2008 Moving To new Ways Report demonstrates steady progress
Seattle Housing Authority builds new housing, strengthens existing programs
SEATTLE—April 8, 2009—In spite of economic challenges in the Northwest and across the nation, the Seattle Housing Authority continues to make steady progress toward its goals of redeveloping outdated housing and serving as many low-income Seattle residents as possible.
The recently published 2008 Moving To new Ways (MTW) Report documents the agency's performance across a range of programs, including the Low Income Public Housing and Housing Choice Voucher programs. It also outlines success in its community revitalization efforts and in meeting important performance indicators.
"This past year has presented its share of challenges," noted Executive Director Tom Tierney. "Even so, we have succeeded in both building more low-income housing and in serving more people." In the programs tracked by the MTW report, the number of people served increased by 282 since the end of 2007, a 2.3 percent increase. (Programs tracked in the MTW report include Low Income Public Housing, Housing Choice Vouchers and the Seattle Senior Housing Program.)
In the High Point community in West Seattle, 85 new units were built to serve people earning less than 30 percent of the Area Median Income. (This income level is about $18,000 for a single person or $25,000 for a family of four.) An additional 54 new units will serve people with incomes between 50 and 80 percent of median income.
"We have also made significant progress on modernizing housing to meet Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards for people with disabilities," noted Tierney. "More than 150 public housing units have been modernized to serve the needs of this population."
Also adding to the housing resources available to serve Seattle's low-income residents were 52 new vouchers received through the Veterans Administration. These new vouchers are specifically targeted to homeless veterans. The program links veterans with housing and supportive services to increase their chances of succeeding in housing.
Seattle Housing Authority's redevelopment efforts continued on several fronts. The high-rise renovation project known as homeWorks completed work on all of the buildings in its second phase. Four out of the seven buildings in the third phase were substantially completed. This leaves just three buildings to be finished in 2009. Overall the homeWorks project is tracking ahead of schedule and under budget.
Lake City will be the site of a major redevelopment in the next few years. This is the result of a new $10.5 million HOPE VI grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Sixteen townhouses that served large families formerly occupied the site. They were torn town several years ago because of severe flooding and water intrusion problems. With the re-routing of Little Brook Creek the 1.9 acre site will be the new location for more than 50 low-income rental units along with homes for sale and additional rentals.
The Seattle Housing Authority also succeeded in its work toward renovating a troubled housing complex in Southeast Seattle. Formerly known as The Douglas, it has been renamed as the South Shore Apartments. The Housing Authority assembled financing to renovate 44 apartments in its three buildings. Design work was completed, existing residents were relocated and renovation activities began.
Download the complete 2008 MTW report and its appendices (PDF, 2.76 MB, download Adobe Reader).