Transit Oriented Development of Affordable Housing - Match Program
Agency
Commerce, Department of
Title of action
Transit Oriented Development of Affordable Housing - Match Program
Date significant agency action was initiated
Saturday, July 1, 2023
Category
New grant or loan program
Brief description of significant agency actions for which the agency is initiating an environmental justice assessment.
Competitively awarded funding, managed by Commerce's Multifamily Housing Unit (MHU), for Transit Oriented Affordable Housing development. The language of the budget (ESSB 5200, Section 1022) laid out very specific parameters regarding both size and location of projects. As written, projects must be no smaller than 100 units in size, and must be located within 1/2 mile of light or commuter rail, or within 1/4 mile of bus rapid transit. this creates a very limited area in which projects can be sited (principally along the I-5 or I-405 corridors in King County), and effectively requires a high level of development experience from any interested organization, or partnership with a consultant that brings such experience.
Methods for providing public comment for agency consideration as part of the environmental justice assessment.
An SAA was published to Commerce's webpage on 9/13/2023, and a public forum was held via Zoom in October of 2023. while the public forum's primary concern was to confirm Commerce's understanding of the budget language and articulate its plans for implementation, space was held for discussion concerning Environmental Justice considerations.
MHU is working with Commerce's internal Environmental Justice workgroup to explore additional pathways to involve communities.
Link to agency webpage where the action is posted.
