Joshua McNichols
Reporter
About
Joshua’s “Growing Pains” beat sits at the nexus of housing, transportation, urban planning, and the economy. He’s done deep reporting on Amazon and the housing shortage in our region. He interviews people who've found affordable places to live by tolerating long commutes, flooding rivers, or other hazards. He asks people what they want from work and how that's changing. He explores neighborhood "main streets" where residents and businesses come together to form community.
Public radio is a second career for Joshua, after he spent ten years in the field of architecture. He holds a bachelor's degree in Architecture from the University of Washington. He has held many unusual jobs in his life, from fishing to building houses to running the kitchen at a bed and breakfast. He’s also an avid gardener who co-wrote a book on urban gardening during the Great Recession.
Location: Seattle
Languages Spoken: English
Pronouns: he/him/his
Professional Affiliations: Society of Professional Journalists, Western Washington Chapter
Podcasts
Stories
-
Meet the Seattle office buildings that could become your next apartment
This week, the city concluded a design competition, in which architects submitted proposals to convert specific buildings.
-
'Real people being represented': Seattle's social housing board is just getting started
Seattle has a new public development authority, and it has a big mission: improving access to affordable housing.
-
Near term: Seattle is in the black. Long term, well...
Top officials at the city of Seattle are trying to plan for the city’s economic future. But, with so many big trends creating so much uncertainty, predicting that future is no easy task.
-
Big-box businesses have taken over Seattle's industrial zones. New legislation could change that
Seattle’s population has grown, and the scarcity of land has led to more big-box stores and more self-storage facilities on industrial land. Now, there’s an effort to preserve that industrial land for industry, whether it’s brewing beer or building ships.
-
Seattle's first affordable housing high-rise tower in 50 years welcomes its first residents
This week, people who used to live outside began moving into a new building on First Hill. It’s the first new affordable housing high-rise tower Seattle has seen in 50 years. It represents a different approach — in terms of scale and strategy — for addressing homelessness in the region.
-
Vacant storefronts are common downtown but rare in Seattle suburbs
Vacant retail stores may be common in downtown Seattle and its surrounding neighborhoods, but they’re exceedingly rare in the Seattle metro region as a whole. In fact, retail vacancy rates are at near record lows.
-
Do townhomes drive down housing costs? Social science has an answer
Townhomes are cheaper to build than single-family homes. Homebuyers and renters may not see savings though, unless a lot more homes hit the market. In our continuing coverage of Washington State's landmark "middle housing bill," which would encourage more townhomes statewide, we dig into the question of whether density can bring prices down, and bring in a (social) scientist.
-
Will increased density through HB-1110 actually lower WA home prices?
KUOW Housing Reporter Joshua McNichols walks us through the details behind how housing density can help lower housing costs through increased supply.
-
Corrections Corner: HB 1110 and Small Communities
KUOW Housing Reporter Joshua McNichols sits down with Soundside host Libby Denkmann to talk about a quick correction to reporting about HB 1110.
-
More housing is on the way, but parking? Maybe not
One parking stall on small lots, two stalls on larger lots: That's all cities can require on middle housing developments, whether the project is a duplex or a six-unit building.