Earl’s Cuts and Styles had been an important cultural center and meeting place for the African American community in the Central Area at 23rd and Union since 1992. With the planned redevelopment of Midtown Plaza, many in the community worried that the barbershop...

Four board members representing their neighborhoods and two ex officio members have recently joined the Crescent Collaborative board.  The neighborhood representatives are: Maiko Winkler-Chin (top left), Executive Director of the Seattle Chinatown-International...

Four Crescent Collaborative organizational partners received notice of funding yesterday when Mayor Jenny A. Durkan announced that the City of Seattle will invest $110 million to create 1,944  new affordable homes in neighborhoods across Seattle. This is the largest...

On Nov. 21, Crescent Collaborative introduced a series of five short videos that document the history of its predecessor organization, Yesler Community Collaborative (YCC). The videos trace the history of this community collaborative from its beginnings in 2014 to the...

At it’s November meeting the Yesler Community Collaborative Board of Directors completed the formal changes needed to continue operating as a nonprofit organization past the time that it was originally slated to sunset. By amending its bylaws, the board changed...

On September 29 Seattle Housing Authority celebrated the opening of its third new low-income housing building at Yesler Terrace. The seven-story building with adjacent townhomes features 111 apartments in a mix of one-, two-, there- and four-bedroom units. The new...

Bill Block has joined the Yesler Community Collaborative board of directors as board vice president, replacing Tom Tierney who recently retired from the board. “This is an exciting opportunity to link and empower community groups that too often get pushed to the...

Innovation, optimism, hope and persistence. These were the four qualities cited by the participants in the Midtown Center real estate deal that made headlines earlier this summer for its unique vision of preserving neighborhood culture through new development. At the...

Collaborative efforts a key to success On July 31, the Seattle City Council approved legislation applying Mandatory Housing Affordability requirements to the Chinatown-International District. Similar legislation was passed for the Central Area in July, for downtown...

Seattle Housing Authority has begun leasing apartments in the new Hoa Mai Gardens apartment building. Located between the Yesler Community Center and the Yesler Hillclimb, this building contains 111 apartments ranging in size from one- to four-bedroom units. Among...

Even though City Councilmember Rob Johnson represents the 4th district, located north of the Ship Canal, he is passionate about maintaining housing affordability across all sections of the city. We recently sat down with him to discuss this issue. Johnson recognizes...

Community members celebrated the Juneteeth holiday on June 19 by breaking ground on the new Liberty Bank Building at 24th Avenue and East Union Street. The redevelopment of Liberty Bank will help preserve affordability in the neighborhood by bringing 115 units of...

A few years from now, the intersection of 12th and Jackson at the heart of Little Saigon will look and feel completely different.  Many of the one- and two-story retail buildings with parking lots in front will give way to multi-story apartment buildings, ground floor...

On April 14 Mayor Murray signed legislation to rezone parts of South Lake Union and Downtown that will fall under the Mandatory Housing Affordability program (MHA). MHA requirements for Downtown/South Lake Union will result in an estimated 2,100 additional affordable...

How do existing neighborhood businesses stay, grow, and thrive as Seattle grows? This is one of the questions that inspired Sue Oliver, Executive Director of Seattle University’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center, to secure grant funding and found the Resource...

With funding support and convening assistance from Yesler Community Collaborative, several Seattle-area organizations have come together to forge an innovative, collaborative approach to workforce development in healthcare. Using the Seattle Housing Authority’s Job...

As Seattle’s population grows and the pace of development accelerates, many are finding it difficult to afford housing here. Families are moving to the suburbs and some are leaving because the character of the city is changing so quickly, and not for the better....

At its annual fundraising breakfast on March 2, Futurewise conferred its “Community Champion” award to Doris Koo and the Yesler Community Collaborative. In choosing YCC, Futurewise noted, “We celebrate and thank Yesler Community Collaborative and Doris Koo for...

Three City directors participated on Monday in a tour of neighborhoods facing pressures from growth and gentrification as property values in Seattle continue to rise. The tour was organized by Yesler Community Collaborative partners to introduce the new director of...

In mid-October, Weber Shandwick’s (WS) Seattle office launched a research effort to probe attitudes and gain insights on the topic of equitable development. This effort was part of the company’s Impact Project, for which they chose Yesler Community Collaborative (YCC)...

