Comprehensive plans are generalized statements of planning policies that county and city governments enact to guide the regulation of development and land use according to local goals and circumstances. In Washington, the Growth Management Act requires many—indeed, most—local governments to adopt comprehensive plans, as well as imposes specific goals and requirements that those plans must address. As a community grows, reevaluates resources or decides to shift priorities, the governing comprehensive plan should similarly evolve.
Seattle City Council decides annually whether to amend the city’s comprehensive plan in response to proposals submitted by the public, organizations, city departments and others. The process for the 2009 comprehensive plan update involves the council screening proposed amendments in the summer to decide which should be formally considered for adoption the following spring.
To help with the screening process, an initial public hearing was held before the Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods Committee on July 15 to solicit feedback on the proposed amendments. Most of the comments shared at this meeting were regarding the Beacon Hill neighborhood plan update (Amendment #3 listed below), which is scheduled for completion in 2010, and a proposal to rezone properties in the Interbay neighborhood to allow for more flexibility in use types (Amendment #11 listed below). Another public hearing is scheduled for July 22 when it is expected the committee will make its formal recommendation to the council.
There are 20 amendments being considered for inclusion in the annual review process. A few of them—like Chris Leman’s proposals to adopt policies to reduce vehicle miles traveled and mitigate heavy truck traffic—are substantially repeats from 2008. Others seem to be housekeeping measures, such as a proposal keeping the door open for potential changes to three neighborhood plans. Of the original 22 amendments—two of which were pulled from consideration—the Department of Planning and Development (DPD) and Planning Commission support keeping 15 on the policy docket. The Planning Commission indicates that “while some of the proposals may have merit as policy considerations, they are not appropriate for the mission and goal of the comprehensive plan.”
The following is a complete list of the amendments up for consideration with an indication of DPD and Planning Commission endorsement. Future Northwest Hub articles will explore individual amendments in more detail. Any questions concerning the code amendment process may be directed to Dan Nolte in Councilmember Clark’s office (by phone 684-8802 or email dan.nolte@seattle.gov).
List of 2009 Amendments
1. Light Pollution: Establish a working group to recommend strategies to reduce light pollution. Proponent: Jorgen Bader
2. Amend the Rainier Beach Neighborhood Plan: Adjust the boundary of the Rainier Beach Residential Urban Village to include the area south of South Henderson Street between Martin Luther King Way South and the Chief Sealth Trail. Proponent: Matt Wasse, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
3. North Beacon Hill Neighborhood Plan Update Placeholder: Establish a placeholder for consideration of comprehensive plan amendments proposed through the North Beacon Hill neighborhood plan update process, to the extent they become ready for action in 2010. Proponent: DPD, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
4. North Rainier Neighborhood Plan Update Placeholder: Establish a placeholder for consideration of comprehensive plan amendments proposed through the North Rainier neighborhood plan update process, to the extent they become ready for action in 2010. Proponent: DPD, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
5. MLK at Holly (Othello) Neighborhood Plan Update Placeholder: Establish a placeholder for consideration of comprehensive plan amendments proposed through the MLK at Holly (Othello) neighborhood plan update process, to the extent they become ready for action in 2010. Proponent: DPD, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
6. Roosevelt Future Land Use Map (FLUM) Amendment: Amend the FLUM in the Roosevelt Residential Urban Village in anticipation of zoning proposal developed by the Department of Planning and Development in consultation with the Roosevelt neighborhood plan. Proponent: DPD, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
7. Shoreline Master Program: Amend goals and policies to increase emphasis on ecological protection and restoration, address the requirement to complete a shoreline restoration plan, prohibit new over-water structures that are not water dependent, and include more details on when non-water-oriented uses would be allowed on waterfront lots. Proponent: DPD, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
8. South Downtown FLUM Amendment: Amend the FLUM to redesignate areas east of I-5 between South Main Street and South Dearborn Street; and west of I-5 between South Dearborn and the urban center’s southern boundary from Commercial/Mixed Use to Downtown Mixed Residential and Downtown Mixed Commercial. Proponent: DPD, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
9. Amend Northgate Neighborhood Planning Element: Amend the Northgate Neighborhood Planning Element to guide design through neighborhood-specific design guidelines. Support to increase height and density and rezone from multifamily to mixed-use along Northeast Northgate Way, provided that impacts are mitigated by property owners or developers. Proponent: DPD, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
10. Precautionary Principle for Environmental Awareness: Adopt a policy to incorporate the precautionary principle to assess current and potential alternatives to city action. Proponent: Steven Gilbert
11. Interbay BINMIC Amendment: Amend the FLUM to remove land located north of Dravus in the Interbay area from the Ballard Interbay Manufacturing / Industrial Center (BINMIC). Proponent: Interbay Neighborhood Association (represented by Bruce Wynn), Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
12. Open and Participatory Government: Create a new element of the comprehensive plan entitled "Open and Participatory Government." Proponent: Chris Leman, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
13. Reduction in Vehicle Miles Traveled: Add a goal requiring a reduction in vehicle miles traveled in and through the city, and a policy favoring highway projects that produce little or no such increase. Proponent: Chris Leman
14. Discouraging Extra-Heavy Transit Buses and Solid Waste Trucks: Add a policy discouraging extra-heavy transit buses and solid waste trucks that unacceptably damage Seattle’s roads and bridges. Proponent: Chris Leman
15. Amend Use of Building 9 at Sandpoint: Amend Sand Point amendments to allow housing and limited commercial use in Building 9 at the former Sand Point Naval Station. Proponent: Councilmember Richard J. McIver, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
16. Redesignation of a One Block Area, Bounded by 15th Ave Northwest, Northwest 50th Street, 17th Avenue Northwest, and Northwest 49th Street: Amend the FLUM to redesignate a one block area, bounded by 15th Avenue Northwest to the east, Northwest 50th Street to the north, 17th Avenue Northwest to the west and Northwest 49th Street to the south, from Industrial to Commercial / Mixed Use. Proponent: Urban Commercial Properties, L.L.C., represented by Ronald Sudderth, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
17. Yesler Terrace FLUM Amendment: Amend the FLUM to redesignate the Yesler Terrace site from Multifamily Residential to Commercial/Mixed Use. Proponent: Judith Kilgore, Seattle Housing Authority, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
18. Affordable Housing Action Agenda: Promote housing affordability in coordination with the Seattle Transit Plan, create a new policy to consider access to transit and transportation costs when developing affordable housing, and promote attached and detached accessory dwelling units. Proponent: Seattle Planning Commission, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
19. Cultural Overlay District Advisory Committee: Add new goals to encourage cultural districts, and to allow regulations and incentives to be adopted for them. Proponent: Fidelma McGinn and Randy Engstrom, co-chairs, Cultural Overlay District Advisory Committee (sponsored for docket consideration by Councilmember Nick Licata), Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
20. Greenwood FLUM amendment: Amend the Greenwood-Phinney Ridge Neighborhood Planning Element and the FLUM in the Greenwood-Phinney Ridge Residential Urban Village area in anticipation of zoning proposals recommended by the Greater Greenwood Design and Development Advisory Group for an area northeast of the intersection at North 85th Street and Greenwood Avenue North. Proponent: Councilmember Sally Clark, Endorsements: DPD and Planning Commission
