By Mellow DeTray

Here’s our recap of the Normandy Park City Council meeting held on Tuesday night, Mar. 12, 2024:

2024 SKHHP Housing Fund Recommendations

Clair Goodwin, Executive Manager of South King Housing & Homelessness Partnership (SKHHP) presented on the program’s chosen fund recipients. Formed in 2019 by interlocal agreement with about 10 jurisdictions, SKHHP is now made up of 12 partner cities who pool their resources to address housing needs. Two projects were funded last year, both in Burien. This year, SKHHP was able to achieve better geographical diversity. The board chose four projects to fund, and now they just need approval from all partner cities before moving forward.

Mercy Housing Northwest in Kent will receive $1 million to build 199 multifamily affordable housing units near a planned light rail station. The housing will be available to those earning between 30% and 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI). 20% of the units will be reserved for those with intellectual or developmental disabilities, and the building will have onsite support services.

The Low Income Housing Institute (LIHI) will receive $2.8 million to build 55 affordable housing units in Skyway. This will provide rental housing for those earning 30% to 50% AMI, with 42 units set aside for people transitioning out of homelessness. The building will also feature offices for case managers, an early learning center for children, and a parent resource room.

TWG will be awarded $1,170,000 to build Pandion At Star Lake, also located adjacent to a future light rail station in Kent. This development will include two buildings with 168 units for families earning 30% to 60% AMI. The ground floors will feature commercial space for non-profit tenants including an early learning center for children of low income families.

And finally, $777,306 will be awarded to Multi Service Center at Victorian Place II in Des Moines. This is for rehab of two fully occupied buildings that provide housing for 20 families earning 35% to 50% AMI.

Council voted unanimously to fund the SKHHP projects. Normandy Park’s share of the cost is $5,942.

Mayor’s Report

Mayor Eric Zimmerman reported back after attending a recent Sound Cities Association meeting of the mayors. He briefly described an issue the city of Burien is having with the King County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO). KCSO has formally complained about a new municipal code passed by Burien City Council limiting camping of homeless individuals to areas not adjacent to parks, schools, libraries, or critical areas. The police are refusing to enforce this new code. If it goes to court, Mayor Zimmerman said this ongoing dispute could lead to new case law that would affect Normandy Park.

Citizen Satisfaction Survey Still Open

City Manager Amy Arrington said the city has received over 300 responses from an online Citizen Satisfaction Survey. She mentioned that there is still time to get your responses in, but it needs to be filled out soon to give staff time to crunch the numbers before delving into the results at an upcoming retreat.

Mellow DeTray is a Seattle native who has spent the last 16 years raising her family in Burien. For many years Mellow kept a moderately popular cooking & lifestyle blog, and she had a brief stint in political journalism during a local election. Clear and informative writing has always been a side hobby of Mellow’s and she looks forward to bringing you unbiased coverage of City Council meetings.