-Hello, everyone.
Thank you for celebrating here with us today.
I'm Maiko Winkler-Chin.
I'm Director of the Office of Housing.
And for those of you who know,
please don't call me Director Winkler Chin.
That's just a lot of syllables. I just prefer Maiko,
kind of on the same sphere as Cher and Madonna.
And, unfortunately for you all, I had the --
I was lucky enough to be able to walk here today
through Beacon Hill,
which is one of the greatest neighborhoods in the world,
thank you very much,
and the one that I've lived in for a long time.
And what's unfortunate for all of you is, as I walk,
I get to think and reflect which, sorry; here we go.
So wanted to welcome you all to, as I said,
one of the greatest communities in the world,
Beacon Hill here in Seattle.
And as I was -- you're going to hear these comments.
And the reason why I love Beacon
Hill is for a variety of reasons.
One is because Estela Ortega is the steward of the neighborhood
in many, many ways. We'll get more into that.
They're applauding for you.
Yes, yes. I first showed up in Beacon Hill
in 1985 with my college roommate who brought me here.
And for those of you who have lived in Seattle
for a long time, I thought
Seattle was equal to Rainier Valley, Beacon
Hill, Chinatown in downtown. And I thought, wow.
This is a great city. The fact that I never saw
the University of Washington never quite struck me.
But I was like, oh, yeah; this is a great place.
And I've lived in this neighborhood for a long time.
And as I was walking here,
it was really past that friend's parents' house.
Parents still live in that house. Walk past there.
You know, that's been 40 years now.
And I think about my husband walking around this neighborhood
running into his hair cutter, Mrs. Nomba,
who was the woman who's married to Osami,
who used to cut every Asian American's hair
down in Chinatown for 45,
50 years who lamented to my husband
about the fact that my son bought a house for $500,000.
That's crazy. I only paid 19,000 for mine.
Right? That's sort of -- we all have those conversations.
In fact, my daughter's having them with me.
The other thing that I thought about as
I was looking over my talking points that my comms team did --
and they're going to start getting nervous because,
anytime I mentioned my comms team,
they start getting nervous -- is I feel kind of like --
I watched the American Music Awards the other night.
And do I get to be Trevor Noah, or am I going to be like Jo Koy
who apparently bombed a few months ago?
So I'm hoping I'm on the Trevor Noah thing.
But it kind of goes along this thing, right.
So if we're taking that awards, that awards show analogy,
some of you know that each year
the Office of Housing does its NOFA awards.
Ooh, right? It's like the Oscars,
the Grammys, the Emmys, the NOFA.
NOFA stands for Notification of Funding Availability.
And we -- it is for rental housing, right.
It's the NOFA awards for rental housing where we have --
announce our rental housing award recipients for that year.
Well, this year we decided to change things up a little bit
to celebrate all things housing. And, unbeknownst to me,
I thought we were just calling this the yay housing event
because that fits within my mind.
Yay housing. We're just going to call it that.
My comms team has told me no.
It's officially called the First Annual Housing
Celebration, also known by Maiko as yay housing.
Okay. So today what this means is we won't just be announcing
our 2023 funding awards to our rental housing program.
We'll also be spotlighting awards in homeownership,
as well as our work in the weatherization
and home repair programs, also called HomeWise.
Just wanting to talk about that.
So what we're doing today is that we want to think
about all the parts together as a whole,
as the work that the Office of Housing does
and how we are working
not just in the splashy rental housing side,
which is important, but all the other projects
and all the programs that we have as well,
just celebrating all of it.
So, you know, I think the AMAs have their splashy awards.
And then, earlier in the day,
they do the other set, like three hours of awards
that are very, very important and essential.
And they don't really broadcast that.
We're going to broadcast it all,
but I will not take four hours because I only have 15 cards,
and I'm already on card number five.
Thank you very much.
So now I'd like to turn things over
to the person who graciously gave me this job.
And he's probably sitting there right now
going I don't know if that was a good move.
For those of you that don't know,
I was not always at the city.
But Mayor Harrell called and took a high gamble on this
and so asking me if I want to step in and do this.
And I said yes. So thank you very much, Mayor.
And I've really enjoyed my time here.
Mayor Harrell is a champion
for making sure our city stays affordable
and has made housing and homelessness
a top priority in his administration.
So, at this time, I'd like to turn it over to Mayor Harrell.
