Select Committee on the Comprehensive Plan Public Hearing 5/19/2025 Session II

Well, welcome back everyone.

It's good to have you all here in person.

The time is 4.03.

I'm Joy Hollingsworth.

I'm chair of the select committee.

Will the clerk please call the roll.

Council member Kettle.

Pierre.

Council Member Moore.

Present.

Council President Nelson.

Present.

Council Member Rink.

Present.

Council Member Rivera.

Present.

Council Member Sacca.

Here.

Council Member Strauss.

Present.

Vice Chair Solomon.

Here.

And Chair Hollingsworth.

I'm here.

Nine present.

Awesome, welcome to session two of the public hearing for the interim legislation House Bill 1110. I wanna thank everyone for your attendance and engagement today and also this morning as well, and to our staff and our volunteers who have been phenomenal with working to sign people in and doing a lot of the backlog for public comment, public commenters in this entire process.

There's been an opportunity, there will be an opportunity for future public hearings to provide public comment on the comprehensive plan and permanent House Bill 1110 legislation.

um, coming public hearing is not dedicated to any pieces of those legislation.

It's particularly for the interim legislation that is coming to council for a vote.

Um, today's session was broken up into two slots this morning.

We had our remote session, uh, and now we are beginning session two, um, which will be reserved for in person.

Registration started at 3.30 and will remain open until 5.30.

If you are in line, you'll still be able to sign up.

If you feel passionate about what a speaker is saying, I'm gonna humbly ask everyone to support through the cool jazz hands as we wanna be respectful for people's time and comments.

Can everyone show me their jazz hands?

You all know, so dope.

Okay, awesome.

Or you can shake your leaves, okay?

You can do that.

We just wanna be respectful of people's time as we're moving through this as well.

So just wanna thank you for your collaboration.

There's also a discount in Sea Park for a public hearing at a flat rate of $8.

Just know that the garage closes at 10 PM.

So the flat rate is $8.

It closes at 10 PM, just so everyone is aware.

We also have...

Sorry, just doing a little housekeeping here.

Oh, the other thing as well, each speaker is gonna be given one minute and clerk, will you please read the public comment period instructions?

Oh, is there any questions at all?

Council member Rink?

Thank you, Chair Hollingsworth.

I move to amend.

I'm going to second your motion to hear your thoughts.

thank you thank you chair my motivation in bringing forward this motion is to allow for more people to have the opportunity to give comment tonight many working folks are in in this city work until five o'clock cutting off sign up at 5 30 might impact those folks more since they might already be on their way but can't make it in time so this motion would extend that deadline until 6 30 to allow for greater flexibility for those coming in to speak on such an important issue Thank you, Chair, for your flexibility.

And I would ask for all of your support to make sure everyone is heard tonight.

Thank you.

Thank you, Council Member Rink.

Are there any other thoughts before I weigh in?

Any other Council Members?

Okay.

So thank you, Council Member Rink.

We believe that we achieved a reasonable balance.

However, if my colleagues And we're going to come to a vote to this.

If you all choose that you want to extend it, I'm more than happy to accommodate that.

I will be voting no, and I'm going to tell you why.

Our office did the best effort to do a balance for allowing an equitable public hearing process that established a reasonable amount of time.

We posted this about three weeks ago to our website to make everybody aware of the the process in which we were gonna manage the public comment period.

And this was brought to my attention two hours before this meeting.

So I'm gonna vote no on this to protect the process.

I also wanted to note that we have done an extensive amount of...

logistics in this to ensure that the people that did not speak on February 5th have the opportunity to speak before other folks that have signed up and that was a massive undertaking logistically and we did it and I want to thank our colleagues patience on that but also the clerk's office as well and I also don't think it's fair to the general public that have seen this for the last three weeks and then changing the rules last minute.

But those are my thoughts.

That's why I'll be voting respectfully no today, but we'll put it to a vote to my other colleagues to see what they would like to do.

And so is there any other comments?

Council member Rivera?

Thank you.

Um, uh, chair Hollingsworth.

I just really wanted to thank you for, um, your, you and your staff for your efforts around these public hearings.

Um, uh, uh, I really am so encouraged by the number of folks that signed up both last time and this time.

And I really appreciate that you prioritize the folks who had signed up last time and because of the inclement weather, we're not able to go.

And we heard those folks this morning really appreciate that and really appreciate having opening chambers this afternoon and staying here for as long as it takes to get the folks who signed up by the deadline that you provided.

And I will be supporting you given all the efforts that you've put forth in your team on this.

I'll be supporting you in your decision.

Thank you.

Are there any other comments?

I will pause there.

Councilmember Moore.

Yeah, thank you, Sarah.

I just want to express my gratitude for how well you have handled trying to provide for sufficient and broad public comment and making sure that the time that we are listening to comment is a period in which we can absorb and effectively listen to that comment.

And I know it's been a lot of logistics for you, your staff, and everyone else in the clerk's office as well.

So I do want to just say thank you very much for all your efforts to maximize and facilitate public comment.

And I will be supporting your position.

Thank you.

I'll turn it over to you, Councilmember Rank for any closing.

Councilmember Strauss.

Thank you, Chair.

I'm going to echo the appreciation that you faced with the last public hearing where we had inclement weather approaching on us and dropping down upon us.

And you and the team really took a lot of time to make sure that those folks were prioritized today.

I will, however, be voting yes to extend public comment tonight.

Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you.

And just for the record, we're not closing public comment period.

It is the signup period.

So I just want to say that for the record, we are not shortening public comment period till 630. We'll stay here for however long it takes us to get through.

This is the registration period.

So I just wanted to be clear on that.

Thank you, Council Member Strauss.

I don't see any other hands.

Council Member Rink, did you have any other comments you wanted to say?

Thank you, Chair.

And again, deep gratitude to you for helping support and manage this process.

I think I would just say in closing again, the motion before us is just to extend the time that people are able to sign up for public comment tonight.

I know some folks are more engaged in the comp plan.

Others may not and just heard about the opportunity and are still on or aren't even off work yet.

And so I think extending the ability for folks to be able to pop in for tonight to share their thoughts with us would be important.

AND REALLY MAKING SURE THAT WE ARE ACCESSIBLE TO THE PUBLIC ON THIS IMPORTANT MATTER.

AND I ASK FOR YOUR SUPPORT.

THANK YOU.

AWESOME.

THANK YOU.

THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER RANK.

AND I MOTION, WELL, CAN THE CLERK PLEASE CALL THE ROLL AND JUST TO CLARIFY WHAT WE'RE VOTING ON, WE'RE VOTING ON TO EXTEND THE REGISTRATION PERIOD TILL 6 30 right now it is until 5 30 for the registration.

Um, so it's, uh, it will continue to be open for another hour and a half.

Um, if you are voting yes, uh, that is, you would like to extend it.

If you're voting no, you are, um, you are voting no to continue the process that we have laid out for the last three weeks.

Thank you.

Councilmember Kettle.

Uh, no.

Council Member Moore.

No.

Council President Nelson.

No.

Council Member Rink.

Yes.

Council Member Rivera.

No.

Council Member Sacca.

No.

Council Member Strauss.

Yes.

Vice Chair Solomon.

No.

And Chair Hollingsworth.

No.

Two in favor, seven opposed.

Thank you, the motion fails and we will continue to have public comment registration till 5.30 today.

And thank you so much.

All right, now we will then, if our clerk can go ahead and read the instructions for public comment period for today.

The in-person public comment will alternate between sets of registered speakers and registered speakers from the February 5th hearing who are present.

If you have not registered to speak but would like to, you can sign up on the sign-up sheets outside of council chambers prior to 5.30 PM.

Registration will close at 5.30 PM.

Speakers' numbers will be called in the order in which they registered.

Numbers will be called in groups of 10 at one time.

Please line up in numerical order.

and you may use any one of the two microphones.

There are two sets of microphones here.

Please use one of those two.

And then also please adjust your microphone when you approach it as well to make sure it's really close to you so we can hear you.

Begin your comments by stating your name and the speakers will hear a chime when 10 seconds are left of your allotted time.

If speakers do not end their comments at the end of the allotted time provided, the speakers' microphones will be muted to allow us to call on the next person.

Awesome, thank you.

So each speaker's gonna be given one minute and we're gonna start with group B.

Those are prioritizing folks that we got cut off during February 5th.

So group B, numbers one through 10, Group B, number one through 10. Was group B given numbers?

Yes, you were, because you all stood up.

Okay, thank you.

You answered my question by standing up.

I appreciate it.

And so we're gonna go ahead and jump right into it.

I really appreciate y'all coming back to public comment, and we apologize about the inclement weather, but we really appreciate you all coming back.

So numbers one through 10, this is group B.

The first one is Danilia Lopez.

Followed by Dylan Young, Evan Riley, Ryan Turner.

Go ahead, you can come step to the mic.

And we have two mics, so you all can go.

As well.

Everyone looks good on camera on both angles.

I promise you, I've seen it on TV.

Okay, awesome.

All right, we're ready to go.

Good afternoon, council members.

I'm here as Danny Lopez Salcedo.

I'm here to urge you to adopt an interim ordinance that allows for more housing types to help our city adopt a full, bold comp plan that houses more people.

I spent the past 2,500 hours last year, the year before that, the year before that, the past five years thinking about the climate impacts that our built environment has.

I focus currently on the 17% of emissions that come from cement, aluminum, and steel.

Before that, I was helping Fortune 500 decarbonize, and I was investing in reforestation projects.

I've seen the numbers.

I know it's a really hard one to vote for trees because they're beautiful and tangible and amazing, and they make our city amazing.

um the reality is if we can't build more densely we're going to kill more of them we're going to sprawl than that we have to build the infrastructure out for them anyway thank you for your time but yes we need denser cities that can house more people if not more trees are going to hurt and the science is very clear on this thank you thank you so much next we have dylan followed by evan numbers two through one one we're calling one through ten for group b number two

I'm ready.

You ready?

Yes.

My name is Dylan Young.

I'm born in Seattle.

I live in Denny Triangle, and I also own an inherited home in Montlake.

I'm all for the comprehensive plan.

We residents all need more housing options, and it's obvious to me as a wheelchair user for my entire life that Seattle needs more options for accessible housing, more places, more geographic choices, and more choices for price.

You have my full support.

Thank you.

Thank you, Dylan.

Next, we have Evan Riley, Ryan Turner, Andrea Hood.

Hi, my name is Evan Riley.

As a nurse working in downtown Seattle, on behalf of my wife who works in youth homeless services, we are in support of passing the interim ordinance and adopting the full One Seattle plan as soon as possible.

I'm thankful to live in a nice apartment in Northgate with amenities close to transit.

If we build more housing across our city, we will have new neighbors and citizens that will work to improve our city.

When we don't build enough housing, we block economic opportunities for any of the underserved, underrepresented, and unheard members of our community.

In my life, I have transgender and gay friends from red states who would love to continue living in this beautiful city but can't afford to live here.

I have friends with low incomes who have lived in unsafe living conditions because they have no affordable options.

I have nursing assistant coworkers who still live with their parents in their late 20s because they can't afford to move out, and many nursing assistant coworkers who commute from far-flung cities.

Finally, the teenage homeless clients my wife serves face extreme difficulty aging out of the system because there are no affordable options.

Please pass the interim ordinance.

Thank you, Evan.

Next we have Ryan Turner followed by Andrea Hood and then Kim Kegel.

Good afternoon.

Today, I am urging you to amend the interim legislation to promote more stacked flats by eliminating the minimum lot size of 6,000 square feet, increasing the height limits, increasing the FAR, and increasing the lot coverage.

I'm asking you this because the middle housing study commissioned by the by the city, estimated that basically no stacked flats will be built with the current guidelines.

And that same study estimates the median price of different middle housing typologies, stacked flats being by far the most affordable at about $500,000 per unit.

that is half the cost of attached housing like duplexes and townhomes and a full third of the $1.4 million a single family home is expected to cost.

Many of us cannot afford that level of housing.

I work for the city and it pains me that I cannot afford to own a home in the city that I serve.

Please, we need more housing abundance now.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ryan.

Numbers five through 10.

Hi.

My partner and I are both public servants, he working for the city, and I'm a therapist for unhoused people with mental illness.

Even with our decent incomes, we will never, ever be able to form a home in Seattle, be it a duplex, townhome, or condo with the current prices.

A privilege that is reserved for people in tech and finance.

The same can be said for every restaurant, hospitality, retail, education, or other service worker or young professional who make this city run.

It's a travesty how unattainable housing has become in this city, and it saddens me to think that we won't be able to raise a family here just because we dedicated our lives to serving our community.

