Background

The First Hill and Capitol Hill Regional Center is a centrally located hub of nightlife, urban living, and institutional campuses in Seattle. It is located east of Interstate-5 and directly adjacent to Downtown and South Lake Union (to the west) and Little Saigon (to the south). This adjacency fuels the high demand for housing in this area, as many First Hill and Capitol Hill residents can walk, bike, and take transit to work and other basic needs. To the north and east, the area is bordered by primarily residential neighborhoods with diminishing density, in comparison. This Regional Center is home to a Link Light Rail station and streetcar line that reaches into Little Saigon and Pioneer Square. As one of Seattle’s proposed Regional Centers in the One Seattle Comprehensive Plan, this Center is poised to continue to serve as one of Seattle’s most dense residential and job hubs with robust transportation options.

The neighborhoods contained within the First Hill and Capitol Hill Regional Center also serve critical cultural and sociodemographic functions in Seattle. The people of First Hill and Capitol Hill tend to skew younger, with higher proportions of adults in their 20s and 30s and relatively fewer households with children. Capitol Hill functions as a landing pad for many younger adults, students, and those attracted to the nightlife and opportunity for urban living. For decades, the neighborhood's identity has been connected to the LGBTQIA+ community.