-Okay. You said I could call you Maiko.
In the office, she says I have to call her Director.
I'm joking.
And you are one of the best decisions
I've made in two years, and I'm so proud of you.
And the reason why -- and this is not clearly in my notes --
is because I -- when I make hiring decisions,
I hire credibility. I hire street smarts.
I hire people who the community knows their heart
and their sets of skills are in the right --
in the right place. And I'm not looking at her now,
but I think I'm embarrassing her
because she hates when I publicly say things.
But that's very true. And I want to thank all of you
because I'm looking at a vibrant, resilient,
strong community of housing advocates and developers.
And so I am honored to be the Trevor Noah of today.
And, by the way, they said Jo Koy bombed at the --
it was the Golden Globes awards.
I didn't think that he did, actually.
I actually went -- I didn't see it live.
I went back on YouTube and looked at it.
I thought it was sort of funny, but maybe he didn't do
as well to do on that particular event.
So let me get serious now and say thank you again
for the warm introduction, Maiko.
I'm very excited to celebrate the work that our department,
our Office of Housing and our partners
are doing to increase affordable housing in Seattle.
I don't have to tell you of all folks
about the challenges we have in front of us.
That's why we want to celebrate the organization
selected for a funding award.
You worked hard for it. You are proof --
you have a proven track record in what we're trying to do.
And we know that building more affordable housing
is a key to addressing our homelessness
and affordability crisis.
And that's why we focused on creating bold solutions
over the last two years. An example would be, in 2023,
last year we passed legislative changes
to the design review process to cut down on red tape
and boost the production of more affordable housing.
A part of our thinking was -- is, when I created the position
of Chief Operating Officer and Mark Lowes
to look at who's in charge of Seattle public utilities,
Seattle city light and, in the permitting process,
realizing that for many of you your permit process
for those things,
whether it's sewage or water or power
becomes sort of an impediment to good --
a good process for you.
So we wanted to combine all of that
to have better internal systems to make it great for you
to be able to do business with Seattle.
I want to recognize two council members.
You have District 5 and District 2 and Councilmember Moore
and Councilmember Morales right here.
Please raise your hands so we give you a --
Housing champions, people that are talking about
and living their life to build community
and housing for everyone.
Let your colleagues know we had a couple extra chairs
for a couple of other councilmembers here.
I'm just joking. I get in trouble so much.
We also know that there could be an opportunity for office spaces
to convert them into housing. And so we propose changes
that will expedite the building of all types of housing,
even look at where there's low hanging fruit in that respect.
Last year, we --
over 14,000 homes across 13 buildings
open in affordable rental housing across Seattle.
And, again, creativity, innovation,
forward thinking on how we're going to achieve this.
And thanks to the recently approved housing levy,
we'll be able to invest more than 3000 --
in 3000 new affordable homes
for our most vulnerable neighbors
over the next seven years
as well as provide greater support for the staff
and the operation affordable housing buildings.
And I mentioned the staff piece
because that's sort of a different approach
where we recognize that you can build brick and mortar
but they have to be operational.
We have to meet the needs of the residents.
And so that's going to be really important.
So I know -- okay.
My notes say Director Winkler-Chin,
so I've got to go back to that. I know Director Winkler-Chin
may mention throughout either today
or in next coming weeks more about the great investments
being made in home repair and weatherization programs
that help homeowners stay afloat,
but first I get to announce the fun stuff.
So that's one of the benefits of this great job that I have.
The awardees for the Office of Housing 2023
Funding Opportunities,
our rental housing awardees for this year are --
I don't know this. This isn't in my notes still.
This is already public, right, or am I announcing it now?
They know because they -- they don't know?
-I mean, they know.
-Oh. The world doesn't know. Okay, okay. Okay. I didn't know.
You guys should have put that in my notes.
I just thought, you know, the press has all this.
Okay. So I get -- here we go.
Theme Housing and Lotus Development Partners
Bryant Manor Project, 250 homes in the central district.
Let's give them a hand.
All right. DESC, Permanent Supportive Housing,
120 homes in Lake City.
Two more to announce.
LIHI, Low Income Seniors and Homeless Individuals,
90 homes at Bitter Lake.
And last but certainly not least,
El Centro de la Raza and Edge Developers,
low income families and individual,
84 homes right here at Beacon Hill.
This represents a total of 544 homes
providing a safe place for families
and individuals to live.
