Master Planning

In May 1998, the Seattle Pacific University Board of Trustees authorized the administration to initiate the process of preparing a new Major Institution Master Plan (MIMP), a plan that lays out unique, institution-specific zoning rules for each of Seattle's hospitals and universities in order to balance institutional development with preservation of adjacent neighborhoods. In September 1998, Seattle City Council appointed a Citizens' Advisory Committee (CAC) of local residents, property and business owners, and members of various community organizations to assist the University in the master planning process. The primary goals of the CAC were

1. To promote a balance between the needs for institutional growth and stability and the needs to protect the livability of the surrounding community from the impacts of institutional growth


2. To provide a forum for community testimony and involvement in the development of the master plan


3. To assist the City of Seattle and Seattle Pacific University in the promotion of a positive and cooperative relationship between the University and the surrounding neighborhoods

The CAC and representatives from SPU and the City met fifteen times and worked collaboratively on the development of a new MIMP that fulfilled these goals. Following an almost two-year process, SPU's new MIMP was adopted in August 2000 and approved by the City Council shortly thereafter. The August 2000 Adopted MIMP (PDF) replaced the previous MIMP and has no fixed expiration date.