Developers have 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 creation of public housing developer A Seattle social housing developer announced Friday its intention to purchase a downtown luxury apartment complex.
Interim CEO Tiffani McCoy spoke at Pier 58 to announce the developer’s acquisition of Elara at the Market, a 150-unit private building at 2134 West Main Street near Pike Place Market and Waterfront Park. The acquisition, expected to close in June, will create mixed-income housing.
“We will fill the first 15 vacancies with families making at or below 30 percent of the area median income,” McCoy said. “The next 45 units will be filled with families making between 30 and 50 percent of the area median income.”
The developer estimates that a total of 60 units of “deeply affordable” housing will be built in Belltown as a result of this year’s acquisitions. McCoy said the decision to purchase the luxury building was an effort to give low-income families more opportunities to live in downtown Seattle.
“Bringing low-income neighbors to high-migration areas of the city will be very exciting,” McCoy said.
With Elara on 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 Elara residents and plan to freeze rents on existing tenancies for two years, until June 2028,” McCoy said, adding that residents will not be charged through a proportional utility billing system or other fees such as pest control.
City Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck, a staunch supporter of social housing in the city, praised the developer’s first acquisition, saying the impact it will have on Seattle families will significantly increase affordability.
“This means a family can rest assured that they won’t be priced out,” Link said. “That means every dollar paid in rent goes directly back into more families, more homes and more prosperity.”
Seattle Deputy Mayor Brian Surratt praised interim CEO Tiffani McCoy for her passion for “arguably the most important issue of our time and our city.”
“Everyone in the city knows we’re facing an affordability crisis, and at the heart of that crisis is the cost of housing,” Surratt said. “People across Seattle are going to disagree on a lot of things, but there’s broad consensus: 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 in Elara can apply via Lottery process Open until June 5, with priority given to applicants who meet income thresholds. The developers said rents will be $644 for a studio apartment and $1,482 for a two-bedroom apartment. The developer also announced plans to acquire a second building in another Seattle neighborhood later this year.