We're also funding 13.4 million in home homeownership
awards to the Rainier Valley Affordable Homeownership
Initiative that will fund 72 homes in partnership
with Habitat for Humanity and African Community Housing
and Development in the homestead community Land Trust.
So congratulations to each of you.
But, even more importantly, there are times
when in this community in this place we call home here
in Seattle where the community comes together
and they fight through very challenging times
and I try to look at people in their eyes
and say that I certainly as mayor cannot do this
without you, I mean, I try to work as hard as I can.
But I do rely on your advocacy and your work,
even your criticism. That's what I signed up for,
to keep us doing the right things.
We are far from perfect.
But we will try. And like I said,
when I surround myself around phenomenal leaders,
this is where the magic happens.
So let's build together. Let's house people together.
And thank you for this outstanding work
that you are allowing us to partner with.
And, with that, I'll turn it back over to Maiko.
Thank you very much.
-Downward adjustment of the mic because I'm shorter.
So next I'd like to, like, officially introduce
you our gracious hosts for this event,
Estela Ortega, Executive Director of El Centro
de la Raza, and Joel Ing, Principal at Edge Developers.
Before -- before they come up --
and I know that they're discussing
who gets to talk first, you know,
I want to say a few words about both of them
because we are in community.
We're in the neighborhood, but we're in community.
So, as a Beacon Hill resident, I really admire Estela,
I have for years, both as a Beacon Hill resident
as just somebody that works in the community development field.
And the work that you and your organization
have done for years,
first in occupying the building next door
and then just for all the development that you do.
I love that I get to stand here and listen to the sounds of joy.
That may sound like the sounds of chaos outside, the children.
But there is something that I appreciate
every time I'm in and around this area,
and you get to see the kids with --
walking together holding their hands,
walking up and down 17, or, like, walking around here.
That is joy for me.
So, first, I just want to acknowledge that.
And I want to thank you that for all the programs
that you've provided for Beacon Hill as the Center
for People of All Races or food bank
that, as I said, the child --
I know so many kids that have gone through that,
that -- you know, through your programs, that --
the Spanish language immersion program.
And so glad that you are building more childcare centers,
as well, as well as housing.
You know, everything that you do.
The other person, Joel Ing should be nervous about me
talking about because, once again, we are in community.
For those of you who do not know,
my husband has known Joel for 56 years,
since they were four. I'm still waiting for the --
I think it's a VHS tape from my wedding, Joel Ing.
He took the video at my wedding, and I'm still waiting for it.
And that wedding was not yesterday.
I wanted -- for those of you who do not know,
Joel and his family have been long-standing stewards
in the Chinatown International District and Beacon Hill.
His mother grew up in Canton Alley.
And Joel and his partner -- I see Evan Chan back there.
I hope you brought some chicken wings, Evan.
You know, what is an unknown to most people
is they have personally put up their assets as guarantees
on housing projects. And that is their --
that's a show of their commitment to community.
So, with that, I'm --
and Joel is also a developer, pretty good one at that.
So, with that, I turn it over to Estela and Joel.
-Thank you, Maiko, for those incredibly generous comments
about El Centro de la Raza. So thank you.
But before going into my comments,
I have to tell you a little story
about the Child Development Center.
It's so many children of different races.
And, you know, the language there's two languages,
English and Spanish.
And so we have so many little children:
White, Black, Asian,
Indian saying, I want to be Mexican
because they love their teachers.
They love the food. You know, they love the culture.
But it's just hilarious when I hear that.
Even my nana tells me those stories.
So, anyway, welcome, everyone. Buenos dias.
And I'm Estela Ortega,
the executive director of El Centro de la Raza,
the Center for People of All Races.
Welcome to the Centilia Cultural Center.
In the Aztec language, it means to join together to become one.
In the realm of affordable housing,
Edge Developers and El Centro de la Raza
are joining forces to build affordable housing.
I feel compelled at this time
to express my gratitude to the voters of Seattle
for supporting the passage of the largest levy,
a whopping $970 million. Yes.
Which clearly demonstrates their unwavering commitment
to affordable housing.
Without this levy, we would not be standing here today.
So mil gracias to our mayor for his leadership
to move the levy forward;
for collaborating with coalitions of advocates,
providers, businesses, and unions
to ensure the levy's success.
To the Office of Housing, we are so grateful, elated,
and thanking you to have been awarded the opportunity
to develop more transit-oriented housing on Beacon Hill.
