Planning Commission schedules public hearing on Bellevue middle-housing code after extensive public comment

The Bellevue Planning Commission on March 12 advanced the city’s draft middle-housing land use code amendment and directed staff to schedule a public hearing on the proposal to implement House Bill 1110 and House Bill 1337.

The study session, held in a hybrid format, brought extended public comment: roughly 25 registered speakers addressed provisions including dwelling-unit limits, floor-area-ratio (FAR) caps, accessory dwelling unit (ADU) size and exemptions, tree-code interactions and utility/garbage impacts of increased density. Staff asked the commission for direction and said the draft scales allowance from a baseline of four units per lot up to six and nine units per lot near higher-frequency transit and centers, with other development flexibilities and FAR adjustments under consideration.

Why it matters: Bellevue adopted growth targets and a comp-plan direction to encourage middle housing; the city must also meet state statutory requirements. The proposed LUCA would change single-family zoning allowances across large portions of the city, affecting homeowners, builders and utilities and creating long-term changes to street and infrastructure needs.

Staff presentation and changes Staff representatives framed the draft as an update to the February proposal, noting public outreach sessions and…