Building Connections Seattle Department of Construction & Inspections

Building Connections

Seattle Department of Construction & Inspections news and events

May is Building Safety Month

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The Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections and the City of Seattle are proud to participate in the International Code Council’s annual Building Safety Month campaign this May. This event has been the emphasis of the International Code Council and its predecessors for the past 40 years. The goal and purpose of the International Code Council was to showcase the work and mission of the codes, officials who administer them, and the positive affects the community can receive when they are administered.  There are weekly themes throughout May to educate the public on important issues such as being prepared for a disaster.  The City of Seattle has been and continues to be a major contributor to the development and implementation of all types of codes relevant to the built environment.

Building Safety Month Resources

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The Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections and the City of Seattle are proud to participate in the International Code Council’s annual Building Safety Month campaign this May. This event, created by the International Code Council, has a goal and purpose to showcase the work and mission of the codes, officials who administer them, and the positive effects the codes can have on the community. This page includes resources for each week’s theme.

Changes to Requirements for Green Building

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On April 19, citywide Mandatory Housing Affordability (MHA) legislation became effective, implementing affordable housing requirements throughout the City of Seattle. The legislation amends the Land Use Code in many ways, but specific to the green building standards, it changes the triggers for when the green building requirements apply. The Land Use Code does not make green building mandatory. The code does make green building a requirement when a project exceeds floor area ratio (FAR) thresholds, and when gaining extra floor area and height in specific zones. 

Green Building Incentives

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We are seeing drastic signs of climate change in Seattle and throughout Washington State. Smokey summers and droughts are becoming more common, snowpack and stream flows have been altered and are decreasing future water supply and hydropower production, all while energy and water demands are increasing with population growth. We must reduce our greenhouse gas emissions to tackle climate change and to achieve the City’s goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. Our buildings make up about one-third of Seattle’s emissions.

Publication Updates

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Seattle DCI released two updated Tips, a draft Director’s Rule on green building standards, and a final Director’s Rule on an updated steep slope map.

Seattle Buildings on Track for Major Energy

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The Seattle Office of Sustainability and Environment (OSE) recently released the 2011/2012 Seattle Building Energy Benchmarking Analysis report and infographic on building energy use. This report and infographic reveals that Seattle building owners are poised to save tens of millions of dollars on energy annually by improving their building’s energy efficiency.

Priority Green Open House January 23

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The Department of Planning and Development (DPD) is hosting a Priority Green open house on January 23, 2014, 9:00 a.m. to noon. Come learn how Priority Green, DPD’s voluntary green building incentive program is changing in 2014, and how it complements conservation goals at Seattle City Light and Seattle Public Utilities.

Green Code Provisions Open House

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The City of Seattle and regional partners are identifying long-term green priorities and developing new code to address climate change.The public can comment on the draft code language at the Green Code Provisions Open House. Staff will be available to answer questions and give feedback to those who want to comment.