Contemporary Issues

Seattle residents share the concerns of most urban Americans, from coping with drugs, gang violence, and aggressive panhandling to assuring equal opportunities for the city's non-English speakers. But as the 21st century began, the Seattle metro area faced one major issue that increasingly encompassed all others: How could all residents of Greater Seattle best cope with the area's dramatic and sustained growth?

Between 1990 and 2000 King County's population increased by 15.2 percent to 1,737,000. Growth resulted in a rising standard of living and world-class amenities. It also brought dramatic change, threatening the very qualities and character of life—clean air and water, open space, beautiful natural scenery—that drew newcomers in the first place.

Trapped by its own success, Seattle has grown into a major American city, subject to urban problems. Commuter traffic clogs the city’s bridges and arterials, threatening gridlock and raising motorist stress.

Seattle people are concerned by the haze of pollutants that sometimes obscures Mount Rainier and by the water quality of industrial Lake Union. Residential subdivisions sprawl through cow pastures and woodlands, and sleepy towns waken to skyrocketing school enrollments and strip mall development.

Throughout Seattle's metropolitan area, housing demand has outstripped supply, creating a shortage and driving prices and rents sky-high.