Everett planners weigh options to protect manufactured housing communities

City planning staff asked the Everett Planning Commission on Aug. 19 to give direction on possible protections for manufactured housing communities after policies in Everett 2044 called for protecting mobile and manufactured housing from redevelopment. York Stevens Wojc, the planning director, told commissioners the state has tightened protections in recent years—staff cited state measures on notice, relocation and rent controls—and that Everett is exploring whether to protect some or all of the city’s manufactured housing communities by applying either a site-specific zone or an overlay. "The state structure just as, I I think in simple terms, rent increases are limited," York Stevens Wojc said, summarizing recent state action on notice, relocation and rent caps. Why it matters: Everett has 10 manufactured housing communities containing about 924 homes, and commissioners said those communities provide housing for seniors and other potentially vulnerable residents. Staff said protections could keep parks operating as long-term manufactured housing, but protections also may remove or delay redevelopment capacity that the comprehensive plan anticipates in some areas. Staff outlined three core options: protect all communities; protect some communities based on chosen criteria (for example tenant vulnerability, redevelopment likelihood or consistency with the comprehensive plan); or protect none. Commissioners and staff discussed metrics to identify parks for protection, including land-to-improvement value ratios, occupancy, proximity to commercial or high-density zones, and resident vulnerability (age, tenure). Frank Hong, special projects manager for housing, and other staff said data gaps — including how assessor improvement values are calculated for parks and household demographics inside parks — limit immediate, definitive rankings. Commissioners identified particular sites for closer examination. Broadway Terrace was repeatedly discussed as an outlier likely to be redeveloped because it sits amid higher-density zoning; several commissioners said it may be reasonable to exclude that site from protections. Silver Shores was identified by staff as a park currently on the market and in active negotiation; staff said the trust that owns it is aware of Washington regulations. Commissioners also asked staff to investigate Holly Drive (an RV park) and other small sites to understand unit counts, ownership models (pads versus parcels), and vacancy levels. Legal and policy constraints: staff noted state laws remain in force regardless of local zoning choices; state statutes require notice, a waiting period, an opportunity for resident or nonprofit purchase and relocation assistance for park closures, and recent state legislation limits rent increases for manufactured housing communities to 5% in some circumstances (transcribed as "house bill 12 17"). Commissioners requested legal analysis on whether local protections would be defensible if parks are located in areas planned for higher-density development. No vote was taken. Chair Chatters summarized the commission’s direction: staff should prepare a specific proposal for the next meeting that likely will include protecting most parks (with Broadway Terrace flagged as a likely exception), evaluate the Holly Drive site, choose whether to implement protections by zone or overlay (staff said zone is currently favored but overlay would better preserve underlying zoning), and develop clearer reconsideration criteria for leaving protection status (for example, a high bar to demonstrate lack of viable economic use). Staff also committed to a public outreach program targeted to park owners and residents, including direct mail to residents, and to meet with the council’s parks and built-environment committee before the planning commission’s next meeting. Next steps: staff will present a specific draft proposal, including legal analysis, clearer criteria for selecting parks for protection, and a public participation plan. Commissioners emphasized a high evidentiary burden to allow any park to exit protection and asked staff to consider safeguards against demolition-by-neglect and other tactics that could undermine protections.