Please join us Monday, April 6 at Seattle’s first hearing for the second phase of the comprehensive plan. This phase focuses on neighborhood centers. As planned, these areas will have very low tree canopy, so we’re asking for a Dense Forests for Dense Housing approach.

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In Person

🗓️  Monday, April 6 at 3 p.m.

👉  Line up as early as 2:30 and arrive as late as 5 p.m.

📍  Seattle City Hall, 600 4th Ave, Seattle – it’s easiest to use the 5th avenue entrance

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Remote

🗓️  Monday, April 6 at 9:30 a.m. (register between 8:30–10 a.m.)

🔗  Sign up here

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Talking Points

• As planned, Neighborhood Centers will be nearly 100% hardscape (pavement and buildings): Zoning in Neighborhood Centers allows 85-100% of every lot to be developed with structures and pavement. The end result is no space for trees or meaningful greenery, which contradicts the stated intent of the One Seattle Plan.

• Street trees won’t supply urban forestry needs: SDOT’s 2025 Seattle Tree Planning Study shows that Seattle’s plantable public right-of-way land is inadequate to meet current tree canopy goals, even with de-paving.

• Pass Dense Forests for Dense Housing: Seattle can — and must — pair dense housing with dense urban forests. Ask council to (a) require amenity areas to have trees, (b) replace the green factor scoring system with tree requirements, and (c) pilot a flexible pocket-forest option to replace street parking. Each amendment would save and/or plant trees.

• Dense Forests for Dense Housing doesn’t reduce housing capacity: None of the suggested amendments would reduce a lot’s housing capacity. They instead change how a lot’s non-buildable space is arranged and utilized.   

Send an Email

Click here, or use the prewritten text below:

To: council@seattle.gov

Subject: Pass Dense Forests for Dense Housing Amendments

Dear Councilmembers:
Seattle’s Neighborhood Centers need Dense Forests for Dense Housing. Please make the following changes to build Seattle’s urban forest while retaining dense housing goals: 

1: Require amenity areas to have trees, instead of just pavement.
2: Replace the Green Factor scoring system with clear tree requirements.
3: Pilot a flexible pocket-forest option to replace street parking.

As planned, Neighborhood Centers will be nearly 100% hardscape with no planned space for trees. SDOT’s 2025 tree study showed that Seattle’s planting strips will be woefully inadequate to meet current tree canopy goals. 

Adding these changes – all of which deal with the non-buildable space of a property and do not affect housing capacity – would build walkable, climate-resilient neighborhood centers for current and future Seattleites.

Thank you,
[Your Name]

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