This development will provide longtime residents
with the chance to either remain
or return to the neighborhoods they have been --
they have called for many years home.
By doing so, we aim to foster racial equity,
preserving the cultural richness and diversity of Beacon Hill,
a historic home for immigrant and BIPOC communities
where more than 23 languages are spoken.
It is also a natural extension
to the development of El Centro's campus
because, here at El Centro de la Raza,
we provide more than 43 different programs
in numerous areas. And the reality is,
is that when people live in affordable housing,
they still need wraparound services.
The strategic location of this development
right next to the Light Rail
aligns perfectly with our environmental justice work.
Y'all know we do a lot around air and noise.
And, also, we're educating people about the importance
of converting to electric, which is a big job
because people love their gas stoves.
Not only does it support smart growth
but it also contributes
to reducing greenhouse gas and emissions.
In practical terms,
it will alleviate the housing cost burden
for residents who rely on public transportation
to access jobs, education, and other essential services.
At this time, I also want to acknowledge
our partnership with Edge Developers.
El Centro and Edge are also collaborators
with the SCIDpda project on the north lot development
at Pacific Tower
that is known as the Pacific the Beacon Pacific Village.
Over the years, we have become familiar with each other's work.
This development situated at El Centro's front door
complements Edge --
Edge's two multifamily development within two blocks.
It's a collaboration that promises positive outcomes.
And so now, without further ado, please welcome Joel
Ing, who will delve into the specifics of our development.
So thank you.
-Good morning. I think Maiko said
we were trying to decide who goes first.
I don't ever think that was a decision who goes first.
The only problem is,
because I will always go second to Estela.
But the only problem is, when Maiko speaks
and then when Estela speaks,
I don't have anything else to say because they said it all.
But I am Joel Ing.
I'm Principal of Edge Developers.
And, as mentioned, myself,
my two partners are third and fourth generation
Seattleites.
We either grew up and/or went to school here on Beacon Hill.
And so, when we formed our company,
we formed it to do development, to do community development.
And so Beacon Hill is one of the --
one of the top areas that we want develop,
and I'm not overstating it.
So when we were able to find this project --
and it is actually just, if you know where the --
now the tea houses, the Boba Tea House,
the old Chophouse, for those old
Seattleites, the old Chophouse hair salon,
we're the three homes just to the north of there.
So it's just basically on the other side of that building.
When we found this property,
and it was a permit-ready property,
the Office of Housing was actually the first
and very key support of this. Lori Olson
and I had a discussion over a year ago,
and they said they're all in.
And they recognize the importance of affordable
housing here up on the Hill.
And so one interesting thing -- and for those, again, that know
Beacon Hill is that Beacon Hill will remain
and retain its character because of just the zoning
and the way out -- the way it is built.
There are single family homes along Beacon Hill Avenue,
Beacon Avenue.
And I think that's -- that is definitely fortunate
because it's fortunate because the character
and those who live here will not be displaced
wholeheartedly with big multifamily developments.
The flip side of that is, there are very few properties
for multifamily and for affordable housing.
So you will not see a lot of development here.
But we are fortunate for this development,
and we recognize that. So, again,
thank you for Office of Housing and other public funders
for funding us on this project because we're really excited.
And as Estela said is Beacon Hill
is home to a very diverse community.
Over 70% of its residents are BIPOC and immigrant communities.
And as Estela said, we will -- we will market,
and we will ensure that these residents who are here
for generations will have a first look and --
to be residents of this project.
And that is an equal goal of not just us,
but I think most of us in this room.
For those who have been paying attention,
Beacon Hill's happening. Beacon Hill's happening.
You know, the front door of this project,
30 seconds from the front door of this project
is the Light Rail station.
Across the street, down the block are banks,
a major grocery store, services and so,
in addition to that, many restaurants.
And I was actually really surprised
but not surprised that three James Beard
nominated restaurants are within two,
three minutes walk from here, three, which is amazing.
So it's not only a neighborhood of great history,
but it's a neighborhood that is developing before our very eyes.
And so, with all of that, I mean,
we call this the Beacon Hill for tilde,
tilde transit-oriented development.
In some ways, we should call it the Beacon Hill affordable,
MOD or WOD, walking-oriented development
because all the residents that are going to be here,
they don't need to go anywhere else.
