[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6666703,"mediaKeyId","2314274-f51fab6e6ec124d862465d510d2afed4","parentId",2314274,"title","State Commerce briefs Spokane Valley on new housing rules: ADUs, middle housing, co-living and conversion","audioSeconds",4357,"startMs",3410000,"endMs",7767000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2314274-f51fab6e6ec124d862465d510d2afed4&start=3410&end=7767","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2314274-f51fab6e6ec124d862465d510d2afed4/thumbnail_3410000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6666703/Spokane-Valley/Spokane-County/Washington/State-Commerce-briefs-Spokane-Valley-on-new-housing-rules-ADUs-middle-housing-co-living-and-conversion","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6666703-b6bd173a83c1f5ebfd4b48293e2190d5/orig.mp4?Expires=1776093969&Signature=FZn97EDwJ5XtUYZ5Nx0ZNL6fdU-dxqTEInnXK5wvQVzz5ihjfK1Psvy-8ye65XufDgbzUHM2rMRyar6M7J5BUvjyGY6JG7R30CwzS~alMht-nA0g3TsTcNxDms7fSfQJ0wf6f6sbUun1I746RfpXnZbZjYHH3ssRg7Z~iD94Pl91477K1FiqBhYbwF5oy9jPp~IYuyrvCL5WXL~quFedcbSh-KRXYGFm3JJ8hCEviwV1mIxYQ6LxSP2oY~DPNzS2uvWnE4XMqwXQ~ugWchqilSpadS73hyyn5BsQvYiPDgmpLcVrAjMZy74TNi4VqdGDPFCgA8XXHQJ2~N62gcIWjw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Spokane Valley","date","2025-02-13T00:00:00Z","article","Representatives from the Washington State Department of Commerce outlined state-mandated changes to housing planning and local regulations and spoke at length about what Spokane Valley will need to include in its periodic comprehensive-plan update.

Laura Hodgkin, housing and planning and data manager at the Department of Commerce, told the Planning Commission that the 2021 changes to the Growth Management Act require jurisdictions to \"plan for and accommodate housing affordable to all economic segments,\" and that Commerce now projects housing need by income segment so counties and cities can divide responsibilities.

Hodgkin described the multi-step process Commerce recommends: use countywide projections from Commerce's HAP tool, agree with neighboring jurisdictions on how to allocate housing need by income level, inventory local land capacity for different housing typologies and, where capacity is insufficient, adopt zoning or regulatory changes to provide the needed capacity. She said jurisdictions must also document programs and actions that will remove barriers to housing and address racially disparate impacts and displacement risk.

Lilith Vesper, Commerce's infill housing manager, summarized recent and pending regulatory changes and deadlines that Spokane Valley will need to address as part of the comprehensive-plan update and follow-on code amendments:
- Accessory dwelling units: State law requires jurisdictions to allow up to two ADUs on a lot in urban growth areas, removes owner-occupancy requirements in most cases, allows sale of ADUs separate from the principal unit, and sets a minimum unit size standard of 1,000 square feet in some contexts. Commerce also limited impact fees on ADUs to 50% of the principal unit fee in many cases. The statute includes automatic preemption if local codes are not updated within six months after the periodic update.
- Middle housing: Tier 1 cities (including Spokane Valley) must allow a range of \"middle housing\" types; at a minimum jurisdictions must enable four units on residential lots and have options to increase to six units where two of those units are required to be affordable for a defined period or where properties lie near major transit. Commerce provided model ordinances and a user guide to help local governments implement the requirement.
- Unit lot subdivision: The legislature requires jurisdictions to allow unit-lot subdivisions that enable ownership of individual units (for townhouse/rowhouse conversions) without changing parent-lot coverage rules.
- Conversion: Jurisdictions must allow conversion of commercial or mixed-use buildings to housing (including increased density up to 50% more units within the existing building envelope) where residential uses are allowed.
- Co-living: Cities must allow co-living where six or more units are permitted; a co-living unit counts as one-quarter of a dwelling unit for density and parking calculations. The statutory deadline for co-living regulation adoption is Dec. 31, 2025.

Hodgkin and Vesper emphasized that counties and cities must work together to allocate projected housing needs for each income band. Commissioners and staff discussed local implementation questions: how to translate housing typologies into expected affordability bands, whether single-family lots could absorb low-income needs, the logistics of pavement moratoria when new development requires utility connections, and how permit streamlining or regulatory changes could be used as incentives.

Questions from commissioners touched on homeownership, condominiumization and developer incentives. Vesper said the law allows the sale of ADUs and unit-lot subdivisions to facilitate ownership opportunities; Hodgkin noted many lower-income affordable units will still rely on subsidy and that planning alone does not produce housing but creates the regulatory conditions to encourage it. Commissioners also raised concerns about parking spillover onto streets, the capacity of local infrastructure, and increases in construction costs driven by broader policy changes.

