DCD's neighborhood planning dealt with development issues in all neighborhoods, but particularly in the original urban renewal area of Yesler-Atlantic, Northlake, North Greenwood, and south Seattle. A large body of the records relate to the I-90 Home Ownership Program. This program was created to make is possible for surplus land to be transferred to the City of Seattle from the Washington State Department of Transportation, who purchased the land for the construction of the I-90 Corridor Project. The City of Seattle then turned around and sold the land to tenants who resided in state-owned I-90 housing and allowed them to carry home loans at low interest rates.

The records also show the cooperation between the City and the Seattle School District on neighborhood issues, including such topics as integration, joint reuse of closed schools, and development of former school sites. Also comprising a significant portion of the neighborhood planning records are files on the siting of social and human services and special needs programs and agencies in neighborhoods.

Many of the neighborhood planning records touch on economic development issues including neighborhood/industrial issues in the Empire/Rainier Valley area, South Lake Union Corridor, and South Park/Duwamish development area. Neighborhood traffic and transportation is an important thread running throughout these records.