Seattle Times columnist Jonathan Martin recently wrote a column advocating for adopting impact fees in Seattle, arguing that “growth doesn’t pay for growth.” That statement is simply not true.

The Rolls-Royce and the Ferrari parked in front of a real estate sales office in Seattle’s Belltown neighborhood Wednesday night were the first indication that this was no normal “house party.” The line of blue-jacketed valets, the red carpet and rope line, the doorman with a list of registered guests, the wine bar, the gourmet hors d’oeuvres, the black-tie-wearing servers, the mini pop-up shop for custom-tailored men’s suits — all of that was a pretty good signal, too. A decidedly less stereotypical Seattle — sans the hiking and rain gear that usually defines us to the world — actually dressed up and turned out to mingle and tour a mock floor plan for a luxury condominium development called Nexus.

Ryan Maas knew, of course, that Seattle was more expensive than Omaha. Even so, he found himself caught off guard by the grim reality of the real-estate market here. After accepting a job transfer in Seattle earlier this year, Maas began the search for a new home for his family. Prices kept pushing his house hunt farther south, right into Pierce County. “I started looking at Kent, Auburn — all those areas where the train stops,” Maas said. ”I ended up in Bonney Lake. I didn’t plan on being that far, but you get more bang for your buck.”