Council schedules vote on social housing interlocal agreement; Strauss proposes process amendment

Councilmember Strauss told the Feb. 2 Seattle City Council briefing that the council will consider an ordinance authorizing the mayor to enter into an interlocal agreement (ILA) with the Seattle social housing developer and that the item is the second of two committee meetings before a scheduled vote.

"I have proposed one amendment to the legislation," Strauss said, describing it as a narrow, procedural change that would require future updates to the ILA to come back through council rather than being finalized solely by the mayor. Strauss said the change is intended to preserve public visibility and council oversight when the ILA is amended in the future. He said the Seattle social housing developer supports the amendment.

Councilmember Foster said she is a co-sponsor of the legislation and that once the ILA is voted on, the remaining social-housing-related business will come through the Housing, Arts and Civil Rights Committee for further review. Juarez and Foster noted the social housing developer is scheduled to brief committee members on Feb. 11.

The briefing did not include a formal vote on the ILA; Strauss said the council is "scheduled to vote" tomorrow in committee. The proposed amendment, as described by Strauss, would not change the substance of the interlocal agreement itself but would change the process for future revisions so those changes are visible to the public and subject to council review.

Next steps: Strauss said the committee meeting and the scheduled vote would occur the following day; Foster and other committee chairs indicated follow-up hearings or related items would route through relevant committees (housing, arts and civil rights) after the ILA action.