RISE TOGETHER PROJECTS

The Rise Together collaborative is focusing our efforts around six community-driven equitable development projects in the Central District, Capitol Hill and White Center.

These projects represent the vision and needs of our communities. When we invest in them, we invest in a more equitable future for our region. Combined, the Rise Together projects will provide more than 400 new affordable homes as well as vital neighborhood resources to empower community members and open new avenues to opportunity.

CENTRAL DISTRICT

The Central District (the CD) has been the center of African American and African diaspora life in Seattle for over 130 years. In the face of racist housing policies that pushed families of color into the neighborhood and limited access to economic mobility, the community responded by building up powerful neighborhood businesses and institutions.

In the 1970s, the CD was nearly 80% Black; today that figure is less than 20%. Families, businesses and institutions that have lived and operated in the CD for decades are being forced out by surging rents and taxes, as well as a loss of community. Areas of high need identified by the community include affordable housing, commercial affordability, economic development and cultural preservation.

CAPITOL HILL

Capitol Hill is a historic home of the LGBTQ community in our region as well as a home to working families. Today, Capitol Hill’s astronomical rents and a lack of family-sized housing are squeezing these communities out of the neighborhood.

Families in need of a three-bedroom apartment must shell out an average of $3,450 per month. LGBTQ seniors, who earn significantly less than their straight peers, are at high risk for social isolation and often have unaddressed healthcare needs due to culturally incompetent care. The need for affordable and family-sized housing and services for LGBTQ elders has never been greater on Capitol Hill than it is today.

WHITE CENTER

Sometimes called “the other International District,” White Center is one of the most ethnically and income-diverse neighborhoods in Washington. An urban, unincorporated area located just south of Seattle city limits, it is home to a large immigrant and refugee population and has always been a place where working people with modest incomes could live.

With the devastating cuts to King County human services and other basic needs, affordable housing, family services and community spaces are neighborhood resources that can raise the quality of life for White Center families.