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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPCD 2025-02-10 Item 1B - Discussion - 2025 Work Plan: Zoning Code Amendment City of Tukwila ThomasMcLeod, Mayor INFORMATIONAL MEMORANDUM TO: Planning and Community Development Committee FROM: Nora Gierloff, AICP, DCD Director BY: Nancy Eklund, AICP, Long Range Planning Supervisor CC: Mayor Thomas McLeod DATE: February 3, 2025 SUBJECT: 2025 Zoning Code Amendment Workplan ISSUE In the interest of streamlining items for a busy 2025 Planning and Community Development (PCD) Committee calendar and keeping the PCD apprised of upcoming items, staff is requesting direction on the review process for the 2025 Zoning code amendment workplan items. BACKGROUND Per TMC 18.82.040 the Planning Commission’s workplan, including review of code amendments, is delegated to them by the Planning and Community Development Committee, or full City Council. Such potential code amendments do not require Planning Commission review before being considered by the City Council; however, the Council may elect to have amendment issues reviewed more extensively by the Commission before the Council renders its final decision. The shift of City Council Committee meetings from twice a month to once a month has reduced available committee dates, thus lengthening the lead time needed to process a code amendment. Typically, code amendments are presented to the PCD Committee as single amendments or a small package of amendment topics. DISCUSSION The following list of topics includes those placed by the Council on DCD’s workplan, those mandated by new state regulations, and those proposed by staff for permit streamlining. Staff would like direction on which items the Committee would like to forward to the PC for a hearing and recommendation, and which, if any, the Council would prefer to expedite by addressing themselves. This consolidated approach will reduce staff and Committee member time, provide a more comprehensive view on proposed Planning Commission Workplan topics, and preserve more Committee time for discussion, updates, and any unanticipated items. Additional items not included in this Workplan would still need authorization from the PCD Committee to proceed to the Planning Commission. 2025 Workplan Items City Priorities Tukwila International Boulevard Subarea Planning The City has undertaken significant planning efforts within the Tukwila International Boulevard Study Area. Over the last 25+ years, efforts or documents created include: Pacific Highway Revitalization Plan (1997) 11 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 2 Tukwila International Boulevard Design Manual (1999) Tukwila International Boulevard Plan (2000) Transfer of SR 99 to the City (2003) Establishment of the Urban Renewal Overlay (2009) Tukwila Village Development (2015-2021) Justice Center Development (2020) TIB Rising (2017-2020) Transit-Oriented Development Housing Strategies Plan (2021) Though great effort has been made by residents, community members, stakeholders, and staff to advance the six original goals of the Pacific Highway Revitalization Plan, current development standards do not align with market realities in supporting new investment in further advancing these goals and supporting the City’s overall priorities. As affirmed by market studies conducted as part of the Housing Strategies Plan and discussed within the most recent comprehensive plan update, development standards for housing have not kept pace with construction type realities and increases in development costs. The existing development regulations are not competitive with many comparable development sites in South King County. Low height allowances of three to four stories, high requirements for parking and recreation space, restrictive upper story stepbacks, limited permitted uses, and other outdated standards have forced recent desirable developments to go through negotiated and one-off development agreements or contract rezones to achieve viability. This creates a permitting bottleneck and introduces a large amount of ambiguity in the development process, which creates significant unpredictability for potential projects and discourages private investment. This situation results in this area lagging similar peer locations and reduces the city’s capacity for growth. It also increases the risks of gradual displacement among residents of un-subsidized affordable housing as area housing costs naturally increase, and the affordable homes are not replaced with new affordable housing. In the interest of furthering the goals for the TIB District and benefitting all current and future residents in this area, staff is proposing to undertake significant code amendments to zoning and development regulations within this district. Areas of expected code amendment proposals could include: Anti-displacement provisions Affordability requirements Modification of the TIB study area Changes to the zoning districts Changes to development regulations including height, density, and massing Changes to the parking and recreation space requirements Modifications to the design standards Parking and Use Chart Consistency The municipal code contains separate tables that list permitted uses for zoning districts outside of and within the Tukwila Urban Center (TUC). The same is true for parking requirement tables. In many cases, the uses listed in these tables do not match, making it difficult to pair parking requirements with the established use type and compare uses across different zoning districts. This creates confusion for applicants and is difficult for staff