Final EIS Released

A milestone has been reached! The final South Lake Union Height and Density Environmental Impact Statement was released by the Department of Planning and Development for the City of Seattle on April 4, 2012. The Final EIS includes the draft and final studies, as well as all public comments submitted and all of the City’s responses to those public comments. The EIS was not appealed and this means that the process of defining the zoning ordinance can move forward.

James Holmes, Senior Urban Planner for the City of Seattle, said that they are currently developing the city’s recommendations that will be based on what was learned through the EIS, and through input from the community.  The EIS outlines growth alternatives 1-4 and Holmes said that the city will not necessarily pick a particular proposal, but rather will propose a solution that falls into the range of growth outlined by the EIS. Holmes said that the recommendations will be released in mid-June and that there will be an open house at that time to present the results.

The city council will vote on the recommendations this summer, turning the ordinance into law, and the new zoning will be in effect after that. Holmes says the SLU area is booming and development ideas are stirring. “We get calls all the time – a number of projects are waiting to see what the recommendations will be,” Holmes said.

The SLU CC reported on the EIS draft proposal last year – see blog post: Environmental Impact Statement Released.