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Council reviews Olympia 2045 housing element and displacement analysis; manufactured-home preservation highlighted
Summary
City planners and consultants presented the Olympia 2045 housing element and a regional displacement analysis that projects a need for roughly 14,000 new units by 2045, flags risks to low-income homeownership and rental availability, and recommends tenant protections, manufactured-home preservation and policy revisions for equity.
City planners briefed the Olympia City Council on June 24 on the draft Olympia 2045 housing element and on a newly completed housing displacement and racially disparate impacts analysis prepared for a regional consortium by Uncommon Bridges.
"The city does not control the housing market," said Casey Shoffler, associate planner, explaining the chapter's role: "we can influence it through policy and regulations, investments and partnerships, and legislative advocacy." The study session covered mandated changes under state law and local findings about displacement risk.
Why it matters: Washington—s HB 1220 (2021) requires jurisdictions to plan by income brackets and to accommodate a range of housing types. The draft housing chapter incorporates a housing land capacity analysis and a housing needs assessment that, together with Thurston Regional Planning Council forecasts, estimate Olympia and its urban growth area will require approximately 14,000 new housing units by 2045.…
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