Langston Hughes African American Film Festival kicks off April 13th & the Parks Dpt. is accepting applications for art in the park until May 10th.
Category: Councilmember Licata
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Medical Marijuana Zoning discussion March 27, public hearing April 24
Proposed medical marijuana zoning regulations will be presented for the first time in the Wednesday, March 27 meeting of the Housing, Human Services, Health and Culture Committee of the City Council. The committee will also hold a public hearing at the April 24 committee meeting. A staff report provides a good summary and description; here’s [...]
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Seattle City Council passes legislation to protect public’s privacy from surveillance equipment
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 3/18/2013
Councilmember Bruce A. Harrell
Councilmember Nick Licata
Seattle City Council passes legislation to protect public's privacy from surveillance equipment
Seattle -- The Seattle City Council today unanimously passed legislation to require City departments to obtain Council approval prior to acquiring certain surveillance equipment. Council Bill 117730 additionally requires Council review and approval of department protocols for operating the surveillance equipment and managing the data collected by it.
Through an open and transparent discussion, the Public Safety, Civil Rights, and Technology committee listened to the public's concerns regarding the use of surveillance equipment and acted to ensure strong legislative protocols are in place to protect the public's privacy and civil liberties.
Council Bill 117730 creates a decision framework for City departments to acquire surveillance equipment. Before acquiring any surveillance equipment, City departments must obtain approval from the City Council. The department must also propose operational protocols that address how the equipment will be used and protocols that address logistics around data retention, storage, and access. If the Council approves a department's request to obtain the surveillance equipment, the department cannot use the equipment until Council adopts operational protocols by ordinance.
"With this inclusive legislation, the Council is proactively setting up a framework to ensure the public is involved regarding the use of surveillance equipment," said Councilmember Bruce Harrell, chair of the Public Safety, Civil Rights, and Technology committee. "The City establishes public trust by earning it through openness and transparency in its decision making."
"For me, the question is should a free society allow personal activities that occur in public to come under 24/7 surveillance? I think that this legislation strikes a balance that provides for safety without compromising the principles of our democracy," said Councilmember Nick Licata.
Departments that currently have surveillance equipment in place must propose operational and data management protocols for Council review and approval no later than 30 days after the effective date of Council Bill 117730.
The information required for the operational and data management protocols include:
1. A clear statement describing the purpose and use of the proposed surveillance equipment.
2. The type of surveillance equipment to be acquired and used.
3. The intended specific location of such surveillance equipment if affixed to a building or other structure.
4. How and when a department proposes to use the surveillance equipment, such as whether the equipment will be operated continuously or used only under specific circumstances.
5. How the department's use of the equipment will be regulated to protect privacy and limit the risk of potential abuse.
6. A description of how and when data will be collected and retained and who will have access to any data captured by the surveillance equipment.
7. The extent to which activity will be monitored in real time as data is being captured and the extent to which monitoring of historically recorded information will occur.
8. A description of the nature and extent of public outreach conducted in each community in which the department intends to use the surveillance equipment.
9. The time period for which any data collected by surveillance equipment will be retained.
10. The methods for storing recorded information, including how the data is to be labeled or indexed. Such methods must allow for the department personnel and the City Auditor's Office to readily search and locate specific data that is collected and determine with certainty that data was properly deleted, consistent with applicable law.
11. How the data may be accessed, including who will be responsible for authorizing access, who will be allowed to request access, and acceptable reasons for requesting access.
12. A viewer's log or other comparable method to track viewings of any data captured or collected by the surveillance equipment, including the date, time, the individuals involved, and the reason(s) for viewing the records.
13. A description of the individuals who have authority to obtain copies of the records and how the existence and location of copies will be tracked.
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City Council to discuss micro-housing developments
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 3/22/2013
Councilmember Tom Rasmussen
Council President Sally J. Clark
Councilmember Nick Licata
Councilmember Richard Conlin
City Council to discuss micro-housing developments
Public invited to share feedback with Councilmembers and City staff
SEATTLE -- Seattle City Councilmembers Tom Rasmussen, Nick Licata, Sally J. Clark and Richard Conlin today announced a public meeting on micro-housing developments on April 18, in response to questions and concerns raised in several Seattle neighborhoods.
"Several Councilmembers and I are sponsoring a two hour meeting to review what is occurring due to the strong interest and concern we are hearing in the neighborhoods," Councilmember Tom Rasmussen stated. "A portion of the meeting will include an opportunity for the public to provide comments and recommendations on what, if any, regulations should be enacted for this unique type of housing."
In addition to a public comment opportunity, representatives from the Department of Planning and Development (DPD), the Office of Housing (OH) and City Council staff will discuss Seattle's recent experience with micro-housing.
WHAT: Micro-housing development discussion
WHEN: Thursday, April 18, 11:30 a.m. -- 1:30 p.m.
