Housing, Creativity and Community

Housing for the People Who Build Community

Building a Tacoma where artists, students, educators, families, and innovators can afford to live, create, and contribute.

Image courtesy of b9 architects. Used with permission.

A Model for What's Possible

As Energize Tacoma explores the relationship between housing, creativity, and community development, we have found inspiration in the work of b9 architects and their innovative approach to missing middle housing.

The featured images on this page showcase the 28th Avenue ADU Cluster, a completed residential project in Seattle's Mount Baker neighborhood. This remarkable development demonstrates how thoughtful design, housing policy, and neighborhood-scale planning can work together to create new housing opportunities while respecting the character of existing communities.

Images courtesy of b9 architects. Used with permission.

The project consists of eight homes created across two residential lots through a combination of detached homes and accessory dwelling units (ADUs). Rather than relying solely on large-scale development, the project illustrates how smaller, strategically designed housing can help address housing shortages while creating welcoming places for people to live.

For a small grassroots organization like Energize Tacoma, projects such as this are incredibly important. They show that meaningful housing solutions do not always require massive developments. Thoughtful, human-scaled projects can create real impact, strengthen neighborhoods, and expand housing opportunities for families, artists, students, educators, and working residents.

We are grateful to b9 architects for allowing Energize Tacoma to share images of this project as an educational example of missing middle housing. Their willingness to support community dialogue around housing, design, and neighborhood development helps organizations like ours better communicate what is possible.

To learn more about b9 architects and their work, we encourage visitors to explore their portfolio and housing projects. Their work demonstrates how good design can contribute to more livable, sustainable, and connected communities.

Our Vision for Housing & Creativity

Energize Tacoma believes that artists, educators, students, cultural workers, scientists, and entrepreneurs are essential to the life of a city. Yet many of the people who contribute the most to Tacoma's culture and creativity increasingly struggle to find housing they can afford.

As a small grassroots nonprofit, we are exploring ways to support housing that strengthens Tacoma's creative economy while creating opportunities for people to live, work, learn, and build community.

We are particularly interested in missing middle housing, accessory dwelling units (ADUs), small-scale multifamily projects, and mixed-use developments that can fit naturally within existing neighborhoods while expanding housing choice.

Our long-term goal is to explore housing models that combine attainable housing with community-focused spaces for art, education, culture, and innovation.

We believe housing is more than shelter. Housing creates stability. Stability allows people to create. Creative people strengthen communities. Strong communities build great cities.

Why Missing Middle Housing Matters

Projects like the 28th Avenue ADU Cluster demonstrate how thoughtful design can create new homes without dramatically changing the character of a neighborhood. By introducing housing at a human scale, these projects expand opportunities for residents while preserving the qualities that make communities unique.

For Tacoma, this matters because artists, educators, musicians, cultural workers, scientists, students, nonprofit leaders, entrepreneurs, and families all help shape the identity of our city. They create the culture, innovation, and community connections that make Tacoma a vibrant place to live. Yet many of the people who contribute so much to Tacoma's future increasingly face challenges finding housing they can afford.

Missing middle housing—including accessory dwelling units (ADUs), cottage housing, duplexes, triplexes, and other neighborhood-scale housing types—helps bridge the gap between single-family homes and large apartment buildings. These housing options can increase affordability, support local businesses, strengthen neighborhood vitality, and create opportunities for people to remain connected to the communities they help build.

As a small grassroots nonprofit, Energize Tacoma believes that housing, culture, art, science, education, and economic opportunity are deeply connected. A thriving creative economy requires more than programming and events—it requires attainable places for people to live, create, learn, work, and contribute.

We support thoughtful housing solutions that help keep community builders connected to Tacoma. By exploring housing models that complement existing neighborhoods while expanding housing choice, we hope to contribute to a future where the people who help make Tacoma special can continue to call it home.

Future Concepts We're Exploring

The concepts below represent areas of interest and exploration and are not active development projects.