Dear legislators, We urge you to back the Washington Can’t Wait campaign and reform the Growth Management Act (GMA) to embrace climate action, housing affordability, and racial equity. The campaign is amply named; Washington can’t wait on climate justice, housing justice, and racial justice. This is the year to reform the GMA to affect the next round of Comprehensive Plan major updates. Scientists stress that we must act quickly and slash carbon emissions by 2030 in order to avert the worst effects of climate change. Instead, Washington state’s emissions have continued to creep up. We need more aggressive action to quickly reverse the trend and a GMA that requires climate-centered planning could have a profound effect. Too often comprehensive planning promotes sprawl and car-centric communities--the same things that stoked global warming, wealth inequality, and racial segregation into the giant crises they are today. Too many neighborhoods within urban growth boundaries remain effectively off-limits to new residents. Instead, growth has been concentrated into a few tiny areas, exacerbating the housing affordability crisis. Nearly one in three Washingtonians are paying too much in rent, and tens of thousands are living without a home on our street. Concerns that climate action could hurt the economy and extra planning requirements overburden local jurisdictions are misplaced. Well-designed climate interventions are an economic stimulus and a prudent fiscal course for local jurisdictions. Clean renewable energy, zero-emission transportation, and deep green sustainable buildings save consumers money and lessen social costs, which ultimately are borne by governments and marginalized communities. The green transition will create tons of jobs and invigorate new life in our communities big and small. Planning for housing affordability will make our cities truly open to all. Widespread protests against racism and police brutality have been a much needed wake up call to people in positions of power and privilege. Comprehensive plans that don’t embrace antiracism won’t just miss the moment, they’ll perpetuate and enshrine the problem of structural racism. We must steer the big lumbering ship of our governmental institutions toward justice, and that means taking bold action this session. Please heed the call and seize the moment. Washington can’t wait. Sincerely, The Urbanist