It would be a dream to live in a duplex, triplex, stat flat, or honestly a condo, because we would have a place to call home.

Also, literally every academic research article in the first speaker talking about density and environmental impact clearly unequivocally finds that increased density is significantly more beneficial to long-term environmental sustainability.

Not taking ambitious steps to promote increased density would be a collective disregard to the people and city that you serve.

Seattle is a major metropolitan area.

Thank you, Andrea.

We have Kim, number six through 10. Yes.

Hi.

My name is Kimber Kegel.

I'm an architect and a longtime resident of Seattle.

In my neighborhood, developers are buying small, single-family homes like mine and maximizing their profit by putting up large homes with large ADUs.

A block away from me, a modest home built in the 1920s had been divided into three apartments.

These apartments were affordable because they were small.

Recently, a developer bought this property and put up a large home that sold for $2 million with a $1 million dadu in the back.

This is not creating affordable housing.

It's creating two expensive homes where three apartments used to be.

Interim legislation reduces setbacks and increases lot coverage.

encouraging even larger, even more expensive units.

This is the opposite of what the zoning is supposed to do.

I urge you not to pass the interim legislation.

Instead, create incentives for smaller buildings to help preserve green space and create affordability through smaller units.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Number seven.

8, 9, 10.

Hi, my name is Rick Broder and on behalf of Garrett Saylor here.

This interim code is a disaster for the city.

It is not well thought out, yet will have enduring impacts forever for the city of Seattle.

And it will only benefit a few.

I urge the Council to adopt an interim code that meets but does not exceed House Bill 1110. This is a reasonable and responsible step for the Council to take.

It allows for our goals that we will hold dear citizens of Seattle to move forward, and it serves as a baseline where all parties and interests can work to work and form content for the One Seattle Plan.

Please do not adopt this interim code.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Just a reminder, just to speak right directly into the microphone so we can all hear you and the people on Seattle channel.

Hannah, number eight, Trevor, nine, Carl, number 10.

Hi, my name's Hannah Vandenew.

I'm a single family homeowner in the High Point neighborhood of West Seattle.

I am very pro the One Seattle plan and this interim plan.

plan to address what the state is requiring.

I think Seattle is an amazingly vibrant city and my neighborhood is vibrant because of the people there.

And I think inviting more people into my neighborhood with different kinds of incomes, different kinds of families like elders and children and people with mobility issues.

It's only going to make it a better neighborhood.

I want to share my neighborhood with more people.

um please pass this interim uh plan and also please with urgency pass the one Seattle plan I think it would be a serious shame if we spent all of this passion and resources that we have as a city on this one thing and not move on to the next big thing we can tackle together so thank you thank you next we have Trevor followed by Carol

Hello.

I am lucky to be a renter in Capitol Hill, one of the few neighborhoods in this city with a variety of housing types.

Today, I'm asking you to relax zoning requirements throughout the city that make it difficult to build enough housing here.

The best way to minimize increased density throughout the city, so no one neighborhood is hit too hard or too fast.

So a strong neighborhood residential baseline is really important.

Stock flats should be allowed and encouraged throughout the city.

This type of housing is more accessible and efficient since you can share stairs and maybe even have an elevator, allowing for people with mobility issues to live in more affordable housing.

Please remove the minimum lot size requirements and the minimum unit size requirements for stock flats so that these housing types can be truly affordable naturally.

And so please pass the interim legislation with these modifications.

The best way to save trees is to densify with infill development and limit suburban sprawl.

Thank you.

Thank you, Trevor.

Next we have Carol.

Thank you so much.

I don't know if your microphone is on.

Is her mic on?

I'm sorry.

Try to just speak right into it.

I'm not able to hear her, no worries.

Okay, now try it, now try it.

Can you hear me now?

There we go.

Can you hear me now?

Okay, I'm Carol Fury, and I was at the February 5th meeting and didn't get a chance to talk, but just found that my speech from that meeting is no longer relevant.

So much changes on this issue every, if not every week, every month.

And so I'm not up on all the new changes to this plan, but what I want to advocate tonight in my remaining time is the development of a tree inventory and landscape plan.

The acronym is TILPS, and this group would identify the size, health, location of trees on site, work with developers in determining the best place for future trees, for example, west and south, to save home energy costs, deal with all the issues, we're trying to deal with.

Kirkland does it and they're doing it very successfully.

Many other cities are doing this too.

In advance, we plan together and

Thank you, Ms. Carroll.

All right, so still from Group B, we have numbers 11 through 13, and then we're going to jump to the other list.

So 11, 12, 13, that's Timothy Russo, Sanders Latour, I'm sorry, and Zach.

So numbers 11 through 11, 12, 13. Yep, you all are up.

These are from our February 5th folks.

Really happy to see you all.

Is this one on?

Yeah?

Yeah, I believe so.

All right.

And just pull that closer to you.

Yeah, and you can stand up so you don't have to be hunchbacked.

There you go.

How we doing?

On?

Yep.

Good.

Perfect.

Thank you so much.

All right.

Supply and demand, artificially constrained supply from zoning, artificially inflated demand from lack of transit.

I'm going to tell you the growth management plan has been off by an order of magnitude for year over year, every single year, for the last 20 years.

So you've got a bit of a deficit in terms of housing, at least about like nearly seven digits there.

So, you know, but if it was up to me, I'd probably go with like NC 75 around every single bus stop through the whole city, you know, the whole thing.

But I know compromise is probably pretty important.

But I kind of need you to know where I'm at when you anchor that kind of debate.

The rent is crippling, but to actually drop the rent, you need to drop the value of the house.

But I'll tell you, the real value of my condo is that it is my home.

It's where I live.

It's my shelter.

It's not my investment portfolio, and I really don't need it or want it to triple in price.

There's lots of people out there who are going to line their pockets with gold from the artificially inflated prices that we are seeing, where the rest of us just want someplace to live.

So I'm asking you as an owner with my skin in the game, I want you to build so many units, so many units that the dollar value goes down so the human value can go up.

Thank you.

Thank you, Timothy.

Next we have Sanders followed by Zach, number 12 and 13.

Hi, my name is Sanders.

I'm here to support HB 1110 legislation.

Plan is passed potentially next year.

A recent article from the Seattle Times found that Seattle once again is one of the fastest growing large cities in the country, a title Seattle held for the last decade before the pandemic.

We need to do more to allow more housing density in the city.

Any barriers in terms of building housing increases costs for the nearly 60% of people that are renters.

Please reduce setbacks, increase height limits, and reduce lot size requirements.

Doing these things will help reduce housing construction costs for affordable housing developers who have enough challenges building housing in the city.

Please pass HB 1110 interim legislation and support building more housing.

Thank you.

Thank you, Zach.

Thank you, Sanders.

Zach, number 13. Hello, I'm Zach.

I've rented in Seattle for about eight years, but I just got married last year, and I'm hoping to buy a home soon.

Unfortunately, that looks like it's going to be a townhome or a move to a suburb.

And so I'd really like that we could revise our zoning laws, let us build more stacked flats and other affordable housing types so that we can dig our way out of this artificial housing crisis that all of our comprehensive zoning laws have brought upon us.

So I'm simply asking that you pass the mental housing plan without delay.

and that you also move on to the comprehensive One Seattle plan before you break the further recess.

Thank you.

Thank you, Zach.

Now we're gonna move on.

And just to clarify, if you are still signing up and you're from February 5th, you will be prioritized.

Right now we've, had 13 of those speakers from February 5th.

Now we're going to move transition to the new folks.

So we have numbers one through 10, number one through 10, please start lining up and you are next to speak.

The first one up is Hans followed by Jeff and then Robert Reed.

So numbers one through 10. You're right.

My bad.

You're absolutely right.

Yes, two is Rachel Shaver.

Correct.

I can't read.

Thank you so much.

No, you're good.

Okay, Hans, you're up.

All right.

Hi, can you hear me?

Great.

My name is Hans Schieffer.

I'm 16 years old.

And when I'm on my own, I'd like to be able to afford to live here in Seattle.

But if you all can't think ahead enough to leave space for large trees and preserve the large trees we have left, Seattle will turn into a giant heat island.

There'll be no more quality of life.

People will give up on Seattle, move farther out, creating more urban sprawl.

Be like Portland.

Portland requires between 20 to 40% tree canopy cover on each lot, 20 for multifamily housing and 40 for single family.

Please don't be short-sighted.

Ignore these trees.

My generation needs to benefit from it just as you all have, and we're going to be the ones that need to deal with a climate crisis and we need as much help as we can get from you all.

So thank you very much.

Thank you, Hans.

Next we have Rachel and then following Jeff and you can, there's two microphones.

So numbers one through 10. Hi, Rachel.

Hi, my name is Rachel Shaver.

I own a small business in a humble 1,000-square-foot home in North Broadview.

Last Friday, I was physically assaulted by a developer and removed by police from an ancient cedar boundary tree that an arborist assessed to be co-owned by my neighbor, Jeff Callahan, who's right behind me.

His wife is also a special ed teacher.

While Seattle has strict tree protections for private homeowners, the mayor and the city have enacted tree code that favors developers by allowing mass tree removal without consequence, even when they're co-owned or not in the way.

I'm disgusted by the false choice between dense housing and saving trees, especially shared boundary trees.

I support affordable housing and smart density with reasonably stacked or clustered homes to reduce sprawl.

With small setbacks, developers will cut every single tree because they can.

In fact, Brian Thompson, the developer who assaulted me, admitted that this tree could have been saved, but he just didn't feel like it.

Please pass the setback amendment for the people who live in this city, not developer profits.

Thank you very much.

Just a reminder, Jess hands.

Jeff, you are next, followed by Martha Brown.

Hi, Jeff.

Test.

Test.

Test.

OK.

Does it work?

Yes?

Yes.

Hi.

My name is Jeff Callahan, and my wife and I own a modest home in North Broadview.

We're both teachers, and the only way we ever could buy the home was through an inheritance.

I just want to be a public face on the hardness of when a developer comes in and overwhelms you.

and you don't know what to do.

And they just came in.

We got a lawyer.

We tried to have a pause.

We had an arborist come out and determined that it was on both of our lands, but they ignored it.

The lawyer for them threatened us.

And then last Friday, they just tore this huge tree.

I mean, I'm not a tree person, but this tree, it was like 200 years old tree.

When I go home today and I see the absence of the tree, I die inside.

Thank you, Jeff.

Sorry, time's up.

I'm sorry.

Thank you so much.

You can also put your comments in that basket as well.

Uh, Martha followed by Robert numbers one through 10 is Martha here.

Number four.

Oh, here you are.

Sorry.

My apologies.

Is that working?

Yes.

Here we go.

Okay.

My name is Martha and, um, I'm here today to ask you to please pass amendment eight.

The current interim plan is bad for trees as written.

95% of a lot can be hardscaped with no space left for trees.

Our trees are critical for climate mitigation, and currently Seattle's in the top five for urban heat islands.

And on hot days, our tree canopy can cool temperatures by as much as 20 degrees.

Seattle's rapidly losing our most valuable trees.

Our current code allows for removal of all trees, no matter the size, including our big heritage trees, as they were just speaking about.

This is just a tragedy.

We can and we must find common ground for housing and trees.

Setbacks do not deter housing density.

We need to build up and not out.

Also, SDIC should not be permitting the removal of our large trees for a single family home, especially when a tree can easily be saved without a reduction of living space.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next we have Robert.

Good afternoon, council members.

Thanks so much for being here and thanks so much for allowing me to speak and for all of us to speak.

My question for the Council today is, if for-profit developers have told the city that they don't want to build affordable housing, and they've told the public that they don't want to build family-sized housing, why are we promulgating rules that benefit for-profit developers?

Why are we not simply focusing on not-for-profit developers and the social housing developer?

A 20-foot setback is not going to negatively impact not-for-profit.

A 20-foot setback is not going to negatively impact a social housing developer.

There's plenty of room for 400,000 new housing units in Seattle, plus a tree canopy of 40% or greater.

Thanks so much.

Thank you, Robert.

Next we have number six, number seven, number six.

yes number six all right whoever is there number six yeah number six hi my name is jackie and i'm all in on hb 1110. however i'm very concerned about how the the setbacks the roof heights and the lot coverage will impact the look of neighborhoods when a house doesn't look like the house that surrounds them and i wanted to bring up one example which is the two feet the two feet higher roofs.

I'm wondering how having a roof that's two feet higher actually grows density or affordability.

I have a picture here of two people lying down in the roof.

Maybe that's what they have in mind, but it seems like a developer entitlement just meant to help developers build higher houses and houses that don't conform with the neighborhood.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ruth.

Next we have number seven, Kathleen.

followed by number eight.