to administer. Through permitting experience and applicant feedback, the Department has also identified parking requirements which are out of step with realistic parking needs. These requirements raise costs of development by mandating largely unused parking areas, limit reuse and 12 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 3 redevelopment potential, frequently force projects to undertake extra processes to reduce parking requirements, or prevent the project from moving forward altogether. Staff proposes to revisit the amount of parking required across uses as part of this update to the parking and use tables. Station Area Planning (SRO) Property owners south of SR 518 and the Tukwila International Boulevard Link Station have expressed interest in undertaking a transit-oriented and mixed-use high-density development, capitalizing on the future connections provided by a new pedestrian bridge across the highway. Sound Transit’s documents indicate the bridge will provide direct access from the site to Link Light Rail and the under-development Stride bus rapid transit line, which will allow travel from Tukwila to Bellevue in less than 40 minutes. In the interest of supporting development at this site, staff suggests exploring further subarea planning of this area in conjunction with property owners and adjacent stakeholders. Cannabis Businesses The Council has expressed an interest in revisiting the Zoning regulations for cannabis businesses. TMC 18.50.210, last amended in 2017, addresses the production, processing, and retailing of marijuana. These uses are permitted (if a state license has been issued) in Heavy Industrial, Tukwila Valley South, and in the Tukwila South Overlay zone (where the underlying zoning is HI or TVS). In addition, the Tukwila code requires separation from various common community uses, making it difficult to site such a business, given the limited zones in which cannabis businesses are allowed. The code also references compliance with sections of the Revised Code of Washington (RCW) that are no longer defined in the RCW. Staff would present the current standards and provide alternatives. Permit Streamlining Critical Area Permit As readily available development sites become scarcer within both Tukwila and the broader region, sites containing environmentally critical areas such as wetlands, streams, and steep slopes become more attractive for potential development. Ambiguity over the presence of critical areas on a site and associated restrictions on development potential can introduce significant uncertainty as to whether site development is viable or not. Confirming the presence of critical areas and their boundaries at the beginning of the development process can better clarify project viability and save costly revisions. Staff proposes establishing a new critical area permit to determine the presence, categorization, and location of critical areas and their associated buffers on a site. The permit, undertaken at the beginning of a project, would grant assurance of developable areas on a site and be valid for a five-year period. Other jurisdictions, such as King County and the City of Kent, currently offer similar permits. State Mandates and Recommendations Critical Area Code Update The growth management act (GMA) requires jurisdictions to update their critical area standards within 12 months of the adoption of the periodic update of the comprehensive plan, or no later than December 31, 2025. Critical area updates should incorporate best available science (BAS) and create standards that reflect changes directed by the Department of Ecology, such as modifications to the methodology of how wetlands are rated. These changes are reviewed for compliance at the state level and may impact characteristics such as buffer distances required for certain critical areas. The City’s Critical Areas Ordinance was last updated in 2020. 13 INFORMATIONAL MEMO Page 4 Affordable Housing Bonuses for Religious Facilities RCW 36.70A.545 requires fully planning cities to “allow an increased density bonus consistent with local needs for any affordable housing development of any single-family or multifamily residence located on real property owned or controlled by a religious organization”. The Tukwila Municipal Code currently contains no such provision for increased density on property owned or controlled by a religious organization. To comply with state law and provide transparency for potential developers, a code amendment addressing these requirements is advised. Safe Parking Standards As a response to the ongoing housing crisis and need to provide safe options for unhoused individuals, safe parking sites have been established in several cities, including Bellevue, Kirkland and Tacoma. Safe parking sites can help provide stability for persons and families living out of their vehicles by offering a legal, secure location to sleep. Many sites also offer wraparound services such as showers, case workers and health services on-site. Cities are required to allow religious organizations to host unhoused individuals in a number of temporary housing configurations, including “vehicle resident safe parking”, per RCW 35A.21.360. Staff suggests exploring a code amendment to establish regulations specific to safe parking sites, compliant with RCW 35A.21.360. FINANCIAL IMPACT N/A RECOMMENDATION The Planning and Community Development Committee is requested to determine which code amendments should be forwarded to the Planning Commission for a recommendation and which, if any, will be directly addressed by Council and return to a future PCD meeting. ATTACHMENTS N/A 14