Frequently Asked Questions

Please review our Dos and Don’ts document for hints about how to include the most relevant information.

View past projects.

Really expensive projects and ones that require extensive permitting are not good candidates. Projects must be located on city streets or sidewalks. Projects that change the number of lanes on a roadway or propose a change to traffic control (stop signs or traffic signals) must be evaluated by SDOT for feasibility.

During conceptual design, SDOT may also refine the scope of the proposed project in consultation with the applicant. For example, an original project might assume building sidewalks on both sides of the street while the project purpose may be met with a sidewalk on only one side of the street, reducing the project cost and making funding more likely.

Yes. Previously submitted projects are eligible, but you’ll need to submit a new project application.

No. However, projects are scored through a community prioritization process based on the wants and needs of the neighborhoods. With this in mind, building support for your application is a good idea and can involve talking with neighbors, presenting at community meetings, and brainstorming with local advocate groups.

The Council Districts will have a less active role this cycle and will no longer initially vet projects for consideration. To be more transparent and equitable, our project prioritization process will begin in the communities using a scoring method based on community need and wants. From here, SDOT will take feasible projects from each council district area and work with applicants to develop concept designs that will be voted on by the public. The public will then vote on favorite projects per council district, from which approximately 5 to 10 projects will be selected with the assistance of the Move Seattle Levy Oversight Committee. This selection will emphasize equitable distribution of projects and funding. Projects will be designed and built in 2020 and 2021.

This year you can apply both online and in-person! There will be more outreach done where SDOT staff will be available to assist you in applying for a project to increase community involvement.

• Show up at our outreach events!
• Gather neighborhood support for a project and apply!
• Show up at your community meeting and prioritize projects that matter to you!
• Vote for the final projects to be selected and built!

Visit the NSF website to discover explore what projects are being considered in your area.

If you have applied, SDOT Staff will inform you if your project has been identified as a community priority.

The Move Seattle Levy Oversight committee will review the communities’ top voted projects with an emphasis on equitable distribution of funding and project location across the city.

The number of distinct projects funded in this NSF cycle depends on how expensive each project is. In past years, 10 to 12 projects have been funded per cycle. The 2019 application period is the second of three funding cycles through the 9-year Levy to Move Seattle.

Projects will be selected through community prioritization and voting. Dates for community meetings where this will happen and when online voting will open have yet to be determined, but announcements will be made after the application phase closes at the end of 2018.

The only information needed for a complete application is a location and a problem statement. However, communities may prefer projects with more information or a conceptual design. Similarly, letters of support for your project are not required, but if available, can demonstrate broader community support.

If you want to propose a solution that addresses your concerns at a location, SDOT’s Safe Routes to School program recently published a toolkit that explains many of the standard improvements we build in neighborhoods.

Until a project is fully designed and built, it’s difficult to know how much it will cost, but here are a few benchmarks that might be helpful in estimating costs while at this early planning stage. Please note that these costs include design, construction, and all the costs associated with overseeing the project.

• $10,000 - $12,000 per linear feet of stairway, including handrail
• $10,000 - $20,000 per marked crosswalk
• $15,000 - $25,000 per ADA compliant curb ramp
• $60,000 - $75,000 per curb bulb (when a curb is extended into the street)
• $200,000 - $350,000 per new traffic signal
• $350,000 - $500,000 per block of new sidewalk (includes curb, gutter and landscaping)

In general, the following projects will cost less than $100,000 and are more appropriate for funding through the Your Voice Your Choice Program (YVYC):

• Fewer than four new curb ramps
• Single curb bulb
• Small sidewalk or trail repair projects