Hi, thank you.

I'm Kathleen from Wedgwood.

It's part of the district four.

Can you speak in the microphone?

Okay, it's a part of the district four, Marisa Rivera.

One of Marisa's accountability was her own words.

From City Council website, I am committed to bring both accountability and civility back to City Hall.

City Councils represent the interests of their constituents and participate in making and amending city laws, policies, and ordinance.

We are the constituents.

Please keep the 20 feet minimum setback to keep our neighborhood intact.

Why are you building four plexus or six plexus?

Keep the 20 feet minimum setback.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next we have number eight, nine, and 10.

Yes, my name is Bruce Nguyen.

Dan, thank you for the opportunity to comment.

We represent 13 neighborhoods concerned about changes proposed in the interim ordinance.

The ordinance opens three quarters of Seattle's residential land to middle family housing, creating potential for thousands of more affordable homes.

We welcome middle family homes and know that they can blend in with our neighborhoods as they have in the past.

Our photo board shows examples of new and old middle family houses in predominantly single family areas.

Notice how their heights and setbacks are the same as single family.

Our second board shows middle family housing that doesn't comply with the same development standards.

The only green on this lot is the patch in front of the buildings.

This is what the interim ordinance will bring us.

Thank you.

Thank you, Bruce.

You were number nine.

Is there a number eight at all?

Is there a number eight?

I can't say it.

Anne, you were eight?

Number nine, I have Bruce win.

Oh, we too.

Oh, you switched.

Okay.

Sorry.

I thought I was going crazy.

Okay.

Go right ahead.

Hi, my name is Ruth Dite.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment.

Our photo boards here show aerials of a neighborhood with consistent 20 foot front yard setbacks and one with varied 10 and 20 foot setbacks.

That's the consistent one.

The 20-foot setback has been a cohesive feature of Seattle's neighborhoods for over 100 years.

Consistent setbacks prevent a chaotic mix of building placements that make streets feel cluttered.

You can see this on the next board showing the street view of each neighborhood.

One is inviting and park-like, the other more barren.

Reducing our setback will rob all Seattle citizens, rich and poor, of the sole satisfying pleasure and health benefits of trees, greenery, and the open space that the 20-foot setback provides.

Thank you.

Now number 10.

the children over here.

He's been doing it several times.

He stands up and stands over there.

I don't did nothing.

Understood.

Well, I will thank you so much for bringing that to my attention.

I will watch it now.

Mr. Zimmerman, you've been asked, hold on.

Mr. Zimmerman, you've been asked by parents to not harass their children.

Fair enough.

Mr. Zimmerman, I understand.

I'm watching it now.

Thank you for bringing that to my attention.

Number 10, and then can we also have numbers 11 through 20 start to line up?

11 through 20 start to line up.

Please, Mr. Zimmerman, don't wave or laugh at the children.

All right, number 10. Thank you.

Hi, my name is Tracy Reiser, and I actually work with unhoused youth in Seattle, and I support urban density.

However, we cannot sacrifice that which makes our Emerald City so beautiful, specifically front yard setbacks.

They are an essential feature of our neighborhoods, forming pathways of trees and front yard gardens that we all enjoy strolling down.

Since new parks are unlikely, sidewalks and setbacks should be considered a public good, a parkway necessary for both passive and active recreation.

Reducing front yard setbacks from 20 to 10 feet and allowing porches inside the setbacks remove the buffer of greenery that contributes so much to the public life in every neighborhood.

Don't destroy this legacy unnecessarily with interim legislation, and please approve Amendment 8. Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you.

You were number 11, Tracy Reiser?

You were number 10. You were number 10. Okay.

On here, it says number 11. Is there a...

Okay.

Y'all got me messed up.

Okay.

Is there Tracy Berman?

Yeah.

Anthropy is going to go first, and then I'm going to go.

whatever works best.

Okay.

Hold on.

Cause I'm trying to go back.

So Tracy, Tracy, yes.

And then Burman is that's you.

Okay.

And then who are you?

I'm Anthony Petrus.

I have the hardest name in the room.

What, what number are you?

I'm 11, 11.

Okay.

OK, so we did 1 through 10. OK, I'm just going to call numbers on here.

So that's 1, 2, 3, and so now we're doing 11 through 20. OK, 11 through, I got it, 11 through 20.

OK, can you hear me?

Yes.

OK, great.

I've been a Seattle social worker for 30 years, and I believe every person deserves to be housed.

I support HB 1110 as it could dramatically increase housing density across our city and state.

Let's all work together to implement HB 1110 and ensure it has a positive impact for the communities you all are elected to serve.

If you approve the interim ordinance, you'll be tearing down historic neighborhoods, the core character that brings people together.

Due to changes and setbacks, lots, coverage, and height, it will result in multimillion dollar housing.

It will not provide housing for those in need.

Please stick to HB 1110 to build homes accessible to middle income families.

Seattle is loved internationally because we are unique and quirky.

We are not a bunch of strip malls and huge boxes.

Let's implement HB 1110 within our existing codes for density with integrity.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Number 12.

Hello, my name is Tracy Berman, and I represent over 1,000 citizens in Seattle and across 13 neighborhoods who have come together.

I've created this chart to show the changes in our code that are actually required to comply with HB 1110. It's not many.

The model ordinance is similarly bloated with changes that the law does not require.

It was an example, not a rule.

And we asked council to amend the interim ordinance to remove the changes to lot coverage, setbacks, and heights.

The city council has a fiduciary duty to implement state required density in a way that protects, not destroys, Seattle's great neighborhoods.

We depend upon you to ensure that the growth in Seattle enhances livability, equity, and long-term value for residents, not just short-term returns for developers.

Our neighborhoods were shaped by thoughtful design, and the legacy is worth protecting, and it's your job to make sure it isn't lost.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Uh, numbers 13, 13 through 20. And we have two mics here.

If we can be able to bounce back and forth, it'd be great.

13 through 20.

Hi there.

I'm in favor of increased density, but not the proposed legislation without amendment.

The cumulative impact of the lot coverage change alone being proposed, but isn't required.

would pave over Discovery Park, Green Lake Park, including the lake, the entire UW campus, Washington Park Arboretum, Lincoln Park, Jefferson Park, and Discovery Park again.

This is a momentous change that will impact our city for generations to come, that feels like it's being rushed through with poorly conceived plans and execution.

Such a landmark legislation should not be passed as an interim ordinance, but should be continued to be considered for part of the future plan or HB 110 permanent and or the Seattle 1 plan.

I feel for those who want and need housing and the temptation to remove all of the rules seems tempting, but would be irresponsible.

I count on you to represent us.

Thank you.

Number 14.

It's Susan Fedora, District 1. I'm here to express environmental concerns regarding Seattle's rapid loss of urban tree canopy and maintaining an adequate level of ecological integrity in our city for our collective well-being.

Half of a tree's weight is stored carbon, so when a tree's cut down, it releases carbon dioxide back into the atmosphere.

On average, SDCI permits removal of 70 trees per week.

That's a conservative estimate.

I ran calculations from tree loss this week to determine average environmental impact on an annual scale and translated to 14.5 million pounds of carbon dioxide being released back into the atmosphere, as well as 4.8 million gallons of rainwater runoff no longer being intercepted, meaning more pollution and sewage overflows into Puget Sound.

These six-foot trees being planted to replace the large trees cannot begin to offset the loss.

An increasing pavement only exacerbates the issue whereby I ask you to approve Amendment 8. I do have an example of a stacked flat in the district with a protected mature maple.

This is under the old tree ordinance.

We've done it before.

Thank you.

Number 15. No worries.

Number 16, 17, 18, 19, 20. You all are up.

So number 16, 17, 17, 18, 19, 20.

Wonderful.

Thank you so much.

Thank you, Chair Hollingsworth and members of the committee.

As you know, my name is Ryan Donahue, and I'm the Chief Advocacy Officer over at Habitat for Humanity, Seattle King, and Kittitas Counties.

I'm here today to urge you to both move faster on the interim legislation that we are talking about here, but not just that, but to go bigger.

Treat this as a floor, not a ceiling, especially as you continue to finish the overall comprehensive plan work.

We recently finished a project in Capitol Hill, actually our second stacked flats building, and I want to share with you the lives that have been changed as a result.

Between these two projects, over 31 families now have a place to call home in the heart of Seattle.

They include social workers, journalists, educators, medical professionals, even a pastor.

Every one of those people now can say that they are a homeowner because of the opportunities that density can bring to a community.

Density that is possible only when we don't just do the minimum, but when we strive to do more, to be more.

When people like me talk about the importance of stacked flats and density, know that that's what we're talking.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ryan.

Number 17, 18, 19, and 20. Just talk right into the mic as loud as you can.

Hello.

Hello, council members.

Thank you for this opportunity.

We are here on behalf of McDonald's International School.

Last week, a Green Lake giant sequoia was cut down.

Her name was Grace.

She was home to two birds nests, both containing baby birds.

It was very sad hearing that the home of these birds was cut down and is now gone.

If we do not start making laws to save our trees, then think about how it will affect our future.

In the future, if we don't have enough trees, then there won't be enough nature, air, shade, food, and habitats for animals.

There will be plenty of heat islands, carbon dioxide, and smoke.

This won't make for a happy future for the old and the young.

There won't be enough forests and trees for us to enjoy life.

When I'm in nature, it makes me feel calmer as well as happier.

We want a tree-full future.

Save a tree, save a generation.

Thank you for your consideration and your time.

Thank you, Emiliana Penelope.

Really appreciate y'all.

All right, hard act to follow.

Good afternoon.

Like the Lorax in Dr. Seuss's book of the same name, I speak for the trees.

I'm not as fuzzy and not very good at acrobatics, but I'm willing to defend these miracles of nature that absorb carbon, filter polluted air, reduce heat islands and help us become climate resilient.

If setbacks in the interim bill are reduced to 10 feet, evergreens and oaks and all the saplings longing to reach the sky won't have a chance because they won't have space to grow.

Does this mean I'm against housing, especially for clerks and bus drivers and educators who desperately need it?

Not at all.

I'm for a city with housing for all ideally stacked flats and trees where people live.

Council should adjust property setbacks to match the current code.

Right now, developers don't have to do that.

They can pick the code they like dating back to 2019. It's called vesting.

If an interim code passes, that isn't good for trees.

Developers will be able to vest their project.

The Lorax and Dr. Seuss would be very puzzled by this decision asking why trees and housing.

I'm not sure.

Thank you.

Next we have Margaret followed by Patricia.

So that's 19 and 20.

Hello, council members.

I am speaking on behalf of McDonald Elementary School also, and this is a message from all of us.

Recently in the Green Lake neighborhood, Grace the Giant Sequoia was cut down to build a driveway.

I joined the fight to save it, but we lost the fight, and we haven't lost the war yet.

There are so many other trees that need saving.

I noticed that Portland has better laws protecting trees.

While Seattle's trees are managed by the building department, whose main concern is building more, Portland's trees are managed by their urban forestry department, which is actually qualified to manage trees.

Another thing is that Portland says that if you cut down a tree, you must pay a hefty fine and replace it with a good quality tree.

While in Seattle, there's not much consequence to cutting down trees.

The worst part is that while Portland enforces its laws for tree protection, Seattle does not.

All this makes me want to move to Portland.

Please protect our trees so that how we grow up kids like me will want to stay in Seattle.

Thank you.

Thank you, Margaret.

Next we have Patricia, number 20.

Honorable council member, I've traded places with Angus Oak so he can go sooner.

Okay, number 20.

Hello, my name is Angus Oak.

I'm a seven-year-old third-generation Seattle boy.

This week I visited Grace, the sequoia tree, before she was cut down.

I wept because I was very sad and sometimes I had to look away.

My mom and I collected pine cones to give to people.

We made a big fairy house with her sticks and sang to her.

I felt sad because I know I wouldn't see her again.

I think it is important to protect the ancient trees because they create a home for so many animals and bugs.

They make oxygen for us to breathe and shade to keep us cool.

In the spring, the blossoms are so pretty, and in the summer, I like to sit down under my favorite tree and read a book.

What I want to say to everyone in this room is to please protect the trees for the children of the city and for the future.

Just remember, trees are awesome.

Thank you.

Thank you, Agnes.

That one everyone can clap at, because that was great and very brave of you.

Okay, so we're gonna switch back to our February 5th speakers.

We have two of them.

We have Grant Pelter and Kate as well.

You all are prioritized.

Grant.

Pelter, if I said that right, you'd be number 21 for Group B and then number 22 for Group B. It's our February 5th.

We're bouncing back and forth, prioritizing y'all.

Welcome.

Come up here, Grant.

