Site Report #4 The Past and the Future U District

Drastic changes have occurred throughout Seattle from the 1800s to the present day and will continue to change as society creates new living ideals and as resident’s increase. A hundred years ago people admired grand housing with unnecessary square footage and now while people still wish to own properties like that, it is unrealistic. Land has drastically increased in value now that it is so populated so construction has had to change with it.

The block on Brooklyn Ave NE and University Way NE, between NE 50^th St. and NE 52^nd St. has a rich history from each end of the spectrum. In the 1800s there was a rich forest which was tore down to make room for single family homes. These homes were then torn down around 1903 to make room for the University Heights School when the family population in the University District began to surge. Over time, the demographic in the University district shifted from families/working class citizens to students of the UW looking for convenient housing. A report from The Department of Planning and Development says that 51.1% of people live in a household alone and 33.4% of people live in a household with two or more unrelated people (17). This means that only 15.5% of the population in this area have children that they are living with. Does this mean that single people don’t want to live in a single family home, not necessarily. What it shows is that they most likely cannot afford to live in a home when all they really need is the small space an apartment provides. 

Multipurpose spaces like the University Heights Center have been very important for the community, and there has been strong feelings of conservation surrounding it. This was seen in the community’s strife to keep the architecture of the building after the school that it held closed down. The University District Parks Plan of 2015 lists out the free activities this center and park provides. Some of which include, street fairs, Sunday markets, concerts, outdoor movies, and sports! These areas are highly sought after by families, so public officials have been working to implement zoning policies and conservation laws to preserve them. As of 2015, urban planning officials plan to keep the block just the way it is, they are even considering “adding more indoor facilities and sport courts,” (“UD Parks Plan 2015” 26). Some of the actions that this plan describes are to “continue to invest and fund planned parks” and to evaluate the needs of children and families in this area in order to develop more recreation areas (“UD Parks Plan 2015” 27).