Belltown Messenger - Documenting Belltown Since 2003

DAVE HERSHNER dissects the anti-zoning initiative
Bad for Belltown, Bad for Washington

VOTE NO on I-933! This poorly worded initiative is likely to cost taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars, lead to frivolous lawsuits, and fuel irresponsible development. It will force Washington neighborhoods, like Belltown, into a no-win situation - either waive safeguards that protect us from irresponsible development or pay landowners to follow laws already on the books.

Belltown is a diverse and vibrant community, attracting residents who enjoy urban living, businesses that want to be close to the urban core, and visitor's from around the country. Careful planning has allowed the preservation of historic buildings, the construction of modern condominiums, and the presence of places like the P-Patch. In such a dense neighborhood, effective planning is crucial for livability. Initiative 933 will effectively outlaw the basic zoning laws that make neighborhoods like Belltown attractive places to live, work, and play.

For example, I-933 says that any limit on "size" or "intensity of use," such as height and density limits for a property, will trigger the initiative's "pay or waive" requirement. Local governments won't be able to afford to pay off property owners to stop irresponsible development, so most cities and counties will just waive local zoning rules.

I-933 would effectively strip away the environmental protections that safeguard our forests, farmland, streams, wetlands, and water and air quality. It would increase the likelihood that people would use land in ways that damage neighboring properties. For these reasons, the Nature Conservancy and the Sierra Club oppose I-933. The League of Women Voters, the Washington State Council of Firefighters, and the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce also oppose I-933.

Many family farmers are also speaking out against I-933. They realize that productive farmland could be turned into the next resort-style development or strip-mall parking lot. Family farmers could be driven out of business and less local produce would be available in our stores and our farmer's markets, like the Pike Place Market. The Western Washington Agricultural Association, United Farm Workers, and Skagitonians to Preserve Farmland are all opposed to I-933 because they know that it will open prime farmland to irresponsible development.

Initiative 933 is bad for our communities, bad for our quality of life, bad for our pocketbooks. Vote No on I-933 this November!

(Dave Kershner, a member of the No on I-933 campaign, lives in Queen Anne and can often be found dining out in Belltown.)