Thank you for being here.

Thank you.

Hello council.

My name is Graham Paltier and I'm here advocating for a comprehensive plan that increases density, sustainability, and more.

In my professional capacity, I'm an air quality engineer.

So I look at this plan from an environmental lens.

One element that I find quite concerning is the, often use of super skinny corridors of density across the city.

This basically makes us treat renters as shields for homeowners across the city.

I would love for these corridors to be widened because the transit lines, it doesn't matter if you're walking along the same corridor or walking into the development for it to be useful.

Second, I would really like to consider for everyone here that townhomes can be affordable for people like me. $700,000 is a lot more affordable than 1.2 million when me and all my friends who are trying to buy a house this century are looking at buying homes.

Those are the options that we have.

So I urge everyone to consider that as well.

Thank you.

Thank you, Grant.

Thanks for coming back as well.

Hi, Kate.

Welcome.

Hi.

So I'm a laboratory supervisor here in Seattle, and I have a very difficult time hiring for open positions.

These aren't minimum wage jobs.

These are good paying jobs, $34 an hour or more.

And candidates can't find affordable housing here in Seattle, and they don't want to spend long hours commuting from Federal Way or Everett where housing is more affordable.

Seattle needs to do everything it can to build more housing, apartments, condos, multiplexes, stacked housing, whatever it takes.

If you want setbacks, you want more trees, more green spaces, that's fantastic.

I think that's an admirable goal.

But let's work on enforcing the laws that we already have that are part of this plan.

Don't let a developer just take down a tree if it's not necessary.

Any plan, any amendment must give us more housing units.

Thank you.

Thank you, Kate.

Numbers 21 through 30. 21 through 30, you're up.

And then before you go, Ruth, Travis Close.

Are you here, Travis?

My man, you're up.

You're prioritized because you were from February 5th.

So you're...

Expedited service.

Just leave us a five-star review on Google.

I saw the reviews for council.

They're not too good.

Yeah, that's working.

You're all good.

Go ahead, Travis.

Thank you for coming.

And then we'll do 21 through 30 for our folks that signed up today.

Go ahead, Travis.

All right, thank you, council members.

The question for you before you today is, do you let our neighborhoods become enclaves for the rich, or do they welcome people of all backgrounds?

If we want neighborhoods that welcome everyone, we have to get middle housing right.

This means rejecting the proposed amendments for increased setbacks in housing affordability, which are poison pills to ensure that nothing gets built.

Setbacks reduce the flexibility for designing homes to fit existing conditions.

MHA requirements will make middle housing cost prohibitive, ensuring nothing gets built.

Instead, to make housing more affordable, let's reduce the barriers to building it because our neighborhoods are for everyone, not just the wealthy.

Thank you.

Thank you, Travis.

Numbers 21 through 30 are next.

Go ahead, Ruth.

Hi, my name is Ruth Tamandal, and I'm a homeowner in Green Lake.

I am here to urge all of you to please pass the Interim Comprehensive Plan quickly as a step toward a more livable, vibrant Seattle.

I was fortunate to buy my first home when I was 23. It was a town home, and that has set me up since to have stable housing for the rest of my life.

I want all of my neighbors to have that opportunity.

And right now they do not.

They don't have that option.

They don't have that opportunity.

More housing density will increase these opportunities for my neighbors.

It will support the thriving small businesses and usable transit that will help me and my neighbors thrive in a better livable city.

I'm sure we could come up with reasons not to pass this plan as long as we needed to, but that won't get us more housing and it won't get us more density in a more livable city.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Number 22, Sandy.

Great, hi, thanks everyone.

Yes, so I'm Sandy with Tree Action Seattle.

I'm asking you to please pass the setback amendment.

Along with the Tree Equity Network and Urban Forestry Commission, we ask that the comp plan set aside a flexibly located tree area on each site.

Portland's had this since 2015. Unfortunately, this bill does not have that, but it does reduce setbacks, which is the only place that might contain a tree.

Developers will be submitting hundreds of projects under this code.

There's no going back once we pave over the last trees in places like the Beacon Hill Tree Desert, where ozone and urban heat islands cause asthma and cancer.

Trees delayed are trees denied for the communities that will lose them under this bill.

Please retain setbacks, which are the only place that trees can grow.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And we have number 23 followed by 24. 23, awesome.

Thank you.

Good evening, council.

My name's Janet Way.

I'm a founding member of Thornton Creek Alliance and a member of Trees and People Coalition.

We are asking for protection for our salmon and our orcas.

Seattle is salmon habitat.

Seattle is orca habitat and trees will protect all those.

By protecting existing trees, steep slopes, and stream corridors, you're protecting salmon and orca.

Please stick with the current Washington code, the current or Washington code.

Trees and housing can coexist to provide shade, clean air, clean water, and a city that truly provides actual affordable, healthy neighborhoods.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Number 24, followed by 25.

Good evening.

Two years ago, I sat here as the tree protection ordinance was passed by this council, or an older council.

and we were told by council that that would protect 170,000 trees.

I don't quite understand that, as you've heard stories about this big tree in Broadview that was cut down just last Friday.

It wasn't one of those 170,000 trees.

What is our ordinance really protected?

This tree wasn't cut down for any affordable housing, even middle housing.

It wasn't built for or cut down for density.

In this tree, the Green Lake Sequoia was cut down for a driveway.

What trees are we truly protecting?

We keep being told we're protecting 170,000 trees.

We're not really protecting any trees.

The developers can cut them all down.

We know it, and you know it, and it's time to change something about that.

And as a first step to that, we ask you to adopt Amendment 8 that allows for the larger setbacks that we currently have.

I wouldn't say they're larger than what we have now.

adopt that.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Number 25. Hi, Jasmine.

And then number 26.

Hi, thank you, Chair, Hollingsworth, the committee, the staff, and the best clerk.

My name's Jasmine Smith.

I am the Director of Local Advocacy at FutureWise and a Queen Anne renter, and I appreciate all of the hard work that's gone into getting House Bill 1110 implemented.

We have a housing shortage.

Our neighbors need homes, but the competition for our limited housing is driving up prices.

Young people can't afford to rent, let alone own in the neighborhoods that they grew up, and seniors can't afford to stay in their neighborhoods.

Ensuring that we can have six plexes and stacked flats is exactly the kind of infill we need to pair with a bold, comprehensive plan with neighborhood centers all around town.

Let's pass the interim ordinance and get to the comp plan without further delay and keep building for a beautiful Seattle.

Thank you.

Thank you, Jasmine.

Next we have number 26, followed next 27 and 28, 29, 30.

Testing.

Hello there.

My name is Stephen Hitchcock.

I'm a Capitol Hill renter.

I am calling on the council to pass the interim plan followed by the most ambitious form possible of the comprehensive plan as soon as you can.

We as a city have been trying to fight our own growth for as long as I can remember, and it has consistently been the city's most vulnerable who've paid the price in higher rents, in being displaced out of the city, in some cases, ending up on the streets.

We need more housing and we need to get started today.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Number 28, are we on 28?

27.

27, my bad, 27. Thank you, Chair Hollingworth and the rest of the committee.

My name is Calvin Jones and I'm a renter in District 6 and an organizer with Tech for Housing.

I'm here today to urge this council to prioritize renters as much as possible in the comprehensive plan update process.

For the past hundred or so years, widespread single-family zoning has made it largely illegal to build new housing in about 70% of our city's residential land.

This has made a lot of homeowners very wealthy, but has saddled renters with ever-increasing rents and pushed them onto dirty and polluted arterials.

Please legalize lots of new housing in lots of new places and subsidize that housing as much as possible by taxing wealthy people and wealthy corporations.

Thank you.

Thank you, Calvin.

Number 28.

Hi there.

I'm Daniel Edwards.

I'm a proud resident of District 1 in West Seattle.

First time here, happy to be here.

I just want to lend my voice to the chorus of folks who are asking for more ambitious housing policy and not just waiting on the state or the city of Spokane to lead the way.

I want Seattle to be at the forefront of this.

I moved here two years ago.

I absolutely love living here, and I want to share it with more people.

So thank you very much, and I hope that you can continue to lead the way and move forward.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Number 29, followed by number 30. Hi.

Good evening, council members.

And you can pull that mic to you.

And can we restart his time?

Because I messed you up.

My bad.

Awesome.

All right.

Go ahead.

Good evening, council members.

My name is Rafael, and I am a renter in the Capitol Hill neighborhood.

I currently live in an MFDE apartment, and by the end of this year, I will be priced out of that home.

Me and my girlfriend enjoy living in the city.

She needs to live in the city due to the public transit.

She cannot drive due to being legally blind.

Sorry, it's my first time.

I urge the council to adopt the ordinance and also adopt the comp plan.

I want to live here for a good while.

I really liked the city.

Thank you.

Thank you.

You did a good job too.

Number 30. And then before we go there, number 31 through 40, if you could line up number 31 through 40, you can start lining up.

We have both mics and we have Lennon.

And I'm a social work student.

I just completed my practicum with the public school system.

I haven't been practicing in King County for very long, but it didn't take long to notice how many of my clients were impacted by the housing crisis in the area.

Many of the youth and families I work with in need of behavioral and academic intervention are struggling in part because their parents couldn't afford housing in the area.

They ended up having to go to a shelter or move in with grandparents.

And this is why I ask that you pass the Interim Housing Ordinance CB120969 and adopt the full one Seattle plan before summer recess.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Number 30. So now we have 31 through 40. 31 through 40. Number 31, Jeff.

Hi, my name is Jeff.

I was fortunate to be able to buy a tiny starter home on a large lot in Greenwood during the housing crash.

Now the nearly 80 year old house is considered a teardown.

I'm now preparing to redevelop it to maximum density.

I'd like to pay my good housing fortune to future residents.

In addition to stacked flat, I'm asking for two changes from the one Seattle plan to be implemented now.

Allow greater density proportionate to lot size, one unit per 1250 square feet.

to allow six-plex development within the frequent transit service area.

Under this one Seattle plan, my 7,500 square foot lot would allow six units versus four units under the interim bill.

Because my lot is big, it's not eligible for increased FAR.

A smaller lot could result in even bigger units due to the FAR bonus.

It doesn't make sense.

All of this will make North Seattle, where large lots are prevalent, less dense than other areas of the city.

Now is the time to not be doing the bare minimum.

Please help build greater density now.

Thank you.

Next we have number 32. Hi, Ryan.

Hello, my name is Ryan Haight.

I'm here to urge you to pass the interim ordinance without delay.

We're in a housing crisis and we need more housing built as quickly as possible.

Please remove the minimum unit size and minimum lot size for stacked flats.

These are the most affordable forms of housing that we can put in our neighborhoods.

And we need to massively reduce the restrictions on these to ensure that they get built.

I also urge you to allow six plexes in the frequent transit service area.

We should be going above beyond the state required minimums, and we need more housing.

It should be a priority.

I also urge you to not just put renters along the busiest, most dangerous polluted arterials in the city.

Yeah, we need to build more housing.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next, we have ISCRA, number 33, followed by number 34, Susan Ward.

Hi, I'm Iskra from the North End.

And regarding Council Member Hollingsworth's amendment on displacement, please identify now the 25% of NR lots that can be excluded from zoning.

We need to head off speculation.

Exclude from upzoning the most sensitive and forested areas and also neighborhoods where there are the most rental houses.

If you look at where the rental houses are, that's often where the poor families are.

And that is our existing affordable housing.

Where I am, In the north end, there are 12 rental houses within one block of my house.

When private equity comes and buys the 1,000 houses they are saying they're going to buy, all of those rental houses will be demolished for luxury housing.

The goal of the missing middle legislation is to create more variety of affordable housing, not the luxury homes that small setbacks can encourage.

The interim legislation must prioritize affordability.

That's why missing middle was developed.

Please do the 20 feet setbacks, vote for the number eight amendment, and make housing compatible with neighborhoods that exist in scale and form.

Thank you.

Next we have number 34, followed by number 35.

Good afternoon.

I'm Susan Ward.

Amendments to the comprehensive plan must include a greater percentage of landscaped ground, especially in NR lots.

Planning must protect trees, which are our main defense against warming and pollution.

I support council members Hollingsworth's and Moore's amendments.

I'm here also to ask you to correct an error in the proposed zoning.

Our street has long been ethnically diverse and has recently doubled its population already.

The Eastern half of my block, the 103rd to 105th block of Wallingford North is now to be upzoned to LR1.

This is supposedly based on being one quarter mile from rapid transit, which we are not.

We're 4 tenths mile from light rail and 6 tenths from rapid ride E.

Both sides of the street should be NR.

My neighbors and we call on you to correct this error.