Yesler Community Collaborative partners are joining forces to create four temporary park locations as part of PARK(ING) DAY + 2016. This annual Seattle event temporarily turns on-street parking spots into pop-up public spaces. Participating organizations include...

The Seattle Housing Levy is up for renewal in 2016. YCC partners support this renewal of a proven, effective, dedicated funding source for affordable housing. Learn more about the Yes! for Homes campaign. Proposition 1 invites voters to renew and expand the Housing...

The Seattle office of Weber Shandwick, a leading global communications and engagement firm with a network extending to 126 cities in 81 countries, has chosen Yesler Community Collaborative as its Impact Project Partner for 2016. In its effort to contribute their...

At a recent Yesler Community Collaborative gathering, Brad Liljequist presented the findings from a year-long research project to create a vision of a Living Community for the First Hill neighborhood. Liljequist is Net Zero Energy Director at International Living...

A $75,000 grant from Seattle Foundation, through their Communities of Opportunity grant program, will make it possible for a group of community organizations surrounding the Yesler Terrace neighborhood to work collaboratively to address issues of economic equity,...

On March 31, Mayor Ed Murray announced $1.6 million in investments to spur small business development in Seattle neighborhoods. $102,000 of that total was awarded to YCC partner, the Central Area Collaborative. The announcement took place at a celebration at Taste of...

In spite of leaden skies, the winter deluge held off long enough for an enthusiastic group of more than a hundred to gather at the edge of Yesler Terrace in celebration of the new Hillclimb that will connect it with the Chinatown/International District below. Built...

Andréa Akita has joined our consultant team to provide additional support, along with Ellen Kissman, to Yesler Community Collaborative’s issue area cohort groups. “We are very pleased to have Andréa as part of the Yesler Community Collaborative team. She brings...

The Boeing company announced today that Yesler Community Collaborative is among recipients in the Puget Sound area of a $40,000 grant in 2016. The grant will assist YCC to build capacity among local organizations in the economic opportunity support system serving...

Yesler Community Collaborative’s Housing Cohort has brought together people in leadership from key organizations working to develop and preserve affordable housing in the neighborhoods including and surrounding Yesler Terrace. Member organizations include Capitol Hill...

How do you instill values and support a community to move towards healthier living that promotes a more sustainable environment? That is the challenge faced by the Yesler Terrace community and Seattle Housing Authority managers as the worn out housing at Yesler...

Marian Ahmed bursts into the room with a broad smile on her face, exuding strength and confidence. This 46-year old woman speaks frankly about her difficult journey as a refugee from Somalia to the United States, with a clear sense of gratitude in spite of the...

InterIm Community Development Association is leading health action planning for the International District, funded by the BUILD Health Challenge. This grant-funded project is facilitating a new partnership among InterIm, Public Health | Seattle and King County  and...

The final recommendations put forward by Mayor Ed Murray’s Housing Affordability and Livability Agenda (HALA) contain several strategies that can readily be put into place in the Yesler Community Collaborative neighborhoods. “The neighborhoods within the greater...

With a $400,000 multi-year grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Seattle University will significantly increase its outreach and engagement with its nearby neighbors. The University’s Center for Community Engagement (CCE) will use the grant to build its...

In a sunny conference room at the Jesse Epstein Opportunity Center, seven women gather around and watch closely as Deborah Vandermar demonstrates at a sewing machine. This is the first Industrial Sewing class in the three-month term, so the focus is on fundamentals –...

InterIm Community Development Association has been awarded a $75,000 planning grant to address health disparities in the Chinatown-International District. This local nonprofit will work with community organizations including International Community Health Services,...

On Friday, June 5, nearly 200 people gathered to celebrate the completion of Kebero Court, the first new low-income housing at Yesler Terrace in 75 years. Built by the Seattle Housing Authority, Kebero Court will house 103 low-income families whose incomes fall far...

Representatives from JPMorgan Chase & Co. presented a $500,000 grant today to Sue Taoka, board president of a new organization formed to support and promote equitable and sustainable development at Yesler Terrace and in surrounding neighborhoods. Yesler Community...

Two visionary community leaders from Cleveland were in Seattle this week to share their vision with practitioners from Seattle University, Pichot University, the Seattle Foundation and Yesler Community Collaborative Partners. Pierce Lee, Program Director with the...

What does it take to meaningfully and effectively involve the members of a community in decisions that affect them? This was at the heart of a discussion involving a dozen or so people from Seattle nonprofits and institutions as they met on February 24. Convened in...