HomeMy WebLinkAboutPlanning 2025-03-27 Minutes - Middle Housing Code Discussion (Continued)
CITY OF TUKWILA
PLANNING COMMISSION (PC)
MINUTES
Date: March 27, 2025
Time: 6:30 p.m.
Location: Hybrid Meeting - via Microsoft Teams / Public, In-Person Attendance,
Council Chambers, 6200 Southcenter Blvd., Tukwila, WA 98188
I. Call to Order
Chair Probst called the Tukwila PC meeting to order at 6:33 p.m.
II. Roll Call
The PC Secretary took roll call.
Present: Chair Martin Probst; Vice Chair Ann Durant; Commissioners Louise Strander, Alex
Kaehler, Richard McLeland Wieser, Jane Ho, and Jacob Halverson.
Staff: Director Nora Gierloff, American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP), Department
of Community Development (DCD); Senior Planner Neil Tabor, AICP, DCD; Senior
Planner Isaac Gloor, DCD, and PC Secretary Wynetta Bivens, DCD
III. Amendment of the Agenda
Chair Probst recommended approving the agenda as written. There were no objections.
IV. Approval of Minutes
Commissioner McLeland Wieser moved to adopt the 2/27/25 minutes. Commissioner Durant
seconded the motion. The motion carried.
V. Written General Public Comments
No submittals.
VI. Unfinished Business
Senior Planner Neil Tabor, AICP, DCD, continued the discussion on Middle Housing
(MH). He walked through the staff report and provided an overview of the MH update
amendments, noting that staff emailed information to the PC in advance on some topics.
He went over the upcoming schedule for MH. There is an upcoming public hearing on
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April 24 on the proposed MH code amendments. The resulting recommendations from
this hearing will go to Planning Community Development (PCD) in May and to the City
Council (CC) in June for adoption. He said that June 30, 2025, is the deadline to adopt
the draft code to comply with state requirements. The PC were encouraged to ask
questions, which were addressed by both Neil and Senior Planner Isaac Gloor, DCD.
Planning Commission Minutes
3/27/25 Meeting
Page 2
Staff proposed updates:
- Combining low density residential (LDR) and medium density residential (MDR)
into one zone in the community residential standards. Consistency and clarification
was provided on proposed community residential development standards.
- Expanding single family zoning into more MH options.
- A 5,000 sq. ft. minimum lot size
- A baseline of three units per lot size for Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and
additional bonuses based on lot size and other state law requirements.
- One parking space requirement for MH and no parking required for ADUs.
- Areas where parking restrictions cannot be required for MH and ADUs.
- Recreation space requirements. There was extensive discussion on open space-
proposed suggestions from the PC - flexibility, retention of trees and/or possible
incentives. Four PC were in favor of no open space requirement.
- New street standards to update Title 17, including the addition of new street types: 1)
Neighborhood yield streets and 2) Living streets, with associated new street
dimensions/standards.
Additional Comments and Questions Addressed by the PC and Staff:
(Further PC discussion and staff responses are available in the video of the meeting.)
- Question addressed on transit buffers.
- What would it look like if massing on a building is maxed out?
- Question addressed on detached or buildable units.
- At what sq. ft. are sprinklers required for single homes?
- The city’s current standards for recreation space have been cited as an impediment to
new MH and multifamily development.
- Can an ADU be in front of a development?
- Can an open space threshold be created for single family development?
- Is there any research of what residents want pertaining to open space?
- Define livable area. What is the current definition in the code?
- Is a porch a livable area?
- Frontage improvements:
o What triggers frontage improvements?
o Support expressed for frontage improvements.
o Could a land use event (e.g., a short plat, etc.) or a development trigger or tie
street improvements into the development?
o Support expressed in favor of sidewalks.
o What does the city do if there is not enough space to add a sidewalk?
o When is frontage required and is there a way to help the homeowners to
develop their land the way they want? (Staff said it’s not acceptable under
state law addressing the development of ADUs).
o It’s concerning what the trigger is for corner lots and required frontage
improvements.
o Staff should brainstorm some additional alternatives or solutions or
thresholds.
o Should stormwater review trigger frontage improvements?
- Questions raised regarding amending thresholds for other streets.
Planning Commission Minutes
3/27/25 Meeting
Page 3
- What is intersection daylighting? It is lacking and stressful to have inadequate
lighting; will it be implemented in Tukwila?
VII. New Business
None.
VIII. Director’s Report
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- PC will hold a public hearing on the MH code amendments on April 24.
- A packet will go to the CC.
- Director Gierloff said she appreciated all the work everyone spent on MH.
- There are some code amendments along with some other state law changes that will be fitted
into the CC’s schedule as possible.
- The big projects coming up will be the Critical Areas Update, which is due in December and
the Tukwila International Boulevard Code Changes.
- Commissioner McLeland Weiser said that the PC requested quite a bit of information from
staff at the last meeting and he really appreciated the staff providing it. Commissioner
Kaehler said he seconded that and said it was incredible information that staff had pulled
together and that it was super helpful.
IX. Adjournment
Commissioner Ho moved to adjourned. Commissioner Kaehler seconded the motion.
The Commission adjourned at 8:28 p.m.
Submitted by: Wynetta Bivens, PC Secretary
Adopted: 4/24/25