Planning Department reports comprehensive plan in effect, appeal filed; previews critical areas, shoreline and impact-fee work

Planning Department staff updated the commission on recent approvals, an appeal, and a slate of legislative work the department expects to bring to the commission this year.

Staff reported that the comprehensive plan was adopted under ordinance "50 13" and development regulations under ordinance "50 14" (adopted Dec. 15, 2025) and went into effect Jan. 1. Staff added that an appeal of the comprehensive plan and development regulations has been filed with the Growth Management Hearings Board by Ian Munz and that prehearing steps are underway; in the interim the ordinances remain in effect.

On project-level work, staff said the 17th Street Cottages unit lot subdivision has completed council review: the council approved a vacation of an unopened alley right-of-way and then approved the unit lot subdivision at a closed-record hearing. Staff said the developer may now submit construction permits.

Looking ahead, staff described several legislative and housekeeping initiatives: a critical areas regulations update that requires a best-available-science review and draft amendments (deadline: end of year); a Shoreline Master Program periodic review that was largely advanced in 2018–2022 but requires coordination with the Department of Ecology before council adoption; and additional development regulation cleanups tied to comprehensive plan changes.

Staff also outlined the annual docket cycle for comprehensive plan or zoning amendment requests (applications due in March) and clarified the fee structure: a modest initial administrative fee is required to submit a docket request and staff stated a total fee figure of about $1,800 (the figure was corrected from an earlier misstatement). Staff cautioned that additional fees apply if an item is docketed and proceeds to hearings.

On impact fees, staff said analyses are underway for fire, parks and transportation to estimate costs associated with projected growth and to follow state-prescribed methodologies. Staff noted school districts can adopt impact fees and the city would collect them if the district elects to implement, but the local district had not elected to do so and staff had not yet discussed that option with the district.

Staff briefly described term reassignments in resolution 3203 that moved the commission from six-year to four-year staggered terms and listed upcoming term end dates for several commissioners. Finally, staff presented an early-concept downtown streetscape plan, including a proposed roughly 1.5–2.0 mile looped walking route that would link the waterfront, downtown and museum/library area and a public survey (SurveyMonkey-style) to gather feedback.

Next steps: staff will prepare scope and draft materials for the critical areas review and the shoreline periodic update, continue docket processing and notify potential applicants of the March deadline, and post the updated meeting schedule once confirmed.