And if they go anywhere else,
they just have to jump on the transit
to go down to downtown or go to the airport or wherever.
So we're really excited about that as well.
And so, with that, we too are really excited
and just really excited to partner
with El Centro de la Raza whose presence right here,
this location spans more than 50 years.
For those that know, they rightfully and boldly
occupied the former Beacon Hill Elementary School.
Look it up. I'm not going to go into the history,
but they did this in 1972.
And over this -- over a 50-year period of time,
they've truly been the beacon, the beacon on Beacon Hill.
And they remain to be that.
And so we are just really excited
to be partnering with them, as they have through the years
countlessly fought against inequality,
have provided a wide range of community services,
and continue to grow their affordable housing portfolio.
And so we look forward to working with them
to expand affordable housing.
We look forward to working with many of you here in the room.
And, again, we thank --
thankful the Office of Housing, the city.
And that's it. So thank you.
-All right. One of the areas that we've focused on
over the past few years is home ownership.
And I know that homeownership is very important for people
for a variety of different reasons.
One is to pass down wealth through generations
and to help create stability for families.
It actually helps to build communities that can last,
as you've heard from myself, other people that have spoken.
And just the joy of being rooted in a community
is very, very important and is really affirming
and for all the things, right.
So my next person that I'd like to introduce is Bilan Aden.
I don't have any personal stories about her yet,
but apparently she worked in a past life
with my communications manager Nona.
You'll have to talk with them both about
that separately off mic. Bilan.
Bilan is with the African Community Housing
and Development Organization, who's working right now
on the Rainier Valley Affordable Housing Initiative.
-Thank you so much, Maiko.
And, Joel, you stole my line about the beacon.
Estella, it's amazing to be in your space.
And I can't tell you how much you have inspired me personally
and our community to get in this work together
because I think nine years ago I did a tour, and I was --
I was astounded by your accomplishments
and your history and legacy. So thank you for having us.
And then also what an honor to speak after you, Joel,
and the mayor. It's truly a pleasure.
And Happy Black History Month.
Good morning. My name is Bilan Aden.
I'm the Cofounder and Associate Director
of African Community Housing and Development.
We are excited to be here to participate
in this celebration of affordable housing
made possible by the City of Seattle Office of Housing
and express our deep gratitude
for their belief in ACHD and our community.
In 2018, my mother, Hamdi Abdullah, and I
and along with a lot of community members in King County
from the African diaspora created ACHD
to support our immigrant refugee communities.
Since then, we've provided wide-ranging
and whole-family social services,
quality youth education, and elder programs,
as well as job training and small business development.
But to address root causes of the income inequality
and socioeconomic barriers so many of our communities face
along with rampant displacement of BIPOC communities,
we wanted to do more.
Given our region's affordable housing crisis
and the need for community members
to have safe, stable homes, a place to grow roots,
nurture the next generation -- so cue.
There's a cue -- and established thriving small businesses,
we stepped forward to become one
of the first Pan-African housing developers in King County.
This took a lot of courage, help from friends like you all,
and supporters and a lot of commitment to our vision.
I'm proud to say that, during the past couple of years,
we've accomplished a great deal
in developing both affordable rental housing
and homeownership opportunities for our community.
The city of Seattle's Office of Housing
has been a major force in getting us to this place.
Last year, Office of Housing
accepted our partnership proposal with Habitat
for Humanity, Seattle King and Kittitas counties
as part of their anti-displacement
initiatives for BIPOC communities.
The Office of Housing has awarded us
three plots of vacant land
in Seattle, Seattle's Rainier Valley,
all within walking distance of the Light Rail.
With Habitat's experience and ACHD's deep commitment to --
deep commitment, we connect --
and connection to and cultural understanding,
we will develop new affordable home
ownership opportunities for community
in a way that makes sense for those we serve.
We will build 31 condos each on two plots of land,
and the other will feature three townhomes,
each with four bedrooms for intergenerational families.
These 65 new affordable home ownership opportunities
represent a critical step
in advancing Black generational wealth.
We plan to open a door our first --
we plan to open our first doors in 2026,
which we're really excited about.
And we're hard at work developing homeownership
readiness programs for our community.
This partnership is based on innovation
that Office of Housing helped to make possible
with its funding from the Seattle Housing levy.
It's the first of its kind,
and it's an example of how we can dismantle
the disproportionality facing BIPOC communities.
