Redwood is an impact development organization focused on supporting people, properties, and neighborhoods.
Over the course of the past decade, Redwood has successfully secured 4% Low-Income Housing Tax Credit awards for dozens of properties and has partnered with several state allocating agencies, including agencies in Washington, Hawaii, California, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, and the District of Columbia.
The need for safe, high-quality, and well-maintained affordable housing has never been greater, while supply remains insufficient to meet demand. Furthermore, many affordable housing properties are at risk of being converted to market-rate housing. Redwood is dedicated to preserving and meaningfully improving the existing stock of affordable housing while also identifying opportunities to develop new high-quality housing.
Additionally, Redwood has assembled a best-in-class operating team with significant experience in affordable housing, and has built strong working relationships with government agencies and leading nonprofit organizations, helping them to achieve their mission of Raising the Standard when it comes to high-quality affordable living.
Saint Mark’s Cathedral stands as the heart of the largest parish congregation within the Diocese of Olympia, serving as a central place of worship for The Episcopal Church in Western Washington. The cathedral’s spiritual life is exemplified by its hosting of five worship services everySunday, reflecting a deep commitment to vibrant and inclusive religious practice. In addition to its worship services, Saint Mark’s supports an active and engaged community, with more than 80 ministry groups that nurture the livesof parish members and the broader public. The cathedral campus extends its resources beyond the congregation, welcoming over 100 nonprofits and offering space for a wide range of activities and outreach efforts. Since its founding in 1889, Saint Mark’s has continually adapted to meet the changing needs of Seattle’s population, guided by the love of Christ and a dedication to justice.
Saint Mark’s is positioned in a neighborhood that, during the early and mid-20th century, was subject to redlining by lenders and restrictive deed covenants on real estate ownership that enforced racial and ethnic discrimination. Cathedral and Diocesan leadership were complicit in that trauma. Disparities in housing access and generational wealth persist in our city and in the neighborhood where the cathedral was built nearly a century ago. Saint Mark’s has a unique opportunity to go beyond words and use its campus to repent and repair the harm and injustice that has kept people out of the neighborhood historically.
Saint Mark’s vision is to create an affordable, multi-generational housing development on land neighboring the cathedral, welcoming those previously excluded from the immediate neighborhood due to systemic housing inequities and discriminatory practices. The site offers a compelling setting for families: centrally located, amidst urban green space, with access to transit and close to schools and commercial services. It is alsoi n a part of the city that has very little affordable housing. The development is intended to help counter the effects of past racial and economic exclusion woven into the neighborhood’s history.
