Attention: 580 Public Housing Units At Stake!

A Report on Last Weeks June 10th Community Forum on the Future of Yesler Terrace at Bailey Gatzert School:

Over 125 people and many residents of Yesler Terrace turn out to tell SHA officials the loss of any public housing units at Yesler Terrace would be totally unacceptable

Help Us Save Yesler Terrace!

The Seattle Housing Authority has already indicated that they plan a full teardown and redevelopment of the 582-unit Yesler Terrace Public Housing Community. While SHA officials say they won't "officially" begin planning for redevelopment of the site until at least next year, a look at their website indicates that they already have a fairly well-developed notion of what should happen there.  These plans call for a total tear down and do not commit to 100 percent replacement "on site" of the public housing (PH) units now at Yesler Terrace.  When asked to commit to no net loss of public housing on site....SHA officials continue to skirt the question as they have for over a year now. 

Given the high density that could be attained on the site and the value of the land, there are numerous redevelopment alternatives that could be pursued that do not pre-suppose any loss of public housing on site. In fact, it probably is economically viable under these circumstances to pursue options that actually could expand the supply of units serving those at or below 30 percent of median above the current 582 unit total.  The higher end more dense residential and commercial uses SHA says they want to add to the site could easily “internally” subsidize on-site replacement of all existing 582 public housing units yet they will not make a “no net loss on site” commitment. 

Note however at some point, cramming too much growth on the site - even if it’s the addition of public housing - could mean a sacrifice in quality.  We’d be at risk of losing many ground-related larger family units and the very accessible parks, play areas, and open space now on site at Yesler Terrace.  Furthermore it should be noted that residents who live there now prefer a renovation and modernization option over teardown and redevelopment plan.  They also say there is little relatively wrong with their existing units.  Built in the late 30’s these units were built to last with quality construction.  And millions have been spent over the last 20 years to upgrade them and SHA need only modernize and upgrade again at a relatively small cost that would be only a fraction of SHA’s grand teardown plans for the site.

Unless the community and City Council can effectively intervene, however, there is a high degree of risk right now that SHA will ignore any and all options that preserve or expand the supply of very low income and public housing units on site.  SHA wants only to pursue a tear down scheme that will spell a substantial loss of existing public housing units on site. This is what happened at High Point, Rainier Vista, Roxbury Village, and Holly Park.  Before these sites were redeveloped with “HOPE VI” revenues, there were 2100 public housing units on these sites.  When completed these sites will have less than 1100 public housing units on these sites.  (Replacement off site has not occurred as SHA claims and for details on this see below and accompanying attachment)

Their plans for Yesler Terrace are aimed primarily at maximizing their return  - giving the site over to higher density mixed use and mixed income development (including offices, retail, expensive condominiums, and even room for Harborview to expand) – primarily uses that in their mind return a healthy profit to the housing authority. Profits come first - bottom-line thinking along with “highest and best use” and performance or asset-based management rather than the pursuit of their underlying mission - their obligation to serve the poorest of the poor in our city. 

Instead of effectively managing and maximizing the value of their assets to maximize their land and low income stock and to better enable them to weather future federal cutbacks and fulfill their mission, SHA seems intent on cannibalizing some of their assets including some of their very low income stock.  They are intent on squeezing revenues from dismantlement of places like Yesler Terrace, their HOPE VI projects (as well as the Scattered Site Program) hoping to generate excess dollars they need to fuel their transformation and move toward market rate, mixed income, and higher income redevelopment.    

Note that if SHA pursues a teardown and redevelopment option for Yesler Terrace, they likely will pattern if off their previous HOPE VI projects where hundreds of existing public housing units were removed – in total a net loss of over 1000 PH units at these sites.  At these other sites where PH units were removed, SHA says they have replaced them off-site.  They don’t tell you that the off-site units were built from existing sources of funds, meaning over 80 percent of the cost of these replacement units off-site came from existing limited sources of housing dollars – levy funds, HOF funds, tax credits, Section 8 site based funds and vouchers, state trust fund dollars - dollars already earmarked for the region that otherwise would have been used to expand the supply.  Instead tens of millions of these limited dollars are now used merely to replace units SHA has destroyed.  The only way to prevent SHA from doing the same thing at Yesler Terrace is to ensure upfront – and get the City and SHA to commit to this upfront – that there will be no net loss of public housing units “on site” in whatever plans they pursue there. 

If a teardown occurs there at Yesler Terrace, the value of the underlying land, new ‘higher and better’ uses and densities allowed there can help internally subsidize retention and even expansion of public housing units on site.  If PH units are replaced off-site, expensive land must be found and new sources of funds must be located – all resources that we need to expand the supply not replace units removed from Yesler Terrace.

