the Plan, and whether the Plan’s goals are still ones the City wants to pursue.

Updated Comprehensive Plan Available in Three Formats
DCLU has updated the Comprehensive (Comp) Plan to incorporate amendments adopted by the City Council in 2002. The Comp Plan is a 20-year policy plan designed to articulate a vision of how Seattle will grow in ways that sustain its citizens' values. The City first adopted the Plan in 1994 in response to the state Growth Management Act of 1990.

The updated Comp Plan can be found on DCLU’s Comprehensive Planning website. Paper copies are free from DCLU’s Public Resource Center (PRC), located on the 20th floor of Key Tower at 700 Fifth Avenue, (206) 684-8467. CD-Rom versions will also be available from the PRC in early April.

If you have questions about the Comp Plan or wish to be placed on the mailing list for updates, please contact:

Lish Whitson, DCLU, (206) 233-0079, lish.whitson@seattle.gov