It’s been almost a year since the idea took shape, but yesterday the Seattle city council unanimously approved a smart package of regulatory reforms that Sightline has been supporting. The reforms give a boost to urban sustainability by making it easier to build walkable and affordable communities and by encouraging small-scale entrepreneurship.
Councilmember Richard Conlin deserves plaudits for ably guiding the rather complex (and occasionally controversial) legislation through committee and across the finish line with the full council.
So what does the new law do?
- It relaxes some regulations that stifle very small home-based businesses;
- It clarifies and slightly expands allowances for rental units on single family properties;
- In a few targeted locations, it eases requirements for ground-floor commercial space in new developments;
- It exempts some major institutions like colleges from minimum parking requirements;
- It reduces the amount of government-mandated parking for new development in areas that are well-served by transit;
- For small and medium-size new buildings in dense urban areas, it reduces some redundant review and process.
It’s all good stuff. Even if it’s not exactly earth-shattering, it marks an important step toward making sustainability legal in Seattle. The city now forces less parking on its residents, makes it a little easier to start up a business, helps homeowners supplement their incomes by finding a renter, and encourages good development in urban centers. So, kudos to the mayor’s office and to the city council for supporting and endorsing the reforms.
For more on the reforms, Cienna Madrid has a good writeup at The Stranger, and the Seattle Times has a piece here. I wrote about the development of the legislation here, here, here, and here.
Along with this, does Seattle have any minimum bike parking requirements? It sure would be nice if it did – especially safe and sheltered structures.
I don’t think so, no. But my understanding is that in some locations it’s possible to substitute bike facilities to meet the minimum requirements for parking.
Sure seems like requiring ample (and esthetically elegant) bicycle parking structures would send the clear message of clean and green transportation alternatives. 🙂
Seattle Municipal Code does have requirements for bicycle parking in newly-constructed or majorly redeveloped properties. The requirements are based on the square footage or units of different uses within the building – office, retail, residential, or hotel – and vary based on whether or not the building is in a high-density growth center.
See SMC 23.49.019 Section E1 and Table E under SMC 23.54.015 for more info.
My understanding was that DPD would be revisiting these requirements as they sought to incorporate more green building codes in the next few years.
Wow, requiring *hotels* to provide bicycle parking even sends the tourists the message that Seattle is supremely serious about sustainability!
Something surprising I found while reading through the legislation was upping the SEPA review to new non-residential buildings 75,000 sf or smaller. The recommendation was to lower the limit to keep Walmarts illegal in Seattle. Anyone know why they kept that in? Is there some other way to keep Walmarts out, or has Seattle changed their minds about them?
(that’s “or larger”, not “or smaller”)