Just yesterday, July 20^th, at a City Council Brown Bag Lunch Forum on the future of Yesler Terrace, housing advocates and residents from Yesler Terrace were especially visceral in conveying their wishes for the site.  They made it clear they want in on the ground floor of any planning undertaken by SHA that will affect the future of Yesler Terrace).  These folks have formed a large "Coalition to Save Yesler Terrace" that includes the Yesler Terrace Community Council, Community Coalition for Environmental Justice, Seattle Displacement Coalition, NAACP, Seattle Urban League, The Low Income Housing Institute, American Friends Service Committee, Interfaith Task Force on Homelessness, Church Council of Greater Seattle, Minority Executive Directors Coalition, Puget Sound Alliance for Retired Americans, Fremont Public Association, Tenants Union, Inter-Im, Hate Free Zone, Seatte Young Peoples Project, Coalition to Undo Racism Everywhere and Representatives Sharon Tomiko Santos, Velma Veloria, Maralyn Chase and King County Councilman Larry Gossett.

Yesler Terrace is located just East of downtown Seattle where for six decades it has been home to a community of low income and very low income residents.  It's the last of the garden communities and central to the preservation of truly affordable housing opportunities in Seattle's Minority Community. The crowd sent a loud and clear voice, "the needs of low income and minority residents must come first!" NO NET LOSS OF PUBLIC HOUSING ON SITE!

There is a reason why the community and Yesler Terrace residents are so adamant about getting in on the ground floor of planning for Yesler Terrace. They don't want a repeat of what happened at the other garden communities where planning and redevelopment went forward that resulted in the loss of over 1000 public housing units on these sites - units that were not replaced off-site either.  Unfortunately with those earlier HOPE VI funded projects, resident and community groups got involved later in the game - late enough for then Director Harry Thomas to tell the community that "the train has already left the station."  As a result, we were forced to focus our attention on making a demand for adequate "off-site" replacement units to compensate for loss of public housing on site.  While community groups in these cases did succeed in securing some "off-site" replacement housing - most were built with existing state, federal, and local dollars - meaning that instead of seeing these dollars go toward expansion in the supply of much needed low income units....they simply were used to build replacement units - robbing Peter to pay Paul.  Many of the replacement units also were built only for seniors or the disabled and do not serve families with children.  Senior units and units for the disabled are needed but not at the expense of public housing and units serving families with kids.

We are getting involved now to make sure this doesn't happen at Yesler Terrace - so no one at SHA can tell us the train has already left the station.

This garden community of 580 public housing units at Yesler Terrace was one of the first built housing projects ever built in the country - first authorized under the Roosevelt Administration. However, it has gone through several upgrades and modernizations since then and continues to provide critical housing and support services for families and seniors - particularly households of color. It has been integral to helping low income families, minorities, and immigrants transition into our community and as such has really helped anchor the central area

 

        Yesler Terrace Under Construction in 1941

and our city at a time our city is being rapidly gentrified. Yesler Terrace is also located on prime development property with views that overlook downtown. It's valuable real estate to those at SHA who only view this as just one more asset. And in the era of HUD "devolution", and declining resources, SHA now has a free reign to do what it wants to on this site...unless the community speaks up.

Yesler Terrace is the last remaining garden community that has not been subjected to a complete tear down and redevelopment plan as occurred at Holly Park, Rainier Vista, Roxbury Village and High Point.  Over 2100 public housing units are in the process of being removed at these four sites to make way for multi-million dollar mixed income "HOPE VI" redevelopments.  In all, SHA will spend over one-half billion dollars in limited federal, state, and local dollars - all to come out at the other end with a net loss of public housing - the type of units that we most desperately need in our city.  Once completed the new developments will serve primarily higher income groups with only about one-third of the new units (or about 1100 units) to be offered to traditional public housing residents.  (See chart below for breakdown of units removed at each site and the cost of each of these projects)

Yesler Terrace is located just East of downtown Seattle where for six decades it has been home to a community of low income and very low income residents.  It's the last of the garden communities and central to the preservation of truly affordable housing opportunities in Seattle's Minority Community. The crowd sent a loud and clear voice this last week, "the needs of low income and minority residents must come first!" NO NET LOSS OF PUBLIC HOUSING ON SITE!

Housing Losses at the Other HOPE VI Projects in Seattle Tell the Tale - We will not allow this to happen at Yesler Terrace!

Take a look the amount of public housing the Seattle Housing Authority (SHA) has demolished since 1997 due to their HOPE VI redevelopments and how few of these units have been replaced.  The cost of replacing 1000 units of low income housing would be in the order of $100 million.  This was an irreplaceable resource destroyed by SHA.  For a trenchant analysis of the HOPE VI program and how it has functioned both locally and nationally, click here for a piece by John McLaren. 

