Street Vacations

What is a Street Vacation?

The term Street Vacation refers to the process where an individual, who owns property adjacent to the right-of-way, can petition the City Council to acquire public right-of-way for private use. Public right-of-way is any property where the City has a right to use the land for street purposes whether or not the right-of-way has ever been improved.

Who makes the decision whether to grant a Street Vacation?

Street vacation decisions are City Council actions as provided by State statute. There is no right under the zoning code or elsewhere to vacate or to develop public right-of-way. To do so, a discretionary legislative approval must be obtained from the City Council and, under law, the Council may not vacate the right-of-way unless it determines that it is in the public interest. Part of that determination is to ensure that potential development and use of the vacated right-of-way would be in the public interest. This determination may be guided by established land use policies and standards as called for by the street vacation policies, but the Council is not bound by land use policies and codes in making street vacation decisions and may condition or deny vacations as necessary to protect the public interest.

Will Vacations be granted for any purpose?

No. Vacations are not appropriate in all circumstances. Vacations cannot be granted for the sole benefit of the Petitioner or to address purely private concerns. This means that vacations will not be granted for purposes such as privatizing parking, acquiring additional property, or addressing security problems. Vacations are not granted for temporary uses such as material storage or loading, landscaping or gardening; a street use permit is more appropriate in these situations. Vacations will not be granted for speculative purposes or to facilitate potential future development. The petition must be associated with a current development proposal in order for the City to fully evaluate the impacts of the vacation and the proposed development. SDOT Street Vacation staff will help you understand street vacation timing, process, costs, and obligations. 

What do the Street Vacation Policies require?

The City Council will weigh two components of the public interest as described in the adopted policies:

First: The City Council will consider the impact of the proposed vacation upon the circulation, access, utilities, light, air, free speech, public assembly, open space, views, land use and urban form provided by the right-of-way. These are defined by the policies as the public trust functions of the right-of-way and are given primary importance in evaluating vacation proposals. The policies require mitigation of the adverse effects upon these public trust functions. What constitutes adequate mitigation will be determined by the City Council.

Second: Proposed vacations may be approved only when they provide a long-term benefit to the general public. Vacations will not be approved to achieve short-term public benefits or for the sole benefit of individuals. Mitigation of the adverse effects of a vacation does not in itself constitute a public benefit. The petition must contain a specific proposal for meeting the public benefit requirement. Elements such as plazas, art, enhanced street improvement such as landscaping, street furniture and wayfinding..

The City Council will weigh the impacts of a vacation, mitigating measures and the public benefit provided by the vacation to determine whether the vacation is in the public interest.

The Street Vacation process in provided for in State Law (RCW 35.79) and the Seattle Municipal Code (SMC 15.62). The City’s Street Vacation policies are contained in Resolution 31809.

SDOT’s Role:  After receiving all the comments on the potential vacation, SDOT will review the proposal for compliance with City Council Street Vacation Policies and guidance and develop a recommendation that includes whether the vacation should be granted or denied, recommended conditions, mitigation measures, and the specific public benefits of the proposal proportional to the impacts of the vacation.

Where can I get additional information about Street Vacations?

For specific questions and more information, please contact Ciara Ortiz at ciara.ortiz@seattle.gov. For more information on City street vacation policies visit the Street Vacation Policies of the City of Seattle 2018.

For more information on previous City Council actions, visit the City clerk’s office. 

Where can I get other information?

For official property and land use records visit King County’s Department of Assessments office at South Jackson Street, Seattle, WA 98104 or visit the county’s eReal Property website.

Design Commission information may be obtained from the Seattle Design Commission website or at sdc_administration@seattle.gov or (206) 684-0435.

For Geographic Information System (GIS) information visit Seattle GeoData or contact gismap@seattle.gov.