Dear friends,

Last month we invited Denise Scott, a national leader on community development, to come to Seattle and participate in three events focused on the rapidly changing Central District. Denise spoke at our Top of the Town fundraising dinner and at a roundtable discussion with civic leaders, and participated in a conversation with members of the CD community, which we co-hosted with Centerstone and the CD Forum for Arts & Ideas.

The change that is visibly apparent in the Central District today has been a slow march of change over the last three decades. The African American community has shrunk from 54% of the CD at the 1990 census to 24% at the 2010 census. Intense real estate development, loss of affordable housing, loss of minority owned business, and the depletion of local culture and heritage have approached the point of no return. The time for action in the CD is now.              

Capitol Hill Housing has been developing affordable homes in the Central District for 20 years. We currently operate nine buildings in the neighborhood and have another project with 80 new apartments planned. We've been learning more about neighborhood priorities in the CD and I have issued a call to action to everyone at Capitol Hill Housing: We must commit to being intentional with our actions and carefully weigh our impact on social and racial equity in all of our work.

In turn Capitol Hill Housing is issuing a call to action to our partners at the City and to civic leaders throughout Seattle. The accelerated pace of development and displacement in the Central District puts this community at the highest risk for irrevocable loss. The City must dedicate significant resources to the CD now. We applaud Mayor Murray for his bold goal to create 20,000 units of affordable housing in the next decade, and we say that the Central District should be prioritized to receive investment to create affordable homes now.

At the community conversation, Denise Scott presented a call to action to the Central District. She implored us all to get out of our comfort zones and work together. CHH is committed to partnership and to helping build capacity. We need an alliance to create affordable housing, to support African American owned businesses and real estate, and to preserve the neighborhood's culture.

It's time for action in the CD now. It's time for partnership in the CD now. Will you join us?