Update on Middle Housing: The Planning Commission has completed their work, and the ball is now in City Council’s court. There will be two meetings at City Council; one to introduce the topic and another for them to vote, but these have not been scheduled yet.
From my perspective, there are some significant gaps in the proposal so far. We still have a ~40% drop in the allowable building area when you cross from 9999 sqft lot size to 10k sqft, and you have to have an over 16k sqft lot to be allowed to build a structure as large as that 9999 sqft lot would. There was also a new provision, added after the public hearing, which would allow 16 units to be built on many lots, based on a reduced minimum lot size for affordable housing. The infinite cottages loophole still seems likely to produce some unintended consequences, and the rules for cottages don’t align with cottage requirements in other cities, but our “creativity” in creating these rules has not had much scrutiny.
Thursday, May 1st
PSRC Growth Management Policy Board (GMPB), 10am
Certification of various Comprehensive Plans
A new missing middle, the disappearance of moderate-sized housing – Eric Clute
Transfer of Development Rights – Sarah Fox
https://www.psrc.org/media/9586
King County Affordable Housing Committee meeting, 2pm
Legislative Briefing
Charter amendments
Bellevue School District (BSD) School Board Meeting, 4:30pm
Report on Reimagining Middle Schools
Strategic Plan Goals and Measures
(no presentation or documents are yet available for either of the above topics)
Bellevue’s Environmental Services Commission Meeting, 6:30pm
Water System Plan Update
The water system policies can be grouped into three categories: to manage the water service area, to operate the water system, and to fund the water system. Water system policies are developed by management and reviewed by the Environmental Services Commission. The analysis takes a lot of work, so the process will take all of 2025 for a submittal in 2026. We submit this updated plan to the Washington Department of Health every 10 years.
Upcoming:
5/8 Transportation Commission: MIP, TFP Update, Micromobility
5/12 Meydenbauer Park update to City Council
5/14 Planning Commission: BelRed LUCA introduction, HOMA LUCA, and Downtown Regional Center CPA
5/15 BSD School Board Meeting
5/28 Planning Commission: Environmental Stewardship Plan, Economic Development Plan
6/5 PSRC Economic Development District Board
6/5 Watershed Management Plan Update at Environmental Services Commission
6/10 GSP Board of Directors meeting
6/11 Planning Commission: Neighborhood Area Planning, Downtown Regional Center CPA
6/12 Transportation Commission: TFP Update
6/25 Growth Management Planning Council (GMPC) meeting
6/25 Planning Commission: HOMA, Critical Areas Ordinance Update, Watershed Management Plan
7/9 Planning Commission: Neighborhood Area Planning, Downtown Regional Center CPA
7/10 Environmental Services Commission CIP Projects tour
7/10 Transportation Commission: MIP, TFP, Shared Micromobility, Curb Pricing
7/23 Planning Commission: Critical Areas Ordinance, BelRed LUCA, Neighborhood Area Planning if needed
7/24 BSD School Board Meeting
9/11 Transportation Commission MIP Update, Environmental Sustainability Plan, Vision Zero Action Plan report, Curb Pricing
9/18 NEP open house at NWAC
Opportunities:
Planning Commission Openings
Apply online by Tuesday, April 29th, at 5pm.
https://www.engagingbellevue.com/sign-code-update/surveys/signcodequestionnaire
Neighborhood Enhancement Program
Request an NEP project for Northwest Bellevue by filling out the Online Project Idea Request Form that can be found on the NEP website at: www.bellevuewa.gov/nep
There is no limit on the number of project requests that you can submit, but they all must be received by Wednesday, April 30, 2025. The city emailed out contact information for people working in Parks (Trails, O&M, Planning) and Transportation (Traffic Engineering and Traffic Calming), which I can forward to you if you’d like to talk to someone before you submit a project.
In addition to the other openings, such as Bellevue City Council, that require filings with the King County Elections office, here is a invitation from the school district to become a candidate:
| Become a School Board Director: File a Declaration of Candidacy by May 9 Are you interested in student, staff and community well-being? Consider a candidacy for becoming a school board director. The Bellevue School Board of Directors is made up of five community members, one from each geographic region of the district. Districts 3 and 5 are open for election in 2025. Candidates who are interested in running for a school board position must file a Declaration of Candidacy with the King County Elections office during the filing period. The filing period begins the first Monday in May and ends the following Friday. This year’s deadline is Friday, May 9. There is no filing fee for school board positions. For step-by-step instructions, please refer to King County’s Candidate Manual. |