Ending
Commerce staff offered to provide additional guidance, tools and checklists (ADU, middle housing, parking, STEP for shelters/transitional/permanent supportive housing) and asked to be contacted for technical follow-up. Commissioners asked staff to monitor countywide coordination and to bring drafts of local code changes forward for review in subsequent meetings.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Spokane Valley - Planning Commission Meeting - Feb 13, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Representatives from the Washington State Department of Commerce presented the new 2021 and later legislative requirements on housing elements, accessory dwelling units, middle housing, unit-lot subdivisions, co-living and conversion rules and explained how the county and cities must coordinate to allocate housing needs by income level.","taxTitle","Spokane Valley, Spokane County, Washington","taxId",2645,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6666707,"Spokane Valley planning commission advances repeal and relocation of right-of-way permit rules to council",2254,1251000,3505000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2314274-f51fab6e6ec124d862465d510d2afed4&start=1251&end=3505","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2314274-f51fab6e6ec124d862465d510d2afed4/thumbnail_1251000.jpg","/articles/6666707/Spokane-Valley/Spokane-County/Washington/Spokane-Valley-planning-commission-advances-repeal-and-relocation-of-right-of-way-permit-rules-to-council","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6666707-372e13fb25129dcb283dc1d52a7568ad/orig.mp4?Expires=1776093969&Signature=RuV6tdCkttXGtSSvDXw9eGhXFGEu8WCJdQif4CuQy7CHksi0~PMRxnBC-FwpFzc-4ZnJ~NYk-TORWJwCjTm6icWNmqeAyixo-ufIq0THkHfdd5mWdiePb9xAmQcj9QdO1DiuLrmnCrHH4hIS9R5Qd~C0zovMo8IfvfoBbLxNtUtx2jSch18-Rse~4NdhbSOmaG9cjFYBfAjyr7qk34Ms5hY~MOfMQ7-LzqaFrLhuO0DPj9~hl~QO-6BUMrOu8cu7AYA1FYgiTsAG1P3C2o4i0atLaUgsfZSkYM6b6KJ0WznhrZtBd4LE1KPLPq0JAijKLkTUA5I8P54F2f5eUqZWMQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Spokane Valley Planning Commission voted to forward CTA 2042024-20002, a code text amendment that repeals a portion of the city's right-of-way permit rules in Title 22 and relocates the regulations to a new code title, to the City Council for final consideration.

City attorney Tony Beattie and Building Official Jenny Nickerson presented the proposal at a public meeting Feb. 13, saying the text amendment would repeal section 22.1.3100 and related language and move the permitting rules into a new chapter in Title 9 (or another council-directed title). Beattie described right-of-way permits as \"licenses to to conditionally utilize the right of way or allow construction activities therein,\" and said the permits are processed quickly, \"2 to 3 days is pretty much the max time that it takes to process these.\"

The proposal would remove a broadly worded exemption in Title 17 that said \"normal or emergency repair or maintenance of public or private building structures, landscaping, or utilities is exempt.\" Staff and commissioners said the term \"normal\" is subjective and has been cited by contractors and businesses to justify work carried out without permits. Beattie said removing the exemption is intended to reduce dangerous, unpermitted work that sometimes occurs without traffic control or insurance.

Why it matters: Staff said the changes are intended to make the code clearer for the public and for enforcement. Commissioners raised concerns about not making permit requirements more burdensome for homeowners and about ensuring utilities and developers can still coordinate necessary infrastructure work. Beattie and Nickerson emphasized that developers and utilities will still obtain right-of-way permits when they must block or trench into the roadway and that staff will publish new regulations and outreach once the relocation and replacement text are adopted.

Key details and clarifications
- Staff proposed repealing the section labeled 22.1.3100 and related references and replacing it with a new chapter in Title 9 (final placement to be decided by council).
- Right-of-way permits are handled by the city's traffic engineering group and are typically processed within two to three days, staff said; the code amendment would clarify and codify timeline expectations.
- The city follows a regional pavement-cut policy that contains a moratorium period after paving; staff said that moratorium is generally five years and that cuts during that period require more extensive repair standards and sometimes boring instead of cutting.
- Staff reported the city issues several hundred right-of-way permits annually; Mary Anne, the city's permit report preparer, stated \"11 hundred in 2024.\"
- Staff said emergency repairs (for example, to restore water service in frozen conditions) remain exempt and are treated as emergencies; routine repairs should be permitted.

Commission action and vote
After public hearing and deliberation, the commission voted to advance CTA 2042024-20002 to the City Council with the recommendation to move it forward in the adoption process. The motion was seconded and carried; commissioners present voted in favor and no opposition was stated on the record. The commission membership present that evening was Commissioner Meyer, Commissioner Kelly, Commissioner Winkler, Commissioner Wilson and Commissioner Robinson; Commissioner Weathermon was excused.

Next steps
Staff said they will prepare findings of fact and bring the draft repeal and the replacement language (the Title 9 chapter) to council in the coming weeks. Beattie said draft replacement language already exists as staff is preparing it, but that the Title 9 rules must be adopted by the City Council because Title 9 is outside the planning commission's usual development-regulation jurisdiction. Staff committed to notifying the development community and utilities and to continuing outreach once the council schedule and final text are set.

Context and public input
The item was presented in a public meeting; the commission opened a public hearing but no members of the public provided testimony in person or by email. Commissioners asked whether the change would make permitting more or less onerous for homeowners; staff said the intent is more clarity and, overall, less onerous by removing ambiguity and codifying exceptions and timelines.

Ending
The commission advanced the amendment to council; final adoption will depend on council action and the city's forthcoming replacement chapter. Staff said the repeal and the Title 9 adoption would take effect simultaneously after publication so the transition is seamless.","The Planning Commission voted to forward a code text amendment that would repeal a section of Title 22 governing right-of-way permits and relocate the rules into a new title; staff said the change aims to clarify when permits are required and remove a vague \"normal maintenance\" exemption that has created enforcement problems.","actionData","errors"]

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State Commerce briefs Spokane Valley on new housing rules: ADUs, middle housing, co-living and conversion

Spokane Valley planning commission advances repeal and relocation of right-of-way permit rules to council