Seattle still lacks a housing czar as affordable housing sector struggles
Three weeks into her term, Mayor Katie Wilson asked Seattle's head of housing for her resignation. Four months later, she's yet to announce her pick for a permanent replacement.
The struggling affordable housing sector is anxiously waiting to see how Wilson's chosen successor to the job will tackle the existential problems it faces - financial problems that have led to sold buildings and cut services. This person will also influence how the new administration will spend the hundreds of millions of dollars Seattle collects for housing.
The job is still posted on public-facing job sites like Indeed, and several providers say they've heard little.
By contrast, Wilson's predecessor, Bruce Harrell, named a new director in January of his first year.
The mayor is hopeful to have a nominee by July, said spokesperson Sage Wilson.
We have embarked on a thoughtful process to identify the next Director of the Office of Housing, involving consultation with Office of Housing staff, affordable housing developers, private market developers, tenant advocates, and other stakeholders, he said.
Jockeying behind the scenes around the position has been intense at times. Nearly 40 Office of Housing staff sent a letter to Wilson in March on union letterhead – they're represented by PROTEC17 – demanding direct involvement in the selection process and "a say in the selection itself."
Others have pushed for local experts in the development world, arguing it would take a level of technical knowledge that couldn't be found in political circles.
"The next director should have a deep understanding of what it actually takes to finance, build, preserve, and operate affordable housing in the real world," said Ben Maritz, an affordable housing developer in the private market. "This is not just a policy role."
The Office of Housing manages the city's investment into affordable housing. It has seen enormous growth over the last decade. From a budget of more than $50 million in 2016, its ledger for this year was nearly $350 million.
That explosion comes mostly from two places: A $970 million voter-approved housing levy passed in 2023 that was significantly larger than its predecessor and the city's relatively new payroll tax on large businesses in Seattle, namely Amazon.
The infusion of dollars has helped push Seattle to the top of the country for affordable housing production, according to an analysis from RentCafe, outpacing even New York City in raw numbers.
But trouble has lurked just below the surface in recent years. Affordable housing providers have reported significant losses on their portfolios as the cost of insurance, security, interest rates and upkeep have ballooned at the same time as rent payments from tenants have lagged. An overproduction of studio apartments, coupled with plateauing rents in the private market, has also meant demand has slowed and vacancies have risen.
The financial situation has forced some providers to sell off parts of their portfolio to balance their books.
Seattle has responded by pouring money into projects it already helped build to keep the doors open. Just a third of a $155 million award for housing announced in January went to new production, while $91 million went to either "stabilization" or preservation of housing. The next month, the city announced another $26 million award to help stabilize existing housing, bringing the total investment this year to well over $100 million just to help housing stay afloat and relatively up to date on deferred maintenance.
Much of the responsibility of steering the sector through these stormy waters will fall to the next Office of Housing director.
"This is one of the most important housing leadership roles in the region, and one of the most important in city leadership," said Maritz. "The stakes are very high for the future affordability and vitality of the city."
In the near term, the office will need to craft its annual notice of funding, which it sends to providers before accepting proposals. The size and priorities of that notice are delicate, particularly as the city weighs the type of housing it wants to see built and how much should be dedicated to supporting what already exists.
Some providers are more concerned about the vacancy than others.
Work has not stopped – the Office of Housing retains staff who communicate directly with housing developers – and Hannah Bryant of Mt. Baker Housing said her organization is getting what it needs from the office.
Mt. Baker Housing put up for sale four buildings last year. Bryant said the Office of Housing's staff amply handled the work. Whoever takes the permanent job should follow their lead, she said.
"We have found them to be incredibly thoughtful, dealing with a very complex environment while being really committed to stewarding limited public resources very responsibly," she said.
Others, though, see that role as uniquely positioned to lead the policy and practice of affordable housing in Seattle.
Michael Seiwerath, executive director of SouthEast Effective Development, said it's a precarious "balance."
Seiwerarth said he applauds and has maintained good communication with staff at the office, but their daily work is not a replacement for someone who can sit at the intersection between various levels of government, city departments, developers, residents and providers.
"You need someone who's really attuned to the challenges that providers and residents are going through and is able to adapt to it," he said.
Sharon Lee, founding executive director of the Low Income Housing Institute, has been the most outspoken with her frustrations about the pace of finding a new director. Often one of the office's loudest critics, she said the lack of leadership has created a vacuum.
"In absence of a director, we've had to go meet with the mayor's office and other people because we're concerned that decisions aren't being made and there's a lot of pending issues," she said, adding, "it's unclear who's making decisions."
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