Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Comprehensive Plan topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Kent council adopts 2044 comprehensive plan; city launches Recode Kent zoning update
Summary
City of Kent officials this year adopted a new 2044 comprehensive plan to guide land use, housing and transportation; the mayor said the city will follow with a citywide zoning update called Recode Kent aimed at increasing housing choices and streamlining permitting.
The Kent City Council in December unanimously adopted the city's 2044 comprehensive plan to guide land use, housing, parks and transportation through midcentury, Mayor Dana Ralph said in the State of the City address.
The plan, Ralph said, followed two years of public engagement and will be implemented in part through a citywide zoning update called Recode Kent, which the mayor said aims to expand housing types and speed permitting to meet the city's assigned growth targets.
The comprehensive plan frames what parts of Kent are expected to change and how, including revisions to future land-use maps and development strategies intended to accommodate new housing and jobs. "In December, after extensive engagement and empirical studies, the Kent city council unanimously adopted our 2044 Kent comprehensive plan," Ralph told the audience.
Ralph said Recode Kent will "lean into middle housing and streamlining permitting processes" and that the city's goal is to adopt new zoning codes before July (the mayor called the timing a moving target because of state-level changes). She added the effort is intended to produce a wider range of housing choices near jobs and transit and to close gaps at both the lower- and higher-rent ends of the market.
City staff will use the comp plan's updated maps when reviewing development proposals and prioritizing infrastructure investments. The mayor emphasized that the plan aims to reflect different neighborhood needs, noting downtown, East Hill and West Hill each have distinct priorities.
The adoption sets the policy framework for subsequent regulatory changes, capital projects and grant applications. Implementation steps the mayor listed include updating zoning maps, developing downtown design guidelines and coordinating with regional transit and housing partners.
Ralph closed by urging continued public participation in implementation: the comp plan, she said, "begged the question as to what kind of city do we want to be?" and the next phase will translate that vision into land-use rules and development standards.