SHA response

For Rainier Vista Consent Decree

Please pass the following resolution and join the Coalition to Save Yesler Terrace:

We hereby pass the following resolution giving our support to public housing residents at Yesler Terrace and expressing our commitment to become an active member of the Coalition to Save Yesler Terrace, and further; upon approval of this resolution, our organization will send and make public a formal letter to City Councilmembers, the Mayor, and the Seattle Housing Authority (SHA) calling on all these parties at this time to commit publicly to no net loss of the 582 public housing units currently on site at Yesler Terrace serving households at or below 30 percent of area median income.  In order to guarantee at least a comparable number of units for large and small households with children at Yesler Terrace, our letter also will call on all the parties at this time to guarantee no net loss of units of a certain size and quality serving very low income families so that, for example, if a large family unit that is ground-related is removed, it shall be replaced with a unit comparable in size that also is ground-related.  Our letter shall also say that in regards to whatever future plans they choose to implement for modernization, renovation, or redevelopment of this historic 582-unit public housing project, the City and SHA should also entertain only those options that reflect a maximum amount of resident participation in development of those plans. 

Call 632-0668 our organization or the Community Coalition for Environmental Justice 720-0285 for more information or speakers for your group:

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Labor, Housing, Senior, SHA tenants, and Church Groups Respond to Councilmembers' Allegations & Sybil Bailey Appointment to SHA Board  (Sept. '06)
     
- Open letter (below) to City Council responds to Housing Committee's charges leveled at groups airing their concerns about this SHA board appointment. 
  
"As activists representing significant constituencies and from groups with long track records speaking out against discrimination, and for diversity, affirmative action, equality, and economic justice in all its forms, we strongly object to these accusations" - especially the charge by Councilmember Clark that "race and gender" was behind the concerns we have raised about Ms. Bailey's candidacy.
  
For more information contact:  KL Shannon at 250-5412, Bette Reid 523-8685, John Fox 632-0668, Bill Kirlin-Hackett  cell (425) 442-5418  or other signatories:
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Below you will find a letter from representatives of numerous organizations including church, labor, senior, and housing groups regarding the controversial appointment of Sybil Bailey to the SHA board.  It is now being forwarded to all members of the City Council who will vote on this matter this coming Tues. 2PM Sept 5th in Full Council.  The letter not only airs concerns about the Bailey appointment, it also responds to the manner in which three councilmembers (Sally Clark, Tom Rasmussen. & Richer McIver) at a recent Housing Committee Meeting maligned us and our organizations for raising these concerns.

Instead of examining all the concerns and specific issues we raised, including numerous SHA tenants who have direct experience with Ms. Bailey, these three councilmembers accused us of “sour grapes,” mounting "personal attacks" "smearing her good name" and we were dismissed as "constant critics".  As to our concern about the lack of a fair process from the Mayor – it was dismissed out of hand by Councilmember Rasmussen.  The Mayor promised us a meeting - then backed out at the last minute and we never did get input we asked for contrary to Councilmember Rasmussen's claim. Worst of all, at one point, Councilmember Clark suggested that "race and gender" was behind our criticism of Ms. Bailey who is a black woman. 

As individuals and coming from organizations that have devoted their very existence and decades of work to overcoming poverty, racism and inequality in all its forms we must respond strongly to such baseless allegations.  Our letter below speaks to these accusations and to the issue of Ms. Bailey's lack of qualifications for the SHA  appointment.  Please note signatories listed below as well.
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Open Letter to City Councilmembers:

August 30, 2006

Re:  Council action on the appointment of Sybil Bailey to the board of the Seattle Housing Authority (SHA)

Dear Councilmembers:

We are writing to raise concerns about the recent unanimous vote (Councilmembers Clark, McIver, and Rasmussen) in the Housing Committee supporting the appointment of Sybil Bailey to the board of the Seattle Housing Authority. 

Over nine month ago, we came together as concerned individuals and as representatives of labor, church, housing, senior and resident organizations to try and ensure a fair and open process for selection of future appointees to the SHA board.  It was hoped that unlike some other recent board appointments, this time around the Mayor's nominee would truly reflect a high degree of input and honest consideration of stakeholder concerns especially and including input from the resident community. Above all, we wanted to help ensure appointment of the most qualified candidate - someone who was not simply a political or patronage appointment - but someone who was willing and able to roll up their sleeves and hold SHA to its mission of serving the poorest of the poor and guaranteeing livable wages and decent working conditions for its employees.

