The Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle has launched a capital campaign to fund a new Empowerment Center at 23rd and Rainier in Rainier Valley, a mixed-use hub that would combine 157 residential units with a new headquarters for the organization and space for its housing, education, workforce development, health, entrepreneurship, advocacy, and financial empowerment programs. The center is planned to break ground in 2027.
According to Connect CRE, the residential units are intended to serve families earning between 30% and 60% of area median income. Under the Seattle Office of Housing's May 2026 income guidelines, that range translates to an annual income between $49,320 and $98,640 for a four-person household. The effort is being called the Reclamation & Restoration capital campaign, which ULMS describes as a phased, multiyear effort to reshape the region's equity landscape, per Connect CRE's reporting.
A Long-Planned Site Near a New Transit Line
The project site itself has been in ULMS's hands for years. In September 2023, the organization purchased the 1.19-acre property at 2001, 2009, and 2021 Rainier Ave. S., which consists of three parcels near Judkins Park, for $14.35 million, according to the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle. Seattle-based SRM Development is managing the development, with building design led by Urbal Architecture and landscape design by Fazio Associates, the organization notes.
The location puts future residents close to one of the region's newest transit links. Sound Transit's Judkins Park Light Rail Station on the 2 Line opened passenger service connecting Seattle and Bellevue in March 2026, according to Sound Transit, giving the corridor direct rail access across Lake Washington.
Consolidating Headquarters and Services
The Empowerment Center would replace or supplement facilities the organization already operates in the area. ULMS currently maintains its primary administrative headquarters at 105 14th Ave in the Central District, alongside a Resource Center at 901 Rainier Ave S, per the organization's own account. It's not the first time ULMS has paired housing with community space — the group converted the historic 1909 Colman School into the Urban League Village in 2008, adding low-income apartments above the Northwest African American Museum, according to AptFinder.org.
Josalyn Ford, chief advancement officer of the Urban League of Metropolitan Seattle, framed the project's intent in comments reported by Connect CRE. “These services will create an ecosystem of support and self-sufficiency,” Ford said. She added that expanding successful programs into Rainier Valley will positively affect the entire city of Seattle.
Part of a Broader Regional Housing Push
Campaign materials from ULMS state that Rainier Valley has historically experienced disproportionate housing cost burdens and displacement pressures among racially diverse and low-income populations, and the organization says the campaign aims to anchor long-term support services directly within the community.
The Empowerment Center would be the latest in a fast-growing housing portfolio for ULMS. The organization has expanded from 12 staff members and a budget under $4 million in 2015 to over 150 employees and a budget exceeding $21 million by 2025, according to Seattle Magazine. Under CEO Michelle Merriweather, who took over the affiliate in 2018, ULMS is on track to develop more than 1,000 housing units across the Seattle region over a 10-year span, the magazine reports.
Rainier Valley isn't the only neighborhood where ULMS and SRM Development are actively building. In March 2026, the pair broke ground on Altaire at Queen Anne, a $71 million, 114-unit affordable housing building at 118 W Mercer St. targeting middle-income workers and families. The organization also operates Booker House, an 86-unit permanent supportive housing site in Federal Way.
Connect CRE content director Jasmine Kilman, who covers Chicago, greater Chicagoland, the Midwest, Seattle, and the Pacific Northwest, authored the original report on the Empowerment Center plans.
