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Commission considers targeted code changes to keep Commercial Avenue buildings' street-front character; Port and Olson Building in focus
Summary
The commission discussed amendments to the Marine Mixed Use (MS) zone to allow retail up to 6,000 sq ft and a zero-foot storefront setback on specific Commercial Avenue parcels to preserve the block’s existing downtown character; commissioners asked staff for design standard details.
Planning staff presented code amendments on Sept. 17 intended to preserve the street-front character of Commercial Avenue where Marine Mixed Use parcels abut the downtown core. The changes would allow retail on the ground floor up to 6,000 square feet in a targeted storefront block frontage and add an exception to the MS zone’s typical 10-foot setback to permit 0-foot setbacks where the block frontage designation applies.
Why it matters: The changes address two properties on the block — the Port-owned marine-supply building and the Olson (Lisonbee) Building — where commissioners and staff said maintaining the existing appearance and pedestrian orientation of the street is a priority if redevelopment occurs.
Staff explained the proposal is narrow in scope: it would permit retail outright on the ground floor up to the 6,000-square-foot threshold in the specific storefront block frontage area and apply the storefront block frontage placement standards (window transparency, entrances, building placement) rather than the standard 10-foot setback. That combination, staff said, would make redevelopment for retail easier without rezoning the entire block.
Commissioners discussed an alternative raised at the meeting: rezoning the entire block to Central Business District (CBD) to achieve the same effect versus applying tailored MS-zone setbacks and storefront standards to selected parcels. Commissioners also noted the Olson Building owner has proposed rezoning to CBD to better accommodate housing objectives; staff observed that CBD design standards and affordable-housing allowances differ from MS zone rules and that multiple approaches could achieve a similar look.
Commissioners asked staff to return with the specific design standards that would apply under the storefront-block approach so they could compare outcomes. No rezoning or final action was taken; the change remains in the development-regulation amendment packet for public comment.
