Yesler Terrace is a public housing development in Seattle, Washington, United States. It was completed in 1941 as the state's first public housing development and the first

racially integrated Racial integration, or simply integration, includes desegregation (the process of ending systematic racial segregation). In addition to desegregation, integration includes goals such as leveling barriers to association, creating equal opportunity ...

public housing development in the United States. It occupies much of the area formerly known as Yesler Hill, Yesler's Hill, or Profanity Hill. The development is administered by the Seattle Housing Authority, who have been redeveloping the neighborhood into a mixed-income area with multi-story buildings and community amenities since 2013.

Etymology

The name derives ultimately from Henry Yesler, pioneer mill owner. Yesler Way was originally the

skid road A skid row or skid road is an impoverished area, typically urban, in English-speaking North America whose inhabitants are mostly poor people " on the skids". This specifically refers to poor or homeless, considered disreputable, downtrodden or fo ...

on which logs were skidded down to the mill. The southern part of the hill came to be known as Yesler's Hill, Yesler Hill, or Profanity Hill. These names referred roughly to the part of First Hill south of the original King County Courthouse at 8th Avenue and Terrace Street. Razed in 1931, the courthouse site was roughly the western portion of the present-day Harborview Medical Center. The name "Profanity Hill" could have its origins from the cursing of the attorneys and litigants at having to climb so steep a grade after missing the

cable car Cable car most commonly refers to the following cable transportation systems: * Aerial lift, such as aerial tramways and gondola lifts, in which the vehicle is suspended in the air from a cable ** Aerial tramway ** Chairlift ** Gondola lift *** Bi ...

, or because of the slum neighborhood known for its uncouth inhabitants to the south where Yesler Terrace is now situated.

Description

Yesler Terrace is located on the southernmost part of

First Hill First Hill is a neighborhood in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is named for the hill on which it is located, which in turn is so named for being the first hill encountered while traveling east from downtown Seattle toward Lake Washington ...

, along Yesler Way immediately east of

downtown Seattle Downtown is the central business district of Seattle, Washington. It is fairly compact compared with other city centers on the U.S. West Coast due to its geographical situation, being hemmed in on the north and east by hills, on the west by ...

. Uphill across Interstate 5 from

Pioneer Square Pioneer commonly refers to a settler who migrates to previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited land. In the United States pioneer commonly refers to an American pioneer, a person in American history who migrated west to join in settling and dev ...

and the International District. Much of the site included Nihonmachi or Japantown until

Executive Order 9066 Executive Order 9066 was a United States presidential executive order signed and issued during World War II by United States president Franklin D. Roosevelt on February 19, 1942. This order authorized the secretary of war to prescribe certain ...

ordered residents to be interned. Yesler Terrace sits on with 561 residential units in 68 buildings, many of which are two-story rowhouses. Unlike most public housing developments, residents have their own private yards.

Yesler Hillclimb

The Yesler Hillclimb is a pedestrian thoroughfare connecting the Little Saigon area of Seattle's Chinatown-International District with Yesler Terrace. The hill climb has a ramp, staircase, and mosaics. In mid 2012, Seattle Housing Authority had hoped to start construction in 2013.

Demographics

As of 2005, there were 1,167 residents. An estimated 38% of households are Asian or Asian American, 40% are African or African American, 11% are White, and 3% Native American.

Redevelopment

Talks of redeveloping the 60-year-old Yesler Terrace, which had become the oldest public housing project in the city, began in 2004 amid similar schemes to redevelop

Rainier Vista Rainier may refer to the following: People *Rainier (name), a list of people with the given name or surname Places United States *Rainier, Oregon, a small city *Rainier, Washington, a small city *Rainier Beach, Seattle *Mount Rainier, a stratovol ...

, High Point and NewHolly into mixed-income neighborhoods. Formal planning on the project began in 2006 with the hiring of a planning team and recruitment for a citizen review panel. The $1.7 billion redevelopment project of the neighborhood began in 2013, with plans to replace existing homes with 5,000 mixed-income residential units, of office space, and of retail and community space. The new development will include at least 561 units for those earning 30% of the area median income (AMI) or less as well as 290 units for 60% of AMI and 850 units for 80% of AMI. The SHA partnered with private developers including Vulcan Real Estate to build market rate and 80% housing in the community. The first new building, Kebero Court, opened in May 2015 and was followed by the opening of Raven Terrace in February 2016. The project, the largest such redevelopment in Seattle's history, is anticipated to take up to 15 years for the full buildout. The

First Hill Streetcar The First Hill Streetcar, officially the First Hill Line, is a streetcar route in Seattle, Washington, United States, forming part of the modern Seattle Streetcar system. It travels between several neighborhoods in central Seattle, including th ...

, which began operation in 2016, connects Yesler Terrace to

Capitol Hill Capitol Hill, in addition to being a metonym for the United States Congress, is the largest historic residential neighborhood in Washington, D.C., stretching easterly in front of the United States Capitol along wide avenues. It is one of the ...

via Broadway, and the International District via Jackson Street. Prior to the start of construction, existing Yesler Terrace residents had organized to oppose any redevelopment plans that would reduce the number of units available to residents with the lowest income.

Parks and recreation

Yesler Terrace Park is a public park operated by Seattle Parks and Recreation in the redeveloped Yesler Terrace neighborhood. It opened in 2018 and includes playgrounds, garden spaces, basketball courts, and a small soccer pitch. The park cost $5 million to construct and is adjacent to an existing

community center Community centres, community centers, or community halls are public locations where members of a community tend to gather for group activities, social support, public information, and other purposes. They may sometimes be open for the whole co ...

. Ela Lamblin's

stainless steel Stainless steel is an alloy of iron that is resistant to rusting and corrosion. It contains at least 11% chromium and may contain elements such as carbon, other nonmetals and metals to obtain other desired properties. Stainless steel's corros ...

gazebo structure ''Whirl Piece: Current Events'' (2005) is installed in the park.

Education

Yesler Terrace is served by three Seattle Public Schools schools: Bailey Gatzert Elementary School, Washington Middle School, and Garfield High School. - Compare to the location of Yesler Terrace.

Notes and references

External links

Yesler Terrace
Seattle Housing Authority. Includes links to pages relevant to the current planning process.
Yesler Terrace Park
{{coord, 47, 36, 08, N, 122, 19, 12, W, format=dms, display=title, type:city_region:US-WA Public housing in the United States Residential buildings in Seattle