We thank the team at the Office of Housing,
Mayor Harrell's leadership,
and for their unwavering commitment
to building more affordable and equitable home ownership
and to fight the widespread displacement
of BIPOC neighborhoods.
We are so appreciative of the support
of the City of Seattle and other funders and afford --
in affordable housing in our region.
But we also know that more is needed.
We are facing historic highs in the cost of construction
lending and rising construction costs.
In addition to these challenges,
most funding sources are not available to the developer
until the permitting -- until the project is permitted,
which represents a serious challenge
for emerging developers like ACHD.
So, to overcome these challenges,
we need and appreciate the support and flexibility --
flexibility of partners like the City of Seattle.
So here's my little call to action.
Together, ACHD and our partners
are implementing a multi-year plan
to significantly improve the short-
and long-term strength and sustainability of our projects.
We know our collective work
adds immeasurable value to the region.
Now is the time for us to come together
and push all the buttons -- beep, boop, boop, boop --
ad overcome today's unique affordable
housing development challenges
facing emerging BIPOC developers.
Thank you so much.
-All right. I'm going to speed this up,
so I'm going to start talking like I'm using
my disclaimer voice.
So the investments in rental housing and homeownership
are kind of splashy, and, you know, yay, all that.
But what a lot of people don't realize is that we --
there's a lot of work that happens at the Office of Housing
that has a direct impact on single homeowners
and through our weatherization,
home repair, and clean heat programs;
oftentimes, we call them HomeWise.
So over the last five years,
we've invested nearly $28 million in these programs.
They can bring people some energy efficiency upgrades.
So getting them, you know,
onto the electrical grid for their heating systems.
And a lot of our heating systems are also cooling systems,
very, very important nowadays, right.
And also doing home repairs that allow --
oftentimes we see seniors receiving the home repairs,
and that allows them to stay in their homes
because, without us coming in and having the work done,
they wouldn't be able to stay otherwise.
So with all those improvements,
it allows people to stay in community.
And you can save thousands of dollars
in heating bills each year from --
switching from electric heating to --
or to electric systems, and that is for free.
And the great thing about that
is that then also helps people become more green.
So Myron Curry, sitting right here,
he's a muralist here in Seattle,
actually wrote into the Office of Housing
about the clean heat program,
getting an electric heating system for his grandfather,
CJ Curry.
And I personally love to get those letters.
And I read them, and I find out
where the addresses are, strangely.
And it kind of sticks in my mind as I drive around Seattle, like,
Oh. We did that house. Oh, we did that house.
Oh, I know who lives in that house.
So, at this time, I'd like to introduce Myron
to tell us a little bit about the program's impact
on his grandfather. Come on up.
-Thank you. This is amazing.
And I just want to really, really,
truly express the impact of the Office of Housing
and the weatherization program.
That's why I'm up here particularly.
And I'm only saying this. I'm going to keep it short.
But I just need to say this
so that way you understand how deeply this has impacted me,
but not just me but my community.
Anyone that knows me knows my grandpa, period.
I talk about him all day. I stay with him.
I'm dedicated to trying to save his home.
With a reverse mortgage of $570,000,
I wake up every day and tell him,
You just keep waking up. I will do the rest.
And he does that for me. He's 92 years old. He is great.
Like, he still drives. I drive him most of the time.
He eats. He's -- like, he's straight, right.
And, you know, so I'm just so blessed, you know.
His only friend left is really having trouble.
And he's -- I've been over there taking care of him, feeding him,
trying to keep him, you know, at bay and doing the most I can.
But, that being said, again, like I said,
I'm just trying to express to you why this means so much.
I am deeply rooted in the community.
I'm an impact-based mural artist.
I would have never in a million years --
I'm super entrepreneurial --
thought that this would be my career
and that this would be something that would help me reach out
to so many communities in the United States
but particularly in Washington and Seattle.
I've done murals all over the place, you know.
But I literally have been through a lot.
And all those things that I've been through,
like with my grandpa, with the justice system,
with school, with veterans, with at-risk youth,
I participate in so many organizations
that I can't even name them all.
It's just really insane. I get phone calls, phone calls,
phone calls from all kinds of people needing resources.
So I go to these places,
and I spread the different information and resources
that I get, particularly like the weatherization program.
So, with that being said, like, senior housing,
all these places, I tell them about the programs
that we've been through or programs
that I know of that work. That's a big difference.