A developer in the urbanist called the amendments a poison pill.

A poison pill will be finding in 20 years that neighborhoods are denuded of green canopy and have become heat islands.

Change our LR1 zoning and protect more trees up.

Thank you.

Number 35, followed by number 36. Awesome.

Hello, council members.

My name is Amy Broska.

I am an architectural designer living in Renton right now.

I was priced out of Capitol Hill.

I miss it a lot.

I would love to come back.

I urge the council to adopt a bold, comprehensive plan that prioritizes denser housing.

If even professionals like me, who prioritize affordable housing and have five years experience in an architectural office, can't afford to live here, we need to move fast and act bold.

And so again, I urge the council, please build taller, faster, and pass the ordinance without delay.

Thank you.

Number 36, followed by number 37.

Hello, council members.

Thanks for having me.

My name is Michael Murray.

I'm a small business owner.

I run Ballard Backyard Cottages.

And we build DADUs.

I can stand here before you today and say that I've built 15 DADUs, haven't cut down any trees or torn down any single family residences.

It's extremely hard to do that.

There's a lot of regulations, a lot of rules I gotta follow.

Every time I turn a corner, there's another set of things I gotta get inspected.

I'm a specialist at methane dispersal systems, thanks to Genesee Park.

And, you know, I think that the big bad developer is the big bad developer.

The city needs an army of people like me.

I'm trying to build a hundred dados.

I can't solve the whole problem.

But if there's a thousand of me, then that's a whole bunch of little homes in the backyards that really fit into the neighborhoods and are great for everybody.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Number 37 through 40. Number 37 through 40.

Hi, my name is Kaylin.

I live in Kathy Moore's district.

I'm here today to ask that City Council pass the interim legislation without delay and adopt the One Seattle Plan before the summer recess.

If we're serious about using this opportunity to make Seattle a more racially and economically equitable city, it's important that each neighborhood is contributing a fair share towards growth.

No claims about existing neighborhood character, tired false dichotomies about trees versus housing, about multifamily versus character hatred of developers are worth entertaining while people are living on the streets or struggling to afford to live where they work.

Every delay increases the cost to build a project, costs a family their stability, risks someone slipping into homelessness in a time where social supports are withering.

Increasing the supply itself won't fix the housing crisis, but it will inevitably worsen when there's not enough supply.

Allowing for more housing types in more communities is foundational to addressing this crisis.

Seattle cannot wait any longer.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next, we have Phil Rick followed by Suzanne.

Phil Rick Suzanne.

Hi, Phil.

Hey, how's it going?

Good.

Thank you.

Thank you, Chair.

Good afternoon, Council members.

My name is Phil Lewis, and I serve as the co-chair of the Human Rights Commission and a resident of District 7, and I share this public comment on behalf of the Human Rights Commission for the City of Seattle.

Seattle's housing crisis demands bold action.

Our city is becoming increasingly unaffordable for families, seniors, and essential workers, like teachers, foster care workers, emergency responders, and more.

Exclusionary zoning has made it harder to build enough homes, driving up prices, and deepening racial and economic disparities.

This is a human rights issue.

This is an issue that has plagued Seattle longer than I think some of us even recognize.

We urge you to act now, to pass the Interim Zoning Ordinance without delay.

This ensures that Seattle complies with HB110 and allows three plexes, triplexes, four plexes in townhomes and residential neighborhoods.

It's a legal minimum and a necessary step.

But we must go further.

We ask that you adopt the full ordinance before summer recess that expands the urban centers and allows for Seattle to be what it can be.

And we look forward to partnering with you all.

Thank you, Phil.

Next we have 39 followed by 40. 39. You're 40. Okay, is there 39?

Rick?

Is Rick in the building?

No, that was Phil.

Rick, are you here?

Number 39?

All right.

Suzanne Grant.

Hello, I'm Suzanne Grant.

This past week, I witnessed two magnificent trees being murdered.

The mighty dollar cut them down.

If you'd been there, you could have seen there was room on the lots for housing and trees.

Five years ago, this tree was cut down.

Yesterday, I took this picture of what was planted to quote unquote, replace the canopy.

In 2019, you promised a replacement would happen, but no longer.

Restore tree planting provisions, protect CM heritage and tier two trees.

Surely you understand why.

I am an advocate for building housing that includes nearby trees, which provide a healthy environment for the residents.

Don't give up.

Require setbacks.

Support CM Moore's amendment.

Don't give in to developer demands to cover every inch of a lot in order to maximize their profits.

Require alternative designs that could preserve trees and build housing.

Don't give in to developers greed.

Keep Seattle treed.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next, 41 through 50. 41, if we start lining up.

Hi, Matt.

Give me one second.

41 through 50. And...

41 through 50. Is Rafael still in the building?

Rafael, here's my card.

Can you tell me what building you're gonna get price out of on Capitol Hill for MFT?

That's my card right there.

I'd like to know.

Right there, my guy.

All right.

Matt, you are next.

Awesome.

Welcome.

41, before you start, 41 through 50. 41 through 50. Number 41, Matt.

Hello, council members.

My name is Matt Hutchins and I am the co-chair of the Housing and Neighborhoods Committee of the Seattle Planning Commission.

The Seattle Planning Commission recommends limiting amendments to the interim legislation to just adjusting the density measurement to align with the proposed permanent legislation, allowing a density of one home per 1,250 square feet of lot area, rather than four to six units per lot, regardless of size.

The Commission supports the goals of preventing displacement, promoting stacked flats, improving street conditions, and increasing housing affordability, and we're eager to see the interim legislation passed and Council move on to the permanent legislation where we can really address these goals.

The commission is especially looking forward to the implementation of neighborhood centers, additional housing capacity across the city consistent with the intent of HB 1110. We'll help our neighborhoods have more people of all income levels and unlock access to neighborhood amenities like great schools and parks.

Thank you.

Thank you, Matt.

Next we have number 42 and then we're bouncing to 43 and there's two mics, 42.

What he said, that's what I want to say.

My name is Marsha Peterson and I'm a homeowner in the Maple Leaf neighborhood.

And I'm here in support of the legislation, the One Seattle plan and the interim legislation and urging council to adopt that as soon as possible.

I would also ask you to vote against council member Moore's amendment, which would effectively kill middle housing family in Seattle by requiring yards and big setbacks in every neighborhood residential zone.

Seattle has a reputation of being a forward-thinking, progressive city.

So why not in our housing policies?

Can we look to other cities like Paris, Berlin, Munich, Stockholm, that combine multifamily housing with trees and community amenities, but don't require yards or have the kind of setbacks we're talking about?

Clearly, we can't keep driving forward while looking in the rear view mirror, which is essentially what Moore's amendment does.

I urge you to vote against the amendment and do not delay adopting a plan that allows for more innovative solutions to our housing crisis.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Number 43, followed by number 44.

Hi, I'm Hunter.

I'm from District 1. What's up, Rob?

I'm guessing that these tree people already own homes.

What a nice luxury to talk about trees.

This is not just about housing, it's about getting to participate in our communities and our democracy.

When people leave Seattle, they don't just leave our neighborhoods, they leave our representation.

When Washington is on the brink of losing congressional seats because we aren't growing fast enough, that means we lose a voice in Congress.

It means less power to shape our national decisions that directly affect our lives, from climate change to healthcare to civil rights.

I'm asking you to support free form reform so we don't push homeowners to add it to, so they can add a unit or two.

Increase FAR bonus stacked flats to 1.6 to remove lot sizes and minimums.

These are basic steps to letting people live here.

Reject mandatory housing fees that would strangle small projects before they start and protect flexible setbacks.

So builders can work with land, not against it.

Thank you.

Thank you, Hunter.

Number 44.

Hi, my name is Laura Gardner and I'm a homeowner in West Seattle.

I'm asking you to pass the interim middle housing ordinance as proposed and work with urgency to pass the boldest possible comprehensive plan.

My husband and I have spent the last few years trying to set the stage for my aging disabled dad and dependent disabled brother to be able to live close to us.

There is a serious shortage of diverse housing across Seattle, especially accessible housing, so we've decided to build an ADU in our backyard for them.

Our lot is large enough, flat, and has no trees.

It's the perfect place for an accessible house for my dad and brother and some more trees.

But zoning rules, including lot coverage limits and setbacks, have made it very difficult to do.

I cannot adequately express to you how stressful it has been spinning in a limbo of uncertainty while their living situation deteriorates.

The need for this legislation is urgent for me and others like me.

Please act with urgency to address the shortage of diverse housing that everyone in Seattle feels the effects of.

Thank you.

Number 45, Callie.

Hi, my name is Callie Nalen.

I've lived in District 7 for over 25 years.

I'm a designer by training, and I want to say that good design means we can have both housing and trees.

And with that, I just wanted to read some quotes until my time is up.

A grove of giant redwoods or sequoias should be kept just as we keep a great or beautiful cathedral.

Theodore Roosevelt.

Of all man's works of art, a cathedral is greatest, a vast and majestic tree is greater than that.

Between every two pines is a doorway to a new world.

John Muir.

Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago.

Warren Buffett.

The creation of a thousand forest is in one acorn.

Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Learn character from trees value.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Number 46 is 46 here.

46, they're crossed off, but I just want to make sure I call their number.

Okay.

Number 47, Matthew, followed by 48, Tara.

You're all good.

Can we restart the timer?

We won't start till you start.

My name is Matt.

I'm a renter in District 3. Last September, my partner and I relocated to Seattle from Texas, with one of the main reasons being the cityscape.

The urban environment in Seattle is simply unparalleled by nearly all of Texas.

In San Antonio, where we lived, the only housing developments I've seen outside the urban core are gated apartment complexes and lifeless single-family detached homes set so far back in the summer.

you're drenched in sweat by the time you finish checking the mail.

To shop, I had no choice but to drive to strip malls full of half-empty parking lots.

For the tree-obsessed commenters here, sprawl harms tree canopies a lot more than small setbacks.

My partner and I do not want to live in a McMansion hell with not even a convenience store in walking distance.

We want density.

We want to live near light rain.

We want affordable options so that we can plant our roots among the snow-capped mountains and ephemeral cherry blossoms.

I now stand before my city council and beg, ignore insincere NIMBYs and don't Texas mind Seattle.

Thank you, Matthew.

Number 48.

My name is Tara, and I'm actually a real estate broker.

And I support density.

We need density.

We need homes.

But we also need the trees.

I support Cathy Moore's amendment.

The setbacks should not be less than 20 feet.

It should be even more than that.

I've just witnessed a tree that was cut down in a neighborhood I live in that supported the environment, it supported the animals, and it supported people.

This was an 8,000 square foot lot that could have supported three homes, but the developer chose to just tear the tree down just because it, and it wasn't even affecting the property.

So I think there should be more research done so that they know that these trees really, some of them don't handicap the lot.

They're just destroying them just to destroy them.

And the developer even said that, you know, I'm taking this down because I can't, because the laws for trees need to be amended.

And I support the trees.

Thank you.

Before we go on to 49 and 50, if we could have numbers 51 through 60 start lining up.

51 through 60, you're on deck.

Number 49.

Good afternoon.

I'm a constituent and a renter from District 2. My name is Skylar Hall, and I'm speaking today in support of bold, decisive, and swift action on Seattle's housing crisis.

As we all know, the state of housing affordability in the city is nothing short of a five alarm fire, and it is absolutely imperative that the interim plan is passed as soon as possible.

Us renters cannot afford any more delay.

Now, as much as I love the charm in the front yards of Queen Anne, Wallingford, and Greed Lake, the lack of housing in these neighborhoods contributes directly to the homelessness that I see where I live in Beacon Hill in downtown, and how my neighbors can barely afford their rent.

We should enforce our current tree laws more effectively instead of passing setback amendments that restrict housing development.

Now, for the full one Seattle plan that will be passed, hopefully before summer recess, we need every single tool possible as soon as possible.

Our city needs, in the comprehensive plan, more market rate housing, more public housing, properly funded social housing, and more protections for us renters because we don't have the stability of a mortgage.

especially if we don't build a dumpster, the amount for housing will continue and we'll keep clear cutting places like Lake Stevens and Black Diamonds.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Number 50.

Hi, I'm Colleen McAleer representing our community council in Northeast Seattle of over 3,500 residents.

We support density and we support most of the legislation, especially the amendments today by council member Moore, which clarifies some of its complexities and retains the 20 foot setbacks and tier one and tier two tree retention.

However, this bill omits two important definitions by the legislators who passed HB 1110. Quote, middle housing means buildings that are compatible in scale, form and character with single family houses.

We don't see that in the legislation.

It should be included in an amendment.

