City of Burien
BURIEN PLANNING COMMISSION MEETING
July 8, 2003
7:00 p.m.
City Council Chambers
MINUTES
Planning Commission Members Present: Robert Simpson-Clark, interim chair; Jon Newton, Rebecca McInteer, Janet Shull, and Barbara Williams
Absent: Bonnie Isenberg, Douglas Rahn
Others Present: Nancy Bird, EDAW
Interim chair Simpson-Clark called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Upon the call of the roll all commissioners were present with the exception of Commissioners Isenberg and Rahn.
Agenda Confirmation
Motion to approve the agenda as printed was made by Commissioner Newton. Second was by Commissioner McInteer and the motion carried unanimously.
Approval of Minutes
A. May 27, 2003
B. June 10, 2003
Commissioner Williams referred to the second paragraph on the second page of the June 10 minutes and noted that the minutes should reflect the fact that Burien is using simpler criteria for streams than that being used by King County.
With regard to the first paragraph on page 4 Commissioner Williams asked to have the first complete sentence revised to read “Commissioner Williams expressed concern that the waterway may be classified as a ditch because it is not a natural flow any longer, and because there is no documented fish usage.”
Turning to the last paragraph on page 4, Commissioner Williams noted that Salmon Creek is in fact a Type 3 stream, not a Type 2 stream as noted in the minutes. David Johanson, senior planner, said he thought the stream is shown on the map as a Type 2. It was agreed that the minutes as written are correct and that if the map is in error it should be corrected.
Motion to approve the May 27, 2003 minutes as submitted and the June 10, 2003 minutes as corrected was made by Commissioner Newton. Second was by Commissioner Shull and the motion carried unanimously.
Public Comment – None
Old Business – None
New Business
A. Comprehensive Plan Amendments Discussion (Housing, Parks and Open Space) Map Amendments
Nancy Bird, EDAW, explained that the Housing Element of the Comprehensive Plan must under the requirements of the Growth Management Act (GMA) be updated to reflect demographic changes and things that might affect policy.
Ms. Bird said the Demographics Project done in 2003 as a part of the community profile provides the necessary demographic information. The report documents the fact that the population in Burien is very stable; growth is slow but steady, which most increases due to annexation actions. The percentage of seniors in Burien is greater than for King County as a whole. Ethnic and racial diversity continues to increase. While in most of the region the average household size has decreased, in Burien it has increased; must of that can be attributed to increases in the minority populations. The median income in Burien is lower than the average for King County, but only slightly so.
The commissioners were told that a home is considered affordable if 30 percent or less of the homeowner’s income is used to pay for housing expenses. Accordingly, what is affordable housing to one family may be quite different for another family. Typically the term affordable housing is targeted to those of moderate-level incomes, or 50 to 80 percent of the area median income.
Burien has a large supply of older housing that can be considered to be affordable. Sixty percent of the existing housing stock is single-family, though there is very little new construction in that category in the city. Given the age of the existing homes, quality of affordable housing is something the City might want to focus on. There are 13,951 housing units in Burien of which 59 percent are single family; 35 percent are units in complexes with five or more units total; four percent are units in complexes with three to four units; and just over one percent is mobile homes and trailers. Since 2000 there have been 315 new housing units constructed in Burien; only 53 of those units were constructed since 2002, an indication of slow housing growth.
Ms. Bird commented that homes constructed in the ‘70s often used materials that have not proved to be long lasting; those homes will have a shorter lifespan. Many of the homes built in the late ‘40s and ‘50s were constructed with very good materials and will last much longer provided they are well maintained. Redevelopment is often the route taken when the value of a property exceeds that of the home constructed on it.
Commissioner Newton asked if the 315 housing units constructed since 2000 count towards the City’s housing target of 1,552 new units. Ms. Bird allowed that the 315 new units counted toward the housing target that was previously established. The target of 1,522 new units applies for the period of time ending in 2022; to meet that goal will require construction at a rate much higher than that experienced in recent years. Of the market will control to a great extent, but the City’s focus on the downtown area will to a large degree influence the growth of the city. Burien has an adequate supply of land for housing.
