Neighborhood Street Fund Program

You ask, we build!

Updated: December 7, 2021

What is the Neighborhood Street Fund?

The Neighborhood Street Fund is a City program, running on 3-year cycles, that enables the community to propose and help prioritize transportation-related projects that are then built by the Seattle Department of Transportation.

Images above show examples of past Neighborhood Street Fund projects including community art and new sections of sidewalks and protected bike lanes.

What will the 2022-2024 cycle be like?

We typically solicit new project ideas from the community at the start of each 3-year cycle through a citywide application process. For the 2022-2024 cycle, we're making changes to the typical process. Instead of calling for new project ideas, we will revisit the large pool of unselected 2019 applications for projects located in geographic equity areas. New applications will not be accepted.

Why not accept new applications?

In 2019, the team partnered with the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods on a robust outreach process focused on geographic equity areas that included numerous in-person meetings, booths at local events, outreach pop-ups, and community group meetings. People submitted over 300(!) projects that neighbors voted on, and the team worked with the City's Move Seattle Levy Oversight Committee to select 15 projects to build. 

Given the global pandemic, it would be challenging to run a citywide process with in-person outreach. We also have many important projects not funded through the previous cycle. Rather than asking neighbors to resubmit, we're revisiting what was already submitted and will work with applicants to determine if it still meets the intended purpose. 

Why focus on applications from certain areas of the city?

There are many worthy projects across the city. For this cycle, we're investing in neighborhoods identified in the City's Race and Social Equity Index, Displacement Risk Index, and COVID-19 cases reported by King County to prioritize projects in the areas of highest need.

Map shows equity areas identified through the City's Race and Social Equity Index, Displacement Risk Index, and COVID-19 cases reported by King County.

What are other opportunities for funding community projects?

The Neighborhood Matching Fund has a rolling application process to fund neighborhood groups, community organizations, informal groups, and business groups who want to do a project to build stronger community connections. See their webpage for more information.

We'll post additional opportunities on this page as we learn about them. 

What are the next steps?

We are starting to re-review 2019 applications and will reach out to applicants to discuss their perspectives on current needs and whether the project scope needs to change. We'll share updates on our webpage and through this email list.

What types of projects are selected?

• Any transportation-related improvement in the city’s public right-of-way with an anticipated cost between $100,000 and $1 million is eligible for consideration
• Projects can fall into various categories such as: art, community placemaking, and safety improvements
• Past projects have included sidewalk repair, pedestrian lighting, bike safety improvements, or festival streets and can all be reviewed on our Past Projects page

How are projects selected?

The public votes for their favorite projects. The top-voted projects per City Council District are then evaluated and voted on by the Levy to Move Seattle Oversight Committee using the following criteria:

• Equity — Using the Race and Social Equity Index and Access to Opportunity maps, equity factors to be examined included race, English language learners, foreign born, income, educational attainment, health disadvantage, economic and social opportunity, transit and public services. Learn more about equity and the City
• Community — Results from the Community Prioritization and Voting phase will be reviewed to determine how much community support the project received
• Safety — Data on collisions from the past 5 years will be analyzed to determine the safety needs at respective project locations
• Usage — Using bicycle, pedestrian, and vehicle counts, evaluate how much use occurs at respective project locations to determine how many people will benefit from the proposed project
• Connectivity — Evaluate existing Master Plans to determine whether the project will enhance connectivity

How are projects funded?

Funding comes from the 2015 voter-approved, 9-year Levy to Move Seattle, which enhances safety for all travelers, maintains streets and bridges, and invests in reliable, affordable travel options for a growing city. The levy includes $24 million to continue the Neighborhood Street Fund program over the 9 years. We are on track to exceed our Levy to Move Seattle goals for the Neighborhood Street Fund (in 2022, we will have completed 25 community-prioritized projects).

What is the timeline from start to finish?

The Neighborhood Street Fund program runs on 3-year cycles to select, design, and build projects. 

Questions?

If you have questions or need translated materials, please contact us at nsf@seattle.gov or 206-771-0481.

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