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Jerrell Whitehead

Jerrell B. Whitehead, Sightline research fellow, is trained as a historian and is a lover of film, healthy eating, and weightlifting, but not necessarily in that order. An east coast transplant to Washington, he spent over a decade away from the state, with residence and work experience in England and Japan. At Sightline, he conducts research on various facets of the coal industry, linking regional energy policy and the protest against pollution with the larger global energy market. Jerrell received a BA in history from Yale University, where he graduated magna cum laude and was also awarded a prestigious Gates Cambridge Scholarship. Thanks to generous funding from Bill and Melinda Gates, he received a Master’s (Mphil) and a PhD in economic and social history from the University of Cambridge. After many years away from home, he is happily settling into the unique rhythm of life in the Pacific Northwest, a place he unbiasedly hails as “the best place in America.” Read his latest blog articles here. Email him at jerrell [at] sightline [dot] org.

SwatchJunkies

SwatchJunkies

Zoning Part Two: Exclusionary Zoning’s End

As we pointed out yesterday, inclusionary zoning (IZ) ordinances—rules that encourage private developers to provide some housing to lower-income tenants at below-market rates—were largely ...
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Zoning: Inclusionary v. Exclusionary

At last count, Seattle ranked as the fastest growing major city in America. The city’s growth has easily outpaced the projections of its decade-old Comprehensive Plan, which foresaw 47,000 new households (as well as 84,000 new jobs) between 2004 and 2024. Between 2005 and 2012 the city added 29,330 net new housing units---roughly 62 percent of its 2024 target in just 7 years.

This rapid growth has stemmed in large part from the city’s relatively robust economy. From March 2013 through March 2014, for example, King County (which includes Seattle) ranked fifth among all US counties in net job growth, trailing only the likes of Los Angeles County and Manhattan.

But the population boom has sent housing prices and rents trending upwards---creating real anxiety among many renters, and fears that Seattle’s housing market will price out residents that once could afford to live in the city.

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Is a Land-Value Tax Illegal in Seattle?

Analyzing the Washington State constitution.
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(Pay To) Park and Ride?

In July 2013, board members of the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority, better known as Sound Transit, unanimously approved a ...
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Highest and Best Use…Or Not.

When NOT improving property is highly profitable.
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Seattle’s $28 Million Hole

4th Ave and Cherry construction crater nears 10-year milestone.
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Land Speculation 101

Use a land-value tax to curb speculative excess.
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To Revitalize Downtowns, Tax Land Speculation

Five reasons to love land-value taxes.
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