The developer announced the purchase of Elara at the Market, a 150-unit luxury apartment complex, with the goal of bringing more affordable housing to Belltown.
SEATTLE — Three years after Seattle voters approved the creation of a public housing developer, the Seattle Social Housing Developer announced Friday its intent to purchase a luxury downtown apartment complex.
Speaking from Pier 58, interim CEO Tiffani McCoy announced the developer’s acquisition of Elara at the Market, a privately owned building with 150 units near Pike Place Market and Waterfront Park at 2134 Western Ave. The purchase, expected to close in June, would create mixed-income housing.
“We will fill the first 15 vacancies with households at or below 30% of the area median income,” McCoy said. “The next 45 units will be filled with households with incomes between 30% and 50% of the median income.”
In total, the developer estimates 60 units of “deeply affordable” housing will be created in Belltown as a result of the acquisition this year. McCoy said the decision to purchase a luxury building came from a desire to give lower-income families more opportunity to live in downtown Seattle.
“It will be really exciting to bring lower-income neighbors into an area of the city that is a high-displacement area,” McCoy said.
With the purchase of Elara at the Market, the developer also announced multiple changes for current and future residents of Seattle’s first social housing building.
“We plan to offer free, one-year ORCA passes to all residents at the Elara, and we plan to freeze rents for existing leases for two years through June 2028,” McCoy said, adding that residents will not be billed through the ratio utility billing system and that other fees, such as pest control, will not be charged.
Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck, a strong supporter of social housing in the city, praised the developer’s first acquisition, saying the impact for Seattle families would help tremendously with affordability.
“It means a family having some peace of mind that they won’t be priced out,” Rinck said. “It means every dollar paid in rent goes right back into more families, more homes and more prosperity.”
Seattle Deputy Mayor Brian Surratt commended interim CEO Tiffani McCoy for her passion on “arguably the most important issue of our time and our city.”
“Everyone in this city knows that we are facing an affordability crisis, and at the center of that crisis is the cost of housing,” Surratt said. “People across Seattle will disagree on a lot of things, but one broad agreement: We need to build more housing of all types, and we need to build more housing that people can actually afford.”
Those interested in living at the Elara can apply through a lottery process open through June 5, prioritizing applicants who meet income thresholds. The developer said rents will range from $644 for a studio to $1,482 for a two-bedroom apartment. The developer also announced it plans to acquire a second building in a different neighborhood of Seattle later in the year.
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