And what makes that difference is the people in the program.
A program can look good on paper,
but it doesn't mean anything
if the people that work there don't care.
And so I'm here to tell you that the weatherization program
is amazing, which most of you know.
Like, Mim has been at my grandpa's house,
sat there with him, explained the entire process,
and made sure he guaranteed him because my grandpa's 92.
He's been through a lot.
And he's -- you know, I'm too skeptical sometimes, you know.
And he's been there every step of the way.
Talked about veteran stuff,
all the different weatherization programs,
exactly what they're going to do,
guarantee them they're going to do it right,
not mess his house up, everything.
And he's back there to check up on it.
And he was there today, you know, talking to my grandpa.
I mean, so that just means the world to me.
You know, and with that being said, it's just like,
I feel like it's my responsibility
to let you guys know the work
that they do has an impact, right?
I'm just one client.
My grandpa's just one client out of the hundreds, right.
So that program, the oil bill went up from 200
to $400 this year. So that saves us $400 alone.
Now, also, his house is 117 years old, you know.
So, again, things needed to be upgraded to --
for Seattle to even be able to do the work
of the weatherization program,
which they extended that help as well.
They put a new panel meter up to date.
I mean, 117 years old.
You can only imagine that, you know, it's a lot of work.
And I try to do as much as I can with that work myself.
And I'm in community, all these programs.
Then I'm doing murals, which is the blessed thing.
I'm at peace when I do that.
Sometimes I knock a whole mural out in one day.
Don't tell everybody.
But it's because I can sit there for 20 hours
and just be in peace, you know. And I enjoy it.
And it has an impact on the community, and they love it.
But mainly here today,
I just want you guys to know that I'm thankful.
But the community is truly thankful.
I've spread this program to so many people.
And I go to seniors' houses, different people's houses,
help them apply for not just this program,
a lot of programs like getting tax exemption for seniors,
teaching about estate planning
and those types of things so they don't have to go through
what I'm going through with my grandpa
trying to save his home and these types of things.
But the weatherization program works.
It has a great impact. And it's really keeping us safe
because, honestly, it wasn't safe with that electrical
and the oil heat that was in there.
And that's aside from the cost.
But, you know, it's just imperative.
And all this stuff that you guys are doing here
is something I'm learning today,
and I feel like that's just a drop in the bucket
compared to how much work that you guys are doing here.
But I do want you guys to make sure you recognize
and support that program and people like Mim.
So I appreciate you. Thank you.
-Myron, thank you.
As I said, we do love those stories
because we sometimes feel very separated from our work.
And so hearing from Myron about the work is,
really, thank you so much. I'm really grateful for that.
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the other work
that happens in the Office of Housing
and the great group of people that we have.
We have the Asset Management team
who manages our full portfolio.
I see one of them right back there.
Yay asset management because why build it
if you cannot operate it. Okay.
Our Market Incentives and Land Use team,
I think of you as I walk up the street
because I pass by four buildings with MFTE units.
And they're the ones who manage our incentive programs,
which offer an additional layer of affordable
housing in market rate buildings.
And I see you guys back there.
There's also the Finance Admin and Communications team.
We don't get to be here. I don't get my talking notes.
We don't get to manage cash without you.
So thank you so much.
I don't see them there because they're probably --
I see the comms team because they have to be there
because they're setting up, but I don't see finance
and admin. I don't know where you're at.
I don't know. I see some -- oh, and I see the policy staff.
So their typical selves turning around
so I don't point them out and are hiding in the back.
They're way in the back. I see you, Nathan, Antonio.
Don't be hiding.
So, with that, folks, we're come to the end of my talking points.
I'm at slide number 14, 15. And --
but, you know, it's the end of today's celebration.
But it's not the end of housing because, if you don't know,
we have the least number of units per capita
anywhere in the country, not Seattle, the state, right.
So we have a lot of work in front of us.
And I'm just grateful for all of you being here today.
I want to thank the city council;
Councilmember Morales -- we're in your district --
for working with us and all the work that you all do.
I want to thank the voters of the city of Seattle
for entrusting us with the resources
through the Seattle Housing levy; our state legislators
who are busy at the state legislature
doing their work; and, of course, our mayor.
So thank you all very much for coming.
I'm sure there's food. There is food.
Make sure you eat. Thank you.
Have a great day. Thanks for joining us.
[ Applause ]