Title: Redlining - CityArchives | seattle.gov
Headings: 
Redlining
Content: It's a coalition of about thirteen community groups that have been concerned with the issue of investing and housing stock in Seattle. I was originally going to limit my comments to the draft on the Review Board that you have before you, but after sitting here for two and a half hours and having heard quite a few interesting and worthwhile comments, I'd like to speak to at least a few of them. I think right now one of the basic problems Seattle faces is a lack of public confidence in the ability of the City Council, the City government, to deal with the issue of redlining, and its ability perhaps to save the housing stock in Seattle. I think that currently the city is on the right track, and has been in establishing the Reinvestment Task Force, and in taking under consideration the ordinances you have before you. I think some of the mistakes made in the past have been too much secrecy. I think that the processes in the past have not been that much open. The Mayor had met with about three or four community groups, but in the negotiations they were really left out, and consequently we really had to rely on the good faith of the bankers and the Mayor in the dealings. So that, right now, I would not like to see that process continue. And there's letters from banks complaining about the legality of the agreement they have to sign with the lender's review board. I think it's important to take a look at what banks are sending those letters and what is the content of those letters.