Affordable Housing in Sammamish: A Critical Analysis of Policy, Feasibility, and Impacts Researched and written by: Sammamish  Resident - Stephen Frazzini Introduction Sammamish city officials have promoted plans to encourage affordable housing development in the city, positioning it as a solution to broader regional housing inequities. However, a closer, research-driven analysis reveals a stark disconnect between City Hall’s ideological policy ambitions and Sammamish’s on-the-ground realities. This paper critically examines the city’s approach and demonstrates how mismanagement, unrealistic policies, and disregard for local constraints have rendered meaningful affordable housing infeasible in Sammamish. Key factors—from the area median income (AMI) affordability gap and structural infrastructure limitations to financial risks for taxpayers—all indicate that while affordable housing is a pressing need regionally, Sammamish is the wrong place to site such development. I also de...

Sammamish’s Ingress/Egress Failures and the Case for a Growth Moratorium Stephen Frazzini A Citizen's Analysis Exposing the City’s Infrastructure, Safety, and Planning Realities 1. Introduction: The False Promise of Growth in Sammamish On August 31, 1999, Sammamish became a newly incorporated city, promising its roughly 34,000 early residents more local control over planning and infrastructure.¹ Over two decades later, that pledge has proved hollow. The City Council is now pushing to add 4,000 new housing units—some of them in 12-story buildings—as part of a “Town Center” upzone intended to promote affordable housing and economic vibrancy. Despite lofty ideals, the cold facts reveal severe weaknesses in ingress/egress, public safety services, and fiscal capacity. During its first ten years, Sammamish underwent intense residential development (thousands of homes added) without securing the funding or jurisdictional power to upgrade the main roads that funnel traffic off the plateau....