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Cities report early wins and persistent staff and code capacity gaps as they speed permitting and adopt middle‑housing rules
Summary
Four Washington cities told the Senate Housing Committee July 24 that expedited permitting, preapproved ADU plans and middle‑housing code changes are producing early results but require more staff capacity and interdepartmental coordination to scale.
City officials from Olympia, Walla Walla, Des Moines and Poulsbo briefed the Senate Housing Committee July 24 on local efforts to speed approvals, expand middle housing and deploy preapproved accessory dwelling unit (ADU) plans.
Olympia: Jacinda Stelchos, Olympia’s housing division manager, described an affordable‑housing emergency ordinance that moves projects targeting households at 80% AMI and below to the top of the permitting queue. Stelchos said the ordinance also relies on pre‑submission conferences to align developers, planners and engineers early in design. She cautioned that expedited permitting requires close coordination across housing, planning, engineering and developers because financing pauses or plan resubmissions can interrupt a fast‑track timeline.
Walla Walla: City Manager Elizabeth Chamberlain said Walla Walla eliminated single‑family zoning in a 2018 code change that created a single “neighborhood residential” zone with a minimum density…
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