Commissioner Newton asked what penalties can be imposed for not meeting the housing targets. Ms. Bird allowed that there really are none, adding that local jurisdictions must, however, be able to show that they have the capacity to meet the housing targets.
Commissioner Williams commented that construction of the third runway at the airport could serve to make some residential areas less than desirable. She asked if factors of that sort were taken into consideration in establishing a housing target for the City. Ms. Bird said property owned by the Port of Seattle is not included in the buildable lands calculations. Mr. Johanson allowed that when the previous housing targets were set the areas near the airport were included. There are, however, still housing units within the area and people who are very willing to live there for a variety of reasons.
Ms. Bird said the challenges facing the City with regard to housing include the quality of the housing stock; the limited availability of land on which to construct housing; and public acceptance of increased housing density.
Interim chair Simpson-Clark suggested that it would be helpful to have a map showing geographically where Burien citizens are employed. Mr. Johanson said that information is available given that it was one of the questions on the long form of the 2000 census.
Ms. Bird said the City’s adopted housing policies are appropriate and consistent with the requirements of the GMA. It is possible the City should consider initiating a pilot project to see if a different kind of housing product, such as cottage housing, might be appropriate and acceptable. She allowed that not all housing types work in all jurisdictions.
Commissioner Newton asked if consideration has been given to annexing the unincorporated areas to the north of the city. From the audience, Deputy Mayor Rose Clark said a feasibility study is under way for the areas to the north to determine what the tax base is and what needs exist. The study done by King County did not go far enough according to the City Council, so some additional work is being done. The council clearly understands that Burien will not be able to afford to annex the entire area.
Commissioner Williams asked how accessory dwelling units are counted toward the housing targets. Mr. Johanson allowed that they are reported as part of the King County benchmarks, and are included in the buildable lands calculations. They are considered by the City to be dwelling units.
Commissioner Shull indicated that she is a fan of cottage housing. She said it offers a very good affordable housing option that could fit in very nicely in some parts of Burien, especially in certain older neighborhoods where the houses are smaller.
Commissioner Newton agreed and added that with good design cottages and the like can be developed in a manner that evokes a strong small-town character. Redeveloping existing neighborhoods in that manner can positively affect the character of those neighborhoods.
Turning to the Parks Element, Ms. Bird informed the commissioners that the element is not one that is required by the GMA. As a part of the Comprehensive Plan, however, its policies must be consistent with other policies and other elements of the Comprehensive Plan. The action to update the existing Parks Element will focus primarily on making sure the inventory is up to date and the data is consistent among documents.
Commissioner Williams asked if schools count toward the inventory of parks and open spaces. Mr. Johanson said the previous accounting included all school properties. While such properties are primarily for use by the schools, they also serve recreation and open space purposes. Whether the school sites should be counted in their entirety is something that will need to be hashed out with the Parks Department during the update process to make sure their numbers match those of the Planning Department.
Interim Chair Simpson-Clark noted that some jurisdictions calculate their need for parks in part based on the distance residents must travel to access a park.
Commissioner Newton said the location of parks and the types of parks are critical things to consider.
Mr. Johanson said the plan calls for holding a single hearing on all of the Comprehensive Plan update amendments, with the exception of the Transportation Element.
Commissioner McInteer suggested the driving factor in determining policies and the need for parks facilities in Burien should be the information contained in the demographics project. Community services in the form of parks are very important, especially so for kids. If the population of those under a certain age has increased by a percentage, the number of parks should increase at a similar rate.
Interim Chair Simpson-Clark suggested that the tie-in for the Planning Commission is whether or not development standards need to include requirements for parks. Ms. Bird agreed, adding that parks are accessible to everyone, whereas other recreational opportunities for families are not.