WHERE: Council Chambers, second floor
Seattle City Council, 600 Fourth Ave
WHO: Seattle City Councilmembers and Council staff
Representatives from Seattle's Dept. of Planning and Development
Representatives from Seattle's Office of Housing
"I want to see more affordable housing built in Seattle along with our residential neighborhoods accommodating housing options that contribute to their character," stated Councilmember Nick Licata, chair of the Council's Housing, Human Services, Health and Culture Committee. "I think both objectives can be accomplished and I look forward to this forum providing an opportunity to hear suggestions on how to fulfill both."
"I've visited some of these micro-units," said Council President Sally J. Clark. "They provide decent, often attractive housing for a range of people who don't need or want a lot of space. They're also appearing in greater numbers and more rapidly than some in the surrounding neighborhood want. This forum can provide a good airing of people's support, concerns and ideas for appropriate regulation."
"Microhousing can be an affordable option that works well with neighborhoods," said Councilmember Richard Conlin, chair of the Council's Planning, Land Use and Sustainability Committee. "However, it does not fit neatly into Seattle's land use code, and we are looking for input on code improvements that will preserve the affordability while ensuring that these developments reflect both the letter and the spirit of our land use laws."
Background
In recent years, micro-housing has emerged as an increasingly common residential building product in Seattle. Since 2006, DPD has received permit applications for 44 projects. Those completed projects have a total capacity of about 2,000 people. In 2012, DPD received applications for approximately 15 micro-housing projects.
Micro-housing projects are generally comprised of apartment or townhome-style dwelling units, each of which contains several (often seven or eight) smaller living quarters clustered around a shared kitchen and laundry area. Each of the smaller living spaces within the dwelling unit is leased to an individual tenant. These spaces are typically 150 to 200 square feet in size and equipped with a kitchenette (refrigerator, microwave, sink) and private bathroom. Rent levels vary by location but are often in the range of $600 to $700 per month.
Developers have found Seattle offers a strong market for micro-housing, with completed projects leasing up quickly. Tenants often include students, service industry workers, and individuals who divide their time between Seattle and a residence in another location. Geographically, 52 percent of the projects are located on Capitol Hill and 30 percent in the University District, with the remainder spread throughout the city.
Because micro-housing is not well-defined in City codes it also may not be adequately regulated. Some of the issues and concerns the public has raised about Seattle's growing stock of micro-housing include:
- Within micro-housing projects, DPD currently counts the several small living quarters that surround a common kitchen and laundry area as a single dwelling unit (e.g., one apartment with eight bedrooms and eight bathrooms). As a result, most micro-housing projects do not meet the threshold for design review. Normally the design review process also provides opportunities for neighbors to comment and offer input on proposed projects.
- DPD's current practice of counting multiple living quarters within a micro-housing project as a single dwelling unit also complicates efforts to measure progress toward adopted growth targets in neighborhoods where micro-housing is located. It also can affect whether a proposed micro-housing project is subject to environmental review under the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA).
- Micro-housing may not be an appropriate building type for all multifamily residential zones.
- Micro-housing projects are generally designed to house 30 to 60 individuals; however, on-site parking is rarely provided.
- The high cost of this housing on a price per square foot basis.
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AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN SOUTH LAKE UNION – PART 1
Upzoning SLU is a seminal turning point for creating a more economically sustainable and socially diverse city, or for becoming a major development that contributes to more urban sprawl and urban gentrification.
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Seattle Schools Launches City-Wide Arts Education
Seattle Public Schools admits it has not been providing equitable arts access to their students. Now, they are launching a new city-wide arts ed program to remedy that.
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Council vote would allow for Car2Go expansion
You may have noticed the small white and blue vehicles that started appearing in some Seattle neighborhoods beginning in January. The vehicles are part of Car2Go, a car-sharing company that allows members to drive the vehicles one way, and park on city streets. It’s proven to be a popular service during its short time here, [...]
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Magnuson Park Bldg. 11 Dispute Resolved
Now that Building 11 at Magnuson Park is returning to City control, I hope to see some of the working artists that left be welcomed back.
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Update on City/DOJ Settlement: Community Police Commission, Monitoring Plan
Next week the City Council will hold two meetings touching on the Settlement Agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to reform policing in Seattle. On Monday, March 11, the Council will host Merrick Bobb, the Court-appointed independent monitor, at the 9 a.m. Council Briefings meeting. A federal judge is scheduled to hear the [...]
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Surveillance Legislation Passes Public Safety, Civil Rights, and Technology Committee
A couple weeks ago you may recall that I wrote about my efforts to draft legislation relating to the City use of surveillance cameras. Passed today by the Public Safety, Civil Rights, and Technology Committee, Council Bill 117730 will require all City departments to obtain Council approval prior to acquiring surveillance equipment of any type. [...]