Affordable Housing Leaders Support Bruce Harrell; Decry Katie Wilson’s Plan to Gut Housing Levy Production, Destabilize People and Housing
Wilson plan would reduce City’s investment in affordable housing production by hundreds of millions of dollars at a time when affordable homes are needed most
Would scatter thousands of people with severe behavioral health and substance use issues in apartment buildings across Seattle
Seattle, WA – This week, Seattle affordable housing providers detailed the risks to affordable housing and homelessness response if Katie Wilson implements her extreme plan to stop affordable housing production. Affordable housing leaders made clear that Bruce Harrell is a champion on the issue – investing over $1 billion in affordable housing, and he is well equipped to build more affordable units, advance policy solutions, and support the sector in a second term as mayor.
“As mayor, I am fighting every day to create more safe, affordable homes for our community, building on our work to invest over $1 billion in housing and open thousands of places to live,” said Mayor Bruce Harrell. “Sustainable solutions to our housing and homelessness crises require stable leadership and meaningful action, not false promises and dangerous proposals that will set our city back.”
A recent King County report highlighted the critical role of Seattle’s Housing Levy, recent local progress in building deeply affordable units, and the need for increased investment across King County in order to meet housing needs. Meanwhile, Katie Wilson is planning to divert hundreds of millions away from affordable housing development.
“In my eighteen years working in affordable housing in Seattle I have never seen a greater commitment from the City to house low-income people, especially those who have the greatest need,” said Christopher Persons, CEO of Community Roots Housing. “Solutions must be realistic and holistic. The visibly homeless people we see everyday on our streets need and deserve deep and compassionate support. They need housing. They need services. Warehousing them in apartment buildings alongside working families, seniors, and others who are themselves often struggling to gain stability is not a solution.”
Wilson’s plan centers on significantly reducing investments in the production of new affordable units, instead using the funds to shelter people experiencing homelessness with behavioral health and substance use issues in currently vacant affordable housing units. According to the 2024 Point-in-Time count, most people living unsheltered in King County have a physical, cognitive, or general disability. A third of those surveyed said they live with severe mental illness, and nearly half said they struggle with substance use. The vacant units used would lack the supportive, wraparound services necessary to help vulnerable people recover and find stability.
“There are a lot of people with ideas but until you have been in this space and done this work, you do not know what’s truly effective, what’s best practice, you don’t know what’s been studied and you don’t know what practices have been proven, and all of us do,” said Karen Lee, CEO of Plymouth Housing. “What we want to say is Mayor Harrell and his staff know what works. They have to put money where we need it. A billion through levies, and that’s the kind of support this community needs.”
Greg Dunfield, President of GMD Development, said, “We really need consistency. We need to continue the work that has started under this administration, continue to move in the direction of a full spectrum of housing for the whole city where people grow up and up… and we want to continue to support those efforts and fully support Mayor Bruce Harrell administration’s continued vision for Seattle.”
Katie Wilson – who “does not keep track” of her finances as her parents pay her bills and has regularly run deficits managing the finances of her one-person nonprofit – now wants to bring that lack of budget experience to Seattle’s housing levy budget, threatening its 40-year unmatched track record of delivering affordable homes. Even in difficult economic times, Bruce Harrell has relentlessly delivered sustainable progress on housing and has the vision and plan to keep up a historic level of investment to support working and low-income people.
Mayor Harrell Delivers Results:
Adding Needed Affordable Housing Supply
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In just the last four years, Mayor Harrell has invested $1.1 billion toward affordable housing through the Office of Housing, two thirds of the $1.7 billion the office has invested over the last decade.
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Under Mayor Harrell, the City has built, opened, funded, or preserved more than 8,000 affordable rental homes since 2022.
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The mayor has invested in the creation of 316 permanently affordable homes for home ownership, exceeding the number created in the prior 20 years combined.
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Mayor Harrell proposed the most pro-housing zoning reforms in the history of the City of Seattle – doubling unit capacity to 330,000 units, including allowing for more than 100,000 family sized homes. His plan also includes density bonuses for affordable housing projects and stacked flats.
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The mayor recently issued a $170 million NOFA to create and preserve deeply subsidized units, including Permanent Supportive Housing designed to support people exiting homelessness.
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The mayor has cut red tape, removing design review from affordable housing projects and leading permitting reform through the PACT initiatives expected to cut permitting timelines by 50%.
Stabilizing Affordable Housing Providers
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Mayor Harrell convened Affordable Housing Providers to understand the challenges they’re facing, and has provided significant financial support to stabilize the industry, including millions in operating subsidies and offsets to increasing capital costs, including $42 million in operating subsidies through 2026 and $140 million to help buy down debt and convert construction loans.
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His office is partnering with Seattle Housing Authority to address the emergency housing voucher cliff so all current voucher holders stay housed.
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Mayor Harrell’s B&O proposal reserves $9 million to address anticipated reductions by the Trump administration in federal support for homelessness.
Homelessness Solutions That Work
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Under Mayor Harrell, thousands of people have received referrals to shelter, and the number of people transitioning to permanent housing from shelter increased by 50% from 2022 to 2024.
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Tent encampments in parks, on sidewalks, and in public spaces have declined by 80%, and RV encampments by over 50% from 2022 to 2024.
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In 2024, City-supported shelter programs successfully helped those experiencing homelessness move to permanent housing at a higher rate than the national average.
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The mayor has opened 2,000 units of emergency housing with another 1,000 units on the way.
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The mayor’s budget invests in intensive case management facilities tailored to stabilization and recovery. Investments like CoLEAD, the STAR Center, and 100 new non-congregate shelter units set to open later this year, in addition to increased funding for additional shelter units with supportive services tailored to people with complex challenges.
Mayor Harrell’s Vision Going Forward
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Continuing Record Investments: Mayor Harrell’s 2026 budget includes $350 million for affordable housing to keep this progress and momentum going forward.
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Increasing Low-Income Housing: Mayor Harrell is directing the Office of Housing to prioritize funding more deeply subsidized units of affordable housing for our most vulnerable renters (30%-50% AMI).
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More Affordable Family Sized Homes: In addition to the One Seattle Comprehensive Plan, the mayor is directing the Office of Housing to invest more in family sized affordable homes – one of the greatest needs in our city.
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Effective Permitting Reform: Through the mayor’s PACT initiative, the City is making it faster, easier, cheaper, and more reliable to build affordable and market-rate housing,
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More Density Where Needed Most: The mayor is advancing further upzones next year for areas around major transit to further increase supply in neighborhoods equipped with the amenities and infrastructure to support it.