Secondly, the major transit stop definition means one, a stop on a high capacity transit system Number two, commuter rail stops.

Number three, stops on a rail or fixed guideway system or rapid for rapid transit routes.

Seattle's legislation changes the definition, meaning any frequent bus stop and bus stops are not permanent.

So we need to build that permanent legislation in one quarter mile of permanent infrastructure.

Thank you so much.

Number 50. Did I say that right?

No.

Was that number 49?

Oh, that was number 50. I'm sorry.

My bad.

I can't read.

Number 51 through...

I am 51. I traded with my young friend.

That's right.

Number 51 through number 60.

Thank you, honorable council members.

I implore you, I'm not asking you, I implore you, protect what we have here.

Look at what we've got out there.

Puget Sound, we have that gorgeous, dense tree canopy.

Yes, we need affordable housing, absolutely.

I am not a wealthy person, but I was lucky enough to be able to buy an apartment 20 years ago that's enabled me to live there.

But what scares me about this, that you're, pushing through is we can never go back.

If you make a mistake, we can't undo this big development push, these low-income units that you want to build.

Yes, I agree that we need them, but what is this 20-foot setback?

It's like that would enable us to keep this big tree canopy and would also have important environmental benefits because it would prevent stormwater runoff, which is a major pollutant in Puget Sound, which is a major reason for the southern residents' decline.

Thank you so much.

Thank you.

Number 52, followed by 52 through 60, you are left, 52, golden ticket.

All right, thanks.

Good evening.

I'm Orlikon Cannon.

I am a local business owner and resident.

And I'm here to ask the city council to protect our city's trees on development sites and remove the setback reductions.

I moved to the Emerald City 20 years ago because of its urban beauty.

And I served the city as a tree ambassador to help increase the canopy of our trees.

And the Trump administration has opened up half of the national forest parks for logging, and it pains me to think that the city of Seattle would support similar legislation for development.

We can grow with our trees.

Consider the ecosystem and evidence-based benefits of trees.

Cleaning air, for example, which we all know is increasingly needed.

I'm also a business owner that brings nature to the less advantaged.

It's a company that grew nationwide because nature heals.

In short, build up, not out.

Let's grow with our trees.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Number 53. Hello, I'm Jean Trent.

You've heard from so many people that are so sincere and I really appreciate and respect everybody.

I don't agree with everybody, but I really understand the pressure people under.

I just want to remind you that People feeling uncomfortable is part of rapid growth.

That's just what happens.

And to caution you that if we respond quickly without care and concern and without evaluating everything, you're going to be concerned about your legacy and I will be too about the future.

So I really appreciate that you're hearing everybody and hearing what they are concerned about.

When people use the word crisis, I fear that that means they think they have to make a hasty decision.

And that isn't what we need at all.

We have listened to all these children, and they are saying, what's my time going to be like?

You need to help me.

And that takes...

Thank you.

Number 54, followed by 55. Hi, Lily.

Hello.

Good afternoon, Chair Hollingsworth and committee members.

My name is Lily Hayward.

I am a renter in District 3, and I'm here speaking on behalf of the over 2,500 members of the Seattle Metro Chamber of Commerce and the Complete Communities Coalition to ask you to please pass this interim legislation with haste and then also get to the good stuff in the comprehensive plan where we can plan for density and housing abundance in our city.

Housing continues to be the top priority of your constituents here in Seattle.

We just did some recent polling as we do twice a year and found that 66% agreed that increasing housing supply will help slow down our housing crisis and 74% said that we need to make it easier, not harder to build more housing right here in Seattle.

This is, of course, a priority for the business community because it is a workforce development issue and the economy is stronger and businesses do better when people can live close to where they work and when they can afford to use some of their extra income on amenities that they provide.

So thank you so very much for your time and consideration and for hearing all of us today.

Awesome.

Thank you so much.

Number 55, followed by 56.

Hello, I'm Lynn Best.

I live in District 5. I support both increased availability of affordable housing and strong protection for Seattle's trees.

I believe the city of Seattle is not a one-trick pony and can do both, as other progressive cities have done.

First, I say pass the setback amendment.

The current interim code reduces setbacks without adding space for trees.

We can't afford to pave over our urban forest with no plan for climate resilience.

We need trees.

Almost 1,000 trees have been removed on private property in 2025 to date.

In addition to their value in sequestering carbon and helping to reduce climate change, trees in urban areas provide our most effective way to reduce heat.

Seattle is now fifth in the nation for urban heat islands, and places without trees are up to 20 degrees hotter than places with trees during heat waves.

They also help retain runoff and filter pollutants, reducing urban flooding, and helping to protect our streams, the sound, and the species that live.

Thank you so much.

Next, we have number 56, followed by 57. Yeah.

Hello, Councilman.

My name's Mike Nickram, and following a little bit of football in Washington, I became a home builder, a home maker here in the city of Seattle.

I want to pay forward to you probably the biggest compliment I've received in 50 years building houses in Seattle.

That's what my purchasers in West Seattle thanked me for being able to build a brand new single family home In West Seattle, they did not expect to be able to find a home below the median price point in the city of Seattle.

1,300 square foot, three-bedroom, three-bathroom.

By the way, that's a four-star built green home.

And I can only do it because of the regulations you guys now allow me to build under.

Under Seattle 1, I'm going to be able to even get better, a little bit better at FAR.

I can be able to build a front yard setback.

I can now bring a covered porch closer to the street, create an auto court off the street.

Thanks for all you did.

Thanks for staff all the work.

I really appreciate it.

Bruce, if you're watching, brother, go Dawgs.

Thank you.

Now, number 57, 58, and 59, and 60.

Good afternoon, Council.

My name is Kim Gould.

I'm excited to see our comp plan actually work, adding middle housing, maintaining our tree canopy, and sustaining the character of our neighborhoods.

To do so, I have a couple process points I wanted to make relative to the interim legislation.

Number one, I think we need to adopt Amendment 2 to drive a thoughtful analysis of the relationship of setbacks to tree protection and neighborhood character.

I think that's a key thing we need to do.

Second, we need to keep the current setbacks, but only necessarily during the interim period, which I understand is about five months.

So it won't make a long-term impact to do this.

And we need to do that so we can support the analysis in Amendment 2. I want to point out there's multiple models to consider.

Portland is one.

Another is the high density lot layout work that has been done by the Tree Equity Network.

Finally, please add additional amendments to adopt an overall minimum to comply with HB 1110 approach.

Thank you.

Thank you, Kim.

Next, we have 58, followed by 59 and 60. 58.

Oh my God, I'm nervous.

Can you hear me?

You're good.

Take your time.

My first time doing this, y'all.

No need to be nervous.

Hold on.

We'll start your time.

Take a deep breath.

You're good.

Thank you.

I'm here, and it's my first time as a voice, as a citizen.

It feels amazing.

But I was urged to take action to this poll because we lost grace.

But it's not just grace that we have lost.

We have lost, by the 10th year that I've been living here, so many canopies.

When you used to land to Seattle, it would smell like forest and ocean.

That smell is gone.

Now it smells like gasoline.

I want to urge the Council for the Tree Protection Act.

We need that.

We need to protect our neighborhoods.

We cannot continue doing this.

Being from Mexico City, I know what it is to grasp for relief.

Our green spaces were our lifelines during COVID.

Let's not forget that.

And we are giving the keys to development to all these people that are just tearing down houses, not doing it affordably, not doing it dignified.

We need the housing.

We need the trees.

We need to not lose our soul.

Thank you so much.

Next we have Mr. David Haynes followed by Kathy Kaplaner.

Seattle can build higher levels that save trees, create more housing and offer better livable amenity spaces.

Seattle can even shut down side streets and build a sustainable pedestrian friendly neighborhood and get rid of the asphalt that triggers the heat.

And city council can prove there is no conflict of interest with all the landlords on council by taking off the restrictions that sabotage the comprehensive plan and taint the one Seattle plan, cheating a multitude of younger generations and backstabbing the working class, needing a better choice in home.

It's disingenuous and a reminder of how two-faced Seattle sellouts are who think they...

that because they already own a home, they can come down here when most everyone is at work and weaponize the tree ordinance to purposely deny working class a better choice in home while they want to take advantage of the supply and demand squeeze.

We need a 21st century first world quality housing build out with legitimate incentives, not lame ideas of only allowing a four unit quad with a maximum of two more if affordable.

We need to go two to six stories higher on quads where you can go put eight to 20.

Thank you, David.

Next we have Kathy.

And before we'll just do a quick time check.

So let me rewind.

Kathy, you're number 60. If we can start having speakers I can't even count.

Number 61 through 70 start lining up, 61 through 70. And just so we know, colleagues, we have over 100 plus people signed up.

So we're a little bit about halfway.

So doing well.

One second, Kathy.

We got our time up.

Yeah, awesome.

All right, we're ready for you.

Hi, my name is Kathy Kaplan.

I'm from district six.

One of the proud tree people here to ask and urge council about five plus actions.

One, please amend CB170969 to keep the current larger setbacks.

Also, please amend it to remove the ability to build in critical areas.

Two, please amend the tree protection ordinance section SMC 25.11.070.

Please remove the provision that basic protection area can't be modified.

It can.

Three, please allow SDCI to ask for alternative site designs to save existing healthy trees.

Four, please require street trees be planted for all construction.

And five, please set up the One Seattle Tree Fund.

Trees are not just beautiful to just me, they are essential for everybody.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Now 61 through 70, 61 through 70. You are up, Tim.

You are first, my friend.

Welcome.

Good evening, council members.

I'm Tim Chocol.

I'm lucky enough to be a homeowner in District 6. I was able to get a small starter home from the 1940s, and I urge you to patch this zoning ordinance and the full comprehensive plan.

I have a four-year-old that I want to be able to live in this city as an adult, and my child currently has no future in this city due to the housing cost and lack of density.

For our children to have a future, we need to be building more affordable housing now.

And it's not just our children to have a future.

We have aging family members, my father and my handicapped sister, that will need to live with me in the future.

And with the current ordinances, I cannot build the additional houses in the land that I have.

This ordinance helps start that process.

I want more opportunities for families to live in my neighborhood and for my child to have friends to play with close by.

Please allow more housing so we can provide a city for all at a price that all can afford.

Seattle needs more housing and density.

Pass this ordinance without delay.

Our children need to .

Thank you, Tim.

Number 62, Julia.

She's going to switch with 162. OK, got it.

Number 62.

Hi, my name is Sawyer.

I am 12 years old, attend Robert Eagle Staff Middle School, and live in North Broadview District 5 with my mom, a public school teacher.

Our neighborhood is one of the last affordable places to live with ancient trees in Seattle, and I'm watching developers cut down my future one tree at a time.

and produce enough oxygen for four people.

Multiply that by the thousands of trees they've already cut.

Trees clean our air, cool our neighborhoods, prevent flooding, lower stress, reduce crime, and even help kids like me focus better in school.

Please don't trade my future for developer's profit.

Brian Thompson, the developer who killed the cedar in my neighborhood, called me brainwashed.

I am not brainwashed.

I am a human being and your future.

If you let them pave over forests, my generation will suffer the consequences.

Please pass the setback amendment.

Thank you, Sawyer.

Next, we have number 63, followed by 64. Welcome.

Thank you.

So we watched J35, Tahlequah, carry her second dead daughter for weeks.

The Pacific temperate rainforest spanned from Northern California to BC before colonization.

Who are we to say those that came long before us deserve eradication?

We can build taller without lot sprawl and not kill all of nature's free water filters, mature trees.

The 2008 NOAA SRKW recovery plan says highest population areas here must take greater measures to reduce polluted runoff.

Does Seattle want to be responsible for the extinction of our southern residents, killer These critically endangered orcas don't have over 25 years to wait for the baby saplings to filter the water at the exponentially higher levels that our existing mature trees already do, which is 5% of what a 30-inch tree could provide.

Claims that if we allow developers unlimited McMansions over Seattle, they won't develop anywhere else is a myth designed to ensure developers can develop everywhere they profit highest.

We can have both housing and the ecosystem.

That's the minimum pass Amendment 8 for the setbacks.

What is good for them is good for us.

And we need an environmental impact statement that covers the 330,000 units, not just the 120,000.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Number 64, followed by 65.

I'm Camille Zahaiko.

I live in District 4. I want to speak for somebody who's in this room, right behind you, who can't speak today.

So we will consider your offer to buy our land.

If we agree, it will be to secure the reservation you have promised.

There, perhaps, we may live out our brief days as we wish.

When the last red man has vanished from this earth and his memory is of a cloud moving across the prairie, these shores and these forests will still hold the spirits of my people, for they love this earth as the newborn loves its mother's heartbeat.

