Area artists have been utilizing affordable space in PioneerSquare for a very long time. But over the past five years,development and redevelopment in the area has displaced close to200 artists from their studios, says King County Executive RonSims. The sale and renovation of the Tashiro and Kaplan buildingsmeans another affordable residential and workspace for artists andtheir families won't be lost. The project will also include 20,000sf of arts-related commercial space to help cover costs and promoteresidents' artworks.

"Pioneer Square is a community that has been defined by thepresence of artists and arts-related businesses," says Sims. On thesame day as the Tashiro-Kaplan vote, King County released itsannual Affordable Housing Bulletin, which states a Seattlehousehold needs to earn 175 percent of the median income here toafford the area's averaged priced home of $310,000.

The Tashiro-Kaplan project, located at the corners of ThirdAvenue South and South Washington Street in the Pioneer SquarePreservation District, will be a joint venture between the PioneerSquare Community Development Organization, a Seattle nonprofitorganization for the creation of housing and community development,and Artspace Projects Inc. of Minneapolis, a national developerknown for its restoration of historic properties for affordablehousing for artists.