Port of Everett urges zoning changes to keep housing away from seaport operations

Laura Gurley, planning director at the Port of Everett, told the Everett Planning Commission on Nov. 19 that the port is asking the city to add policy language to the comprehensive plan to allow zoning tools that would create a transition zone between the international seaport and nearby neighborhoods.

The request seeks “policy and goal language in the urban form and design and development chapter updates that would encourage smart development of compatible uses adjacent to each other while avoiding potential social justice and quality of life impacts from incompatible uses being next to each other,” Gurley said. She described the area as a small triangle west of West Marine View Drive, north of Hewitt, and east of the BNSF mainline, plus a small area south between the railroad and Bond Street.

Why it matters: Gurley said the seaport is a facility of statewide significance and supports more than 40,000 regional jobs, including Everett’s largest employers, Boeing and Naval Station Everett. She cited RCW Title 47 and RCW 36.70A.085, which, she said, recognize the need to preserve facilities of statewide significance and to minimize and mitigate incompatible uses along port edges. The port asked the city to adopt plan language so the city could later use zoning to prevent residential development from locating immediately adjacent to heavy industrial operations.

Details of the request and staff context: Gurley said much of the area in question historically carried M-2 heavy manufacturing zoning, which limited residential types; since 2018 zoning has shifted toward LI-1 (Light Industrial 1) and, in some places, to zones that allow multifamily. “Current zoning, which is LI-1, allows for many types of residential, including multifamily, to be built immediately adjacent to the BNSF mainline and the seaport subsequently,” Gurley said. The port’s request would allow the city to implement zoning that acts as a buffer—what Gurley and staff described as a light-industrial transition zone—between port operations and residential neighborhoods.

Commissioners and staff discussed trade-offs between protecting ongoing port operations and accommodating housing goals. Allison (planning staff) noted that in the draft zoning map some parcels north of the tracks were proposed to remain LI while others were relabeled LIMU (Light Industrial, Mixed Use) as placeholders for further discussion. Commissioners raised that the area currently contains mixed uses, including storage yards, some industrial businesses, a brewery and some apartments above restaurants, and that residents in other parts of the city tolerate freight noise while valuing waterfront views.

Unresolved issues and next steps: Staff said the commission will get additional analysis and options tied to the marine port element and the zoning map later in the process, with more outreach to property owners. Commissioners asked for data on complaint logs and whether complaints come primarily from single-family homeowners or multi-unit residents; planning staff said they would check complaint logs and provide that information. No formal action or vote was taken at the Nov. 19 meeting; the item was presented for discussion and preliminary direction.

Discussion versus decision: The transcript records a policy request and an exploratory conversation. There was no motion, vote, or formal direction recorded; staff said more analysis and memos would be provided at future meetings tied to the marine port element and the zoning map.

Ending: Staff and the port agreed to continue the conversation as staff prepares draft policy language and more context for the commission in future meetings.