If we sell you our land, love it as we've loved it, care for it as we've cared for it, hold in your memory of the heart of the land, hold it as it is when you take it.

all of your heart, preserve it for your children.

God loves us all.

Thank you.

Number 65.

Number 69 for Denise.

Okay, hold on.

One second.

Denise, is there 65 in the room?

I can't read the I can't read that handwriting.

Number 65, no.

We'll come back.

Number 66, Jeff Briggs.

66, Jeff, you're up.

Hi, I'm Jeff Briggs.

I live in District 4. We all know or should know by now how our current tree protection ordinance was sabotaged and turned into a blueprint for tree removal with no recourse for citizens or SDACI to challenge removals, even when preservation would be easy.

We all know or should know by now that the comp plan is our best opportunity to not only fix these past mistakes, but create good codes going forward.

We all know by now, or should know by now, that this is not a binary choice between housing and trees.

Take a look at the new codes in Portland and Tacoma.

Tacoma just passed a code.

So finally, we all know, or should know by now, that this interim legislation is not a good vehicle to establish policy or vesting options, but should do the bare minimum to comply with HB 1110, thereby preserving our ability to craft a truly visionary and comprehensive plan going forward.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

66, number 67, Denise.

Is Denise here, 67?

Hello.

Good afternoon.

My name is Judy Akulaitis.

I'm a public servant.

I work with disabled preschoolers, and...

I fully support Amendment version 8.1.

I'm also from Chicago, and I lived in stacked flats for years.

And the beauty of the stacked flats in Chicago are that they have setbacks and they have trees.

and it's beautiful for multi-generational families, and my family was, my aunts and uncles lived in them, and we'd run up and down stairs, and they are the answer to a lot of our density issues.

And I just want to comment to everybody that's been here is that if I was drawing a Venn diagram, that we all agree on a lot of things.

We all want trees and we all want density.

Who here does not want any trees?

They're for our health.

Please vote for science.

The benefits of trees are available everywhere.

Vote for science.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Is number 68 in the building?

Number 68?

No, the name's crossed off, but I'll still call the number 69, 69. Denise?

Pardon?

I'm not Denise.

No, are you number 69?

I'm number 69. My name is Suzanne Porter, original number 88. All right.

Well, welcome.

Yeah.

I'm from District 2, South Seattle.

Seattle is rapidly losing trees.

A report says that there's been a decrease of tree canopy over the past few years, instead of the increase in canopy towards the 30 percent tree coverage that was initially established.

South Seattle can't afford to lose more trees when it already has fewer trees, if you look at the canopy map, than other areas of the city.

This is an equity issue.

This is a quality of life issue.

People are more affected by the high temperatures we've been experiencing over the past few years over the city.

It is not a matter of houses versus trees, but it is about both.

It can be done.

Stacked walls, shared walls, anything but to be able to have both housing and trees is a benefit to the city all the way around.

Thank you so much.

Next up 70 through 80, 70 through 80, 70 through 80. Please make your way down to the front.

Your number is called.

You are the winner to The Price is Right.

Cameron, just trying to lighten it up here with some jokes.

I know y'all been here for a long time.

See those pearly whites.

Cameron, what's up?

Hey.

All right.

Afternoon.

My name is Cameron.

I'm a renter in Capitol Hill, and I count myself incredibly lucky to be able to afford to live in such a vibrant and diverse community because I know that not everyone I know at my stage in life can say the same.

Some of them live paycheck to paycheck to stay in place, or they've relocated to apartments in industrial districts or along polluted and noisy arterials, or they have given up and they've left Seattle entirely.

Now, the state has done its part to address our housing affordability crisis by passing HB 1110. And I urge you to do your part by passing the interim legislation without delay or amendments that may water down its impact.

In particular, I urge caution around Amendment 8 to ensure that it has the effect not of replacing new housing with new housing and more trees, but with no new housing at all.

Now, I'm also lucky in another respect, which is that I have a job that gives me the flexibility to leave work and line up here.

A number of my friends would have made it, but couldn't because they had to finish their work day.

I commend you for your efforts to allow more working people to speak and remind you that despite the chair's efforts were to recommend the public comment process still disadvantages the voices of working people.

Thank you.

Thank you, Cameron.

Number 71.

My name is Dustin Houck, and I live in Montlake.

I'm here today not to oppose the once Seattle goals, but to urge you to consider how the zoning changes align with the state of Montlake's aging infrastructure, specifically the sewer system.

Much of Montlake's sewer network is over 100 years old and made of terracotta pipe.

This material is now known to be brittle and prone to failure under shifting soil, root intrusion, and increased flow.

These pipes were never built to support the kind of density now being proposed.

The One Seattle plan acknowledges aging sewer systems, but does not provide any strategy or timeline for replacing them in neighborhoods like mine.

Relying on developers to upgrade only the pipes near their projects creates a patchwork, new sections tied to old aging ones, which raises the risk of localized failures.

Therefore, I respectfully ask the council to require a full assessment of the neighborhood sewer systems before finalizing zoning changes.

Ensure any density increase includes a funded utility upgrade plan.

Thank you very much.

Thank you so much.

Number 72. Hi, Michael.

Hello, Michael Gillenwater.

I'm a D6 resident and I've said before, I'm also a climate scientist.

So I just wanna briefly echo the very first commenter's points about how density is actually a climate mitigation and resiliency solution.

All the science is very clear on that.

But more specifically related to the resolution here, I just encourage you to pass the interim resolution, interim legislation for HB 1110. Please do not add a setback poison pill.

More stacked flats, please encourage those and do not derail the desperately needed zoning reforms in the further comp plan by relitigating the tree ordinance.

If we wanna open that back up, then we can do that through separate legislation.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Number 73.

You are up.

Hi.

Hi, I'm Tracy Tardiff.

I just want to reiterate what someone else said where we all do have a lot.

We're aligned on a lot of things.

I believe that people do come first, but I believe our tree canopy is incredibly important as well.

And I urge the council to pass the setback amendment.

This is the kind of investment that doesn't take dollars.

You just don't remove the trees as you build.

You build up and not out, but developers won't choose to do it that way.

So we need your leadership here.

I urge the council to pass the setback amendment.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Number 74.

Hello, council members.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight.

My name is Evan Sexton and I live in district four.

You've already heard about the ways that housing directly affects the livelihoods of so many of my neighbors.

Tonight, though, I want to talk and remind you that construction is a key industry for both the fiscal and economic health of our city.

A quarter of sales tax revenue, property taxes only rise above the 1% growth limit through improvements, and our real estate excise tax, too, is bolstered by new development.

City and industry forecasters have been clear.

Construction starts hit a 12-year low in 2023 and CoStar is pricing in a rent surge for 2025. Taxable sales and construction are down 7.1% year over year.

To quote from our revenue forecasters last month, downturn in the construction sector weighs down quite notably overall tax collection.

We know that the City Council doesn't control interest rates, but decisions we make here at the local level affect the health of our construction market and our budget.

Please support our builders and pass a clean interim

Thank you, Evan.

Next, we have 75, followed by 76. Hi, Jesse.

Hey.

Good evening, council members.

I'm Jesse Simpson, director of government relations and policy at HTC, lifelong Seattle, and Capitol Hill renter.

I'm here to ask you to pass this interim ordinance and then move quickly on to the full comprehensive plan in a bold way to allow for more homes in all neighborhoods throughout Seattle.

HB 1110 was passed to create new middle housing across the state, and the model ordinance was established to create some clear and workable rules to ensure that fourplexes and other middle housing could actually be built.

The city's economic analysis under the proposed permanent legislation shows that middle housing would only be feasible at 19% of lots.

I ask you to avoid amendments that would whittle this down further.

We need to do far more than the bare minimum if we're serious about addressing Seattle's deep housing shortage.

I urge you to move swiftly from this first step on the interim legislation to consider and expand the full one Seattle plan because housing delayed is housing denied for low-income workers, families, and seniors struggling to stay in this beautiful but expensive city.

Thanks.

Thank you, Jesse.

Number 76. Hi, John.

I'm John Cuevas.

I urge you to vote no on this comprehensive plan.

There's the trees.

He's speaking to the mic.

First, there's the trees.

Then the birds, then the salmon, then us.

These higher density neighborhoods may seem like a quick fix for urban housing shortages, but it brings mostly host of negative consequences that threaten the character and livability of our communities and our cities like Seattle, where the skyline continues to rise and neighborhoods are rapidly changing.

I ask, is this truly the best path forward?

I can really envision a of Seattle 20 years from last showing the difference.

It's just a long-term loss for the entire city.

Thank you, Mr. Cuevas.

Next, we have TJ French, number 77, followed by 78.

Hey, TJ French here.

I'm in District 7. I'm a renter.

Thank you, Chair Hollingsworth and the city for this legislation.

An opportunity to speak.

I support the proposal and ask the council to pass it as is without any increased setbacks.

Thank you.

That's the fastest public comment, TJ, I think.

Straight to the point, y'all see that?

No, just one.

Thank you, TJ.

Number 78, Garrett.

Hi there, Chair Hollingsworth, council members, good evening.

My name is Garrett Plesko-Moore, and my partner and I are renters in Seattle.

We both live with chronic health issues that benefit greatly from being outdoors with clean air, lots of trees, and a healthy environment.

I love living in the Emerald City, where nearly all of my neighbors and I live within about 10 minutes from a nice park.

Now, I think everyone in this room agrees that we need more housing, but if we don't increase density and build more types of housing everywhere across the city, we'll continue to sprawl outwards, reaching deeper into King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties.

We'll convert beautiful, dense Washington forests into suburban developments and parking lots, worsening the climate crisis across the region and worsening the air quality in Seattle.

So that's why I encourage this council to immediately pass the interim ordinance and then get back to building a bolder version of the comprehensive plan that drastically increases density and includes critical anti-displacement strategies such as connected communities.

Thank you.

Thank you, TJ.

Next we have number, or excuse me, that was 78 Garrett, my apologies.

Number 79. Before you start, Chun, can we have numbers 80 through 90 start lining up.

80 through 90 start lining up.

80 through 90. Hi, Chun.

Welcome.

Good evening.

My name is Chun.

I own a townhome in District 1. I urge the council to pass the interim legislation without delay and also adopt the boldest possible One Seattle comprehensive plan in favor of more housing.

I was incredibly fortunate to purchase a home several years ago.

It is a privilege available to far too few in this city.

Last year, the trees next to my home in a neighboring lot were cut down.

They were big trees, and I will never see them bloom again.

But I gained five new townhomes worth of neighbors, and I planted my own tree on the green strip on my sidewalk last year, courtesy of the City's Trees for Seattle program.

That tree will grow over the coming years into one as big as any that were cut down, and it will give my street the canopy it needs.

Please allow our city to build taller and denser housing.

We who gratefully can live here will plant the trees back.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you, Chun.

Numbers 80 through 90. Numbers 80 through 90. And some are blank because we have different sheets.

So we don't have 10 speakers, 80 through 90. So I believe that's number 81 is next.

81, Adrian?

Aiden?

It's Aiden, my bad.

Hi, Aiden.

Hello, counsel.

I support the interim legislation and ask you reject the amendment to increase setbacks.

Allowing the building to be near the front of the lot means that there is also a large yard in the back.

It does not necessarily mean less housing.

But what it will do is decrease feasibility and result in less housing.

And if we get less housing, that means more people moving deep into suburban areas or cities in other states that will worsen deforestation.

Furthermore, I hope that we can go further in future legislation.

More housing means generations beyond me will be able to live in this city instead of being pushed out by a housing crisis.

Thank you.

Thank you, Aiden.

Number 82. 82, are you here?

That's Aaliyah, A-L-E-A.

No, number 82. OK, we're going to go Jessica Young, number 83. Awesome.

Hi, Jessica.

Good evening, and thank you for the opportunity to speak in support of a bold, comprehensive plan that equitably expands affordable housing opportunities.

My name is Jess Yang.

I'm a renter in Roosevelt and the community organizer at HCC.

Today, we've heard arguments that attempt to pit affordable housing against our shared love of trees and wildlife here in Seattle.

My allies have already argued this point.

Housing density does not live in opposition to nature.

I'm tired of talking about trees though.

Housing is not about trees, it's about people.

I'm a social worker by training.

I've worked directly with unhoused folks for over 10 years.

Year after year, I would see the same clients come through the revolving door of homelessness, unable to find housing.

And I understood that a policy solution is the only way forward.

So for my clients and for all the people who want to live in Seattle and can't, move forward.

Pass the interim legislation and pass the full comprehensive plan before the summer recess.

Thank you.

Thank you so much.