We also wanted to make sure - since this was a resident appointment - that the person selected would draw broad support from the resident community and be a clear and independent voice on their behalf.  A meeting was sought directly with the Mayor to try and obtain assurances from him that he shared our goals.  Unfortunately, after he made a commitment to meet with us he canceled it.  Nevertheless, we went ahead in good faith and on the basis of his staff’s assurances, interviewed and submitted names of qualified candidates and encouraged others to do the same. Later we learned the Mayor had a strong list of candidates, not just our recommendations, all eminently qualified to represent resident interests on the board. 

It was for these reasons that we were especially dismayed when we learned that the Mayor had leaped over all these qualified candidates and selected Sybil Bailey - already given consideration and rejected for a board appointment in 1998.  At that time, Ms. Bailey was SHA's handpicked choice.  But after being interviewed by the Mayor's office, and by a coalition of labor, housing, and resident groups, and by Councilmember Steinbrueck her candidacy was withdrawn because it was determined that she was not qualified and did not command broad support from the resident community. 

In light of these circumstances, this current selection of Ms. Bailey by the Mayor and now the Housing Committee does not in any way suggest or reflect the open and fair process we were working so hard to achieve.  In letters and testimony before Councilman Rasmussen's committee many of us raised this issue and other legitimate concerns about the process and Ms. Bailey's lack of qualification for the job.  Residents - at potential risk to their tenancy – and with experience working directly with her got up before the committee and offered thoughtful criticism of her more recent record citing specific examples of a counterproductive role she played in important resident affairs.

But what was especially troubling to us was the manner in which members of the Housing Committee and the Mayor's office responded to our concerns.  Good people may differ over Ms. Bailey's role and whether she is or is not qualified but instead of telling us why they thought she was qualified, all three members of the Council's Housing Committee decided to level baseless accusations at those of us opposing her candidacy.  We were accused of “sour grapes” mounting "personal attacks" "smearing her good name" and dismissed as "constant critics".  As to our concern about the lack of a fair process from the Mayor – it was dismissed out of hand by Councilmember Rasmussen.  At one point, Councilmember Clark suggested that "race and gender" was behind our criticism of Ms. Bailey who is a black woman.
 

As activists representing significant constituencies and from groups with long track records speaking out against discrimination, and for diversity, affirmative action, equality, and economic justice in all its forms, we strongly object to these accusations.

In the end, the Housing Committee addressed only two of the many questions that were raised in testimony before the committee about Ms. Bailey's qualifications - the Mayor's selection process and what her stance was on the '98 SHA legislation.  The Committee never examined any of the critical concerns many SHA tenants raised about Ms. Bailey's actions as president of RAC. These include allegedly making bylaw changes to the organization without a vote, racking up a $4000 debt and then suspending RAC meetings for 3 years w/o any apparent authority to do so, amending RAC by-laws without proper notice to exclude non-highrise tenants, and promoting a signage policy that was opposed broadly by tenants and later struck down by the courts as an unconstitutional infringement of free speech.

The Council continues to treat the process of SHA board appointments as if they were ratifying an appointment to a non-essential advisory board with no real power. This is an appointment to a board with authority over nearly all that's left of this city's low income housing stock.  The citizens of Seattle are entitled to an honest and open process from the Mayor with each board selection.  And any candidate nominated for positions on the board should be subject to close scrutiny especially from the resident community since this is a resident appointment. Instead of taking seriously their role, the council seems perfectly content to fill the SHA board with the Mayor's patronage appointments and those who simply will rubber stamp SHA staff decisions. None of us should be discouraged from sharing real concerns and their experiences about the candidate nor should they or we be so vilified for doing so.

Signatories: (Where affiliation is noted, those individuals have signed on behalf of their organization):
Maureen Bo
Will Parry
Allen Cohen
(Puget Sound Alliance for Retired Americans)

Juan Bocanegra
Every Workers Movement (EWM)

Verlene Jones
A. Philip Randolph Institute Seattle Chapter and Martin Luther King Jr. County Labor Council

KL Shannon 
Yalonda Sinde 
Kate Villereal

Shannon Halme
OPEIU Local 8
(represents SHA employees)

Joe Martin
John V. Fox
(Seattle Displacement Coalition)

Paul Benz
(Lutheran Public Policy Office)

Carolee Colter
(Friends of Rainier Vista)

Kristin O'Donnell
(Yesler Terrace Community Council Executive Committee)
& SHA residents

Lynn Serada
Rick Harrison
(SHA Public Housing Highrise Tenants)

 

Bill Kirlin-Hackett
Sally Kinney
(Interfaith Task Force on Homelessness)

Elana Dix
(SAGE - Seattle Alliance for Good Jobs and Housing for Everyone)

Bette Jo Reid
SHA Senior Housing Resident Activist & SHA resident

 

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