SEATTLE – Today, the Seattle City Council unanimously approved the Interlocal Agreement between City of Seattle and the Seattle Social Housing Developer (SSHD), which will transfer approximately $115 million in funds this year to acquire and build permanently affordable and publicly owned housing for hundreds of working Seattleites.
“Housing is far too expensive in this city. We need more housing of all types and all sizes, and social housing is part of the solution,” said Mayor Katie B. Wilson. “With a robust revenue source, new leadership, and a mayor’s office committed to its success, the Seattle Social Housing Developer is now set up to fulfill its promise and deliver the mixed-income, permanently affordable, publicly-owned housing that Seattle voted for.”
Mayor Katie B. Wilson and Seattle Social Housing Developer leadership expressed gratitude that city council members chose to fulfill the mandate of the voters to fund social housing. Proposition 1A, approved overwhelmingly by voters in 2025, mandates a 5 percent tax on those making more than $1 million a year, paid by employers, not employees, for the funding of social housing in the city. Last month, the City of Seattle began collecting the first Proposition 1A payments from approximately 170 employers for the 2025 tax year.
“This money will allow us to begin the process of acquiring our first building, and house hundreds of Seattleites this year alone,” said interim CEO Tiffani McCoy. “We plan to house people at a variety of income levels as quickly as possible and intend to use our dollars carefully to be able to do just that. We are grateful for the support of the mayor, the city council and the trust of the public, whom we look forward to serving.”
The Council vote comes on the same day that Mayor Wilson and SSHD interim CEO McCoy are holding a town hall on social housing at El Centro de la Raza. As housing costs continue to rise and displacement pressures remain real, local leaders and voters have embraced social housing as a way to deliver permanently affordable, mixed-income housing to more areas of Seattle.
Based on the public housing approach of Vienna, and twice approved by voters, SSHD’s mission is to develop, own, lease and maintain mixed-income housing for people priced out of market-rate housing. McCoy has brought on board other key members of SSHD so that housing development work can begin right away. That includes Ginger Segel as Chief Real Estate Development Officer. Segel has close to 40 years of experience in housing development, including as Housing Director and the Director of Advocacy and Resident Services for the Low Income Housing Institute, the Executive Director of the Washington Low Income Housing Network, the precursor to the Housing Alliance, and the Chief Development Services Officer for Community Frameworks, a nonprofit that develops affordable housing, and provides homeownership opportunities to working families.
McCoy also hired Koll Husemoen as interim Chief Financial Officer. Husemoen is an accomplished finance executive with more than 30 years of hands-on experience in real estate development, construction, and related financial leadership. Throughout his career, he has excelled in overseeing multi-million-dollar project portfolios, budgeting and cost controls for large-scale developments.
Seattle Social Housing was first created through I-135, which passed with 57% of the vote in February 2023.
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