Next we have number 84. 84, Allison Holt, 84. Awesome, hi.

Hi, my name is Allison, District 6. Our Southern resident orcas are no longer thriving in our beautiful Northwest ecosystem.

There are many contributing factors for this, and most of them involve years of destruction to their home, the Salish Sea, and their food source, salmon.

A big one being the pollution runoff.

Our trees are imperative to significantly decreasing storm weather runoff, absorbing carbon, and providing shade for our warming planet.

We, the people of Seattle, have the power to make a positive difference, and that starts today with not allowing the interim code to pass.

At the minimum, approve Amendment 8 to require setbacks.

If the only way the orcas can speak to us is by carrying a dead calf through our waters for weeks, I choose to be the voice to stand up for their right to be here.

Saving our orcas starts with saving our trees.

This is a moment of truth for the integrity of our city to create a future where our people and our climate can collectively thrive.

Thank you.

Number 85, Catherine Clemens.

Number 85, Catherine, are you here?

No?

Okay.

Number 86, Todd Herrick.

Hi, Todd.

Hello?

Okay, good.

Sorry, really nervous.

Hi.

Yeah, so I'm Todd Herrick.

I'm a resident of the 46th District.

I think that lack of affordable housing is strangling our city, causing people to move out.

It's the thing we need most in this city.

I encourage you to swiftly pass HB 1110 interim legislation.

But I also urge you to swiftly pass the amendment.

One doesn't require the other.

You can pass the amendment and still swiftly pass the resolution.

You're talking about something, I urge you to think about how long it takes for something to change.

Let's say you pass the amendment and you feel like, oh, setbacks are making it difficult for us to build interim housing.

Well, reverse it.

And within a few months or a few weeks, people will start building the housing.

But if you allow them to cut down, if you don't pass the setbacks and you're wrong, and all the trees disappear, it's going to take a century for those to grow back.

So I urge you to think in the long run about what makes our city apace.

People want to live.

Thank you, Todd.

Next we have Kate, number 87?

87?

Yes.

Awesome.

Welcome.

Hello, I'm Kate Shoemaker and I'm in District 4. Regressive tree laws in Seattle are hurting our city.

We have already lost at least 1,000 trees in 2025, often because developers don't want to work around the trees and because they don't have to.

Saving trees and building more housing are not mutually exclusive activities.

The Master Builders Association has had a heavy hand in our current regressive tree laws.

Now it is time to strike a balance between building and saving trees that provide shade.

Climate change is real and the negative impacts of continuing to remove shade providing trees is hurting us all by increasing the heat islands.

It is time to save the emeralds in Emerald City.

Thank you, number 88. Suzanne Porter, number 88. Suzanne Porter, number 88. Number 89 is blank.

So John, number, pardon me?

No.

Suzanne Porter, is she here?

Suzanne, number 88. Oh, she did, okay.

Oh, that's right, she traded.

She traded for 16.

Y'all be trading these, like this is the NBA draft.

Okay, hi, John.

Hi, I have a degree in architecture, landscape and planning.

And these large trees that we've heard about have, each one of them could be saved with a slight adjustment to the plot plan.

There's this debate between density and trees is a red herring, that with good design, we can have both.

It's not that hard.

The second issue is the greed of developers.

Take a look at Portland's plan, establishing nonprofit housing authority.

And you know, that's housing for the people.

A lot of people are displaced by the cost as well as the density issue.

So.

I think that's all I had to say.

No worries.

All right.

You can still talk.

Thanks.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Pass the setback, please.

Appreciate you.

Thanks.

Awesome.

Thank you.

Just a reminder, when the bell rings, you still have 10 seconds.

So you could say hi to your mom or whoever, you know, do whatever you want.

Number 101. Now we have 101 and it skips around because I have different sheets.

So 101, Ryan Swardstrom.

Ryan Swardstrom, 101. Next we have Andrew Croker, number 102. Andrew.

Hey, Andrew.

No, you're all good.

Hi.

Hi.

Good evening, Council.

I'm from District 2. The setback amendment support is based on an unspoken and incorrect assumption that all of our precious trees only seem to grow in the first 15 to 20% of a lot.

Of course, this is incorrect.

There are huge trees in the backs and side yards.

There are huge trees in the center of lots as well.

Large setbacks and low height limits restrict where housing can be built.

forcing it all into an inflexible blob in the center of a lot.

The setback amendment will kill huge trees in the backs and centers of lots.

I love trees.

Wanna actually save them?

Strengthen tree protections?

Sure, absolutely.

But also, reduce setbacks and increase height limits.

Stack flats and row houses with zero setbacks can allow for flexibility for huge contiguous spaces where large trees flourish.

Want evidence of this?

Look to Berlin, where there's zero setbacks, seven stories, and 44% canopy coverage.

Implementing large setbacks will result in fewer homes and fewer trees.

Please plant street trees and reject the setback amendment.

Thank you.

Awesome, thank you.

Next, we have Colleen Clayton.

Hi, Colleen.

103?

Yeah.

Awesome.

Thank you council for the opportunity to speak in support of urgently passing Seattle's comprehensive plan and interim ordinance without further delay.

My name is Colleen, I'm a West Seattle homeowner, realtor and urban planning student.

I'd like to echo earlier speakers that accurately pointed out the important role increased housing density plays in preserving existing tree canopy by promoting infill development instead of sprawl.

Countless studies show this and those with responsibility to shape Seattle's future need to rely on fact.

Not emotion, not hyperbole, not the false binary of housing versus trees, not the use of children to promote exclusionary housing policies when they don't understand the full complexity of the issue.

Relaxing building codes like removing minimum lot sizes and parking minimums, allowing stacked flats, and taking other bold steps to enable varying housing types will help reduce building costs, allow more development flexibility to preserve trees while adding badly needed housing units affordable.

to all income levels in all neighborhoods, particularly those that offer greater opportunity.

We urgently need an ambitious comp plan.

Seattle has a chance and a responsibility.

Thank you.

Thank you, Colleen.

Next, we have Noah Williams.

Is Noah Williams in the building?

Hey, Noah.

Welcome.

Council members, good evening.

Thank you.

I wanted to just take a second to respond to the children and some other commenters that responded today.

First, I want to say they're not brainwashed, nor are they stupid.

But their parents did give them an incomplete picture of the problem.

So one of the girls that spoke was worried about the impact of orca whales without trees to filter the chemicals.

Another commenter who was from Mexico complained of it smelling like gasoline on the streets.

And that's true.

They cited the need for the filtration of soil contaminants and carbon capture that trees provide.

But filter it of what?

And the answer is brake dust, tire-preserving chemicals, carbon dioxide.

From where?

And the answer is cars.

The 60-foot hybrid electric bus that she rides to work every day emits less carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, tire preservant, and cancerous brake dust than the five cars stuck in traffic next to it.

It comes every six minutes and turns off its engine that stops.

The best way to save our orcas is by taking our orca cards and tapping them on the nearest transit reader.

Skip the amendments, pass the Seattle Comprehensive Plan as is, and make it as easy as possible to build dense housing near transit.

Thank you.

Thank you, Noah.

Next, we have Jackson Zimmerman, number 121. Jackson, are you here?

Hey, Jackson.

I've been expecting to be so early.

We got you.

My name is Jackson Zimmerman, and I am a lifelong resident of Western Washington and a current resident of Chair Hollingsworth's district.

I'm a fully grown adult, old enough to vote, buy a gun, join the Army, and the pit across the street is almost as old as I am.

problem here in Seattle, and we need to act urgently.

We need to be doing everything and a half, tearing down all the red tape, reducing minimum lot size, eliminating parking minimums, and passing this interim plan.

Further, we need to expand the mayor's design review moratorium citywide as the process results in uglier, more expensive housing that takes longer to build.

If we don't build densely within the city, we force Arlington and Enumclaw to keep encroaching on the beautiful Skagit Valley and Cascade foothills.

Thank you for your time, and I compel you to act

Thank you, Jackson.

So how old is that pit?

How old is the pit?

How old is the pit?

How old is the pit?

I was born in January 2005, and I think the pit came from .

Wow.

You made me feel old.

I graduated high school in 2002. It's okay, Jackson.

Okay, 122.

You do ride an electric bus to work, though.

Is that correct?

I rode my electric bike today.

Oh, sorry.

That is correct.

We are all electric over here.

Thank you.

And sometimes I walk.

Councilmember Strauss, 45 minutes to and from.

No, to one way.

From.

All right, I apologize, but I think he's referring to our G-Rider, Council Member Rank, G-Line.

All right, 122.

Yeah, Tyler.

The mayor's proposed comprehensive plan when combined with the tree ordinance saddles Green Skyline in jeopardy.

The 2023 tree ordinance lets developers cut any tree in the city.

I resent the false dichotomy between trees and affordable housing.

The proposed comprehensive plan will give us neither.

Our less affluent neighbors deserve to have trees to reduce heat and pollution.

When I designed my house, I was careful to situate it to preserve the eight large trees on the property.

Reducing setbacks, increasing paved area, and allowing developers to remove large trees discourages imaginative architecture that will give us both trees and housing.

Please amend the tree ordinance to remove the loophole, letting developers cut class one and two trees.

Don't take the Emerald out of the Emerald City.

Thank you, Tyler.

Next, we have Sawyer, number 123. Sawyer?

Oh, you can switch.

I remember y'all are playing the draft.

I know.

Yeah, we did a trade up.

Yeah, hi, everyone.

My name is Julia.

I'm a resident of D4.

I'm asking you to please pass the setback amendment because there is no tree protection in this interim bill.

We can grow housing density and retain our mature trees.

However, this bill would allow 95% of every property to be paved without a patch of green space, literally cementing in a future without trees.

The idea that we are benefiting out the climate or our future by paving our entire city is ridiculous.

Seattle is fifth in the nation for urban heat islands fueled by the removal of trees, specifically on private property.

This has led to worse air quality and worse temperatures during heat waves for our most vulnerable neighborhoods like White Center and South Park.

Science clearly shows that we need green infrastructure like trees in our cities for climate resilience.

Please increase setbacks, which are a far cry from legitimate tree protection, but at least they will mean trees at the edges of properties will not be removed.

Please pass the amendment and do better for our city.

Prioritize climate resilience so we can have a livable future.

Thank you.

Awesome.

Thank you.

And now I'm going to go back through the speakers that I called and they did not come just to make sure that we didn't miss anyone.

Number 82, Aaliyah.

I don't know if Aaliyah is here.

Number 85, Catherine Clemons.

Are you here?

Catherine?

Number 85?

No?

All right.

Number 65, a name I can't read.

Does anyone have number 65?

No?

Okay.

I wanted to make sure that was it.

Number seven, number 15, is number 15 here?

No, number 15. Okay.

And number 39, number 39, Rick Breiter.

Rick Breiter?

Are you here, Rick?

Nope.

Okay.

Just going through my notes.

One second.

I apologize.

Thank you colleagues for being patient with me.

All right.

That is it.

And did everyone in this room that signed up for public comment, did we miss any of you?

I'm seeing no, okay, awesome.

That is going to conclude our public hearing, our public comment hearing, public hearing period.

Thank you all so much for engaging with us in the process.

Just a couple housekeeping things.

The next, The next meeting for the Select Committee for the Comprehensive Plan is May 21st, so that's Wednesday, and that is at 2 p.m.

where we will listen to the House Bill 1110 legislation and amendments that are put before us as well.

And then I also, real quick, I just wanna thank the clerk's office IT as well, all the people that volunteer, council members, you and your staff for helping us with a smooth process during the public hearing.

I know it was a big undertaking.

I also want to, we held true to our promise, making sure that everyone from February 5th that signed up was able to speak, whether that was online or in person and you were prioritized.

And so just wanted to throw that out there because I know that was brought up and that was important for us to hear from the folks that signed up as well.

And last but not least, I also want to apologize because my syntax was off and my mother texted me.

She said, use your pronouns in conjunction with your nouns.

For example...

are there any additional comments?

Apparently I was saying, is there any additional comments?

And I just want you to know that's what it's like being raised with a mother who majored in English.

My papers were always in red and she always tries to improve my public speaking.

So thank you, Rhonda Hollingsworth.

So there's, and the public comments for the meeting on the 21st are written because we're gonna be going over the legislation and we've had public hearings.

So please send in your written public comments on the 21st After that, we are gonna be taking up the permanent legislation for House Bill 1110. That is the next step and phase one of the comprehensive plan.

So we will jump right into that right after this interim legislation.

And if there's anything else, is there any other items that come before the council?

Awesome, thank you all so much.

I really appreciate the feedback so we can get better for public comment.

Hearing no other further business, this meeting is adjourned.

Thank you so much.