Uploaded on 2016-09-01 by Jason Beffa

Most Liveable Cities and Seattle's place on that list. 1. Sydney, New South Wales (AUS) 2. Stockholm (SWE) 3. Berlin (GER) 4. San Diego, California (USA) 5. Montreal, Quebec (CAN) Due to the extraordinary spike in house prices, rent, and general cost of living, combined with a serious traffic problem and severe lack of efficient mass transit system, I would put Seattle in the range of 15-20 on the list. Most Important Livability Characteristics Population Density Public Transportation Options Employment/Industry Diversity Safety, Diversity and Overall Affordability Environmentally Sustainable Policies Seattle has been named one as of the best cities to live in over years past (currently I would rank Seattle in the top 20 world wide) but recently has dropped in those ranks. Here are the reasons why, and potential remedies for these issues. The population density of Seattle is increasing at an alarming rate with many people choosing to move to the region. This leads to housing shortages, rise in cost of living, more cars on the road/traffic and a squeeze on the city resources. *** Unfortunately there appears to be no remedy for this. Seattle is a beautiful city, it seems like the secret is out. Increasing investment in green building and sustainable development could at least help counter the effects of an increasing population, and help the city maintain an element of environmental health to prevent resource depletion.*** A lack of efficient, effective mass transit has led to massive traffic problems, listed as in the top three worst in the nation. *** Smart city analysis and better use of big data can lead to more efficient mass transit systems better suited to the hilly landscape of Seattle. Educating the citizenship on the value of utilizing mass transit can only go so far, a city must provide a cost effective plan that serves all people, not just those on the chosen routes. *** The significant rise in tech based companies moving to Seattle with very high paying jobs has created a significant wealth gap amongst residents of the city and contributed to a dramatic rise in the cost of living throughout the city. *** Increasing incentives for new, non tech oriented companies to grow and flourish in the region would encourage more diversity amongst industries in the area. Alternatively, new taxes levied on these tech businesses could contribute to social programs that help ease the burden on those affected by the high cost of living and improve their education options so that they too may be eligible for such high paying jobs. *** This dramatic rise in cost of living combined with a spike in home prices directly contributes to a significant rise in the price of rent, neighborhood gentrification and homelessness throughout the region. *** New regulations creating rent control areas and the development of affordable housing to balance the increasing growth of “luxury” level housing would enable a large part of the lower income population to remain in their rented apartments or homes, find new housing, and even afford to purchase a home for the first time. Utilizing greener, renewable building materials such as bamboo, straw composite and loam might enable the city to build new affordable housing while keeping costs down and increase environmental and social consciousness at the forefront. *** For the most part, Seattle has been a model green city, but recently many neighborhoods have loosened regulations on cutting down trees or replacing developed green space after developers have done so to build “luxury” accommodation or office space. *** Government involvement through regulations need to be strengthened to ensure that our environment is not compromised for the sake of profit. It has been proven that a reduction in trees contributes to the increase of global warming, something that has directly affected the climate in Seattle as we have had the warmest year on record for two years straight. Perhaps incentives could be devised to encourage developers to build around trees, even incorporating them into the property design (as they were in the past) would help us maintain a larger portion of our native landscape. ***