Commissioner Newton noted that transportation in the form of trails is another critical tie-in. Where there are parks, there should be footpaths and bicycle corridors, or access to public transportation, to assist residents in getting to and from parks facilities.
Mr. Johanson said the map amendments are focused primarily on the more formal docketed Comprehensive Plan Amendment issues. He said the majority of the changes are requests submitted by citizens. The commission will first forward recommendations to the council regarding each amendment. Once the council acts on each amendment, the next step will be to effect a rezone for each amendment in order to maintain consistency between the Comprehensive Plan and the zoning map. A staff report and recommendation for each amendment will be presented at a future study session.
Mr. Johanson said there will be opportunity for public input and comment during the process, including mailed and published notices and a public hearing. The public hearing is scheduled for August 12.
Commissioner Shull noted for the record that she will be out of town on August 12.
Commissioner Newton asked how much park space would be gained by approving the Manhattan/Woodside Schools CPA. Mr. Johanson said the current designation for the site includes industrial and single family. All other school properties in the city are designated public parks/schools/recreation. It appears the Manhattan/Woodside site was overlooked when the other properties were redesignated as part of the 1999 zoning update.
Interim Chair Simpson-Clark asked about zoning the site open space when there is no such zoning category in the code. Mr. Johanson said the rezone action will be to bring the site into conformance with the zoning for all other schools in the city. Interim Chair Simpson-Clark commented that for most other schools the zoning reflects the underlying zoning of the surrounding area, which in most instances is single-family. Mr. Johanson suggested that the issue of whether or not there should be a public parks/schools/recreation zoning classification is a separate issue from the map amendment. For the current action, the underlying zoning will continue to be RS-7200, not open space as indicated in the staff memo.
Mr. Johanson explained that amendment 2001-1.a involves four properties on Southwest 132nd Street. The zoning of the area has traditionally been single-family. When the Comprehensive Plan and zoning was adopted, however, the line was drawn to square off the multifamily zone. The inconsistency needs to be rectified, so the proposal is to change the current High Density Multi-Family Neighborhood to Moderate Density Single Family, and to rezone from RM-24 to RS 7200.
Amendment 2001-1.d entails a property on Des Moines Memorial Drive and Southwest 176th Street. The single property is bisected by the road. There is multifamily to the west, and to the east is a wetland. The request is to change the current Moderate Density Single Family density and RS-7200 zoning to High Density Multi-Family Neighborhood and RM-24.
Amendment 2001-1.f involves a property on 1st Avenue South on which there is a single-family home that was permitted fairly recently. The current designation is Community Commercial and the zoning is CC-2. The request is for a change to Moderate Density Single Family and a rezone to RS-7200. The site has steep slopes and a stream at the base of the ravine. The property owner is particularly concerned about making certain there is an appropriate transition zone between his property and the commercial areas to the north.
Amendment 2002-1 is also on 1st Avenue South. The site is currently designated and zoned Office. The request is for Regional Commercial and CR zoning.
Amendment 2002-2 involves a property on Southwest 143rd Street on which there is an existing single-family home. The current designation is Moderate Density Single Family and the zoning is RS-7200. The request is for an Office designation and zoning to match the surrounding properties.
The property in question for amendment 2002-3 is across the street on Southwest 143rd Street. It also has a current designation of Moderate Density Single Family and a zoning of RS-7200. The request there is for a designation of Community Commercial and a zoning of CC-1.
Director’s Report
Mr. Johanson reported that the Request for Qualifications for developers to develop the Town Square project closed on June 30. There were three submittals, all from very respected firms. The selection committee will be meeting on July 9 to discuss the submittals and next steps. The Planning Commission is represented on the selection committee by Commissioner Rahn.
Adjournment
Motion to adjourn was made by Commissioner Newton. Second was by Commissioner Shull and the motion carried unanimously.
Interim Chair Simpson-Clark adjourned the meeting at 9:02 p.m.
Approved:
/s/ Robert Simpson-Clark, interim chair
Planning Commission
/s/ Scott Greenberg, director
Community Development Department