Council adopts six‑year Transportation Improvement Program; businesses raise displacement concerns about Main Street Phase 3

The Mountlake Terrace City Council unanimously adopted the city’s 2026–2031 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) Wednesday, a six‑year list of local street, sidewalk, bicycle and intersection projects the city plans to pursue and to use as a basis for applying for state and federal grants.

John Merrick, the city traffic engineer, told council the TIP updates the list of projects and funding sources aligned with the adopted 2025–2026 capital budget, cites annual revenue sources (transportation impact fees, state gas tax, Transportation Benefit District revenues) and one‑time grants, and identifies several larger grant applications the city is pursuing, including a WSDOT mobility grant and a BUILD grant application. He summarized programs such as the street overlay program, ADA sidewalk program, signal rehabilitation and the neighborhood traffic safety program, and highlighted several projects under consideration, including multi‑modal improvements on Main Street and neighborhood bike and sidewalk infill projects.

The TIP also lists Main Street Phase 2 and a design project called Main Street Phase 3 (which includes work on 50th/7th Street alignments) among the capital projects. Kirk Ishizaki, representing West Plaza LLC, urged the council to pause design funding for Main Street Phase 3 until the city performs a formal business‑displacement review. Ishizaki said the project’s plans historically show a street alignment that would cross the Diamond Knot Brewpub site and that earlier municipal plans and maps have already caused economic harm to his tenants. "We would like the city to commit to conducting these analyses before deciding whether it should be a public project or the responsibility of a future developer," Ishizaki told council.

City staff and councilors responded that the city’s comprehensive plan policies and recent policy language state the city will not use eminent domain to take private property for the road, and that redevelopment of West Plaza would be owner‑driven. Carolyn Hope, representing staff, noted adopted comp plan policies limit the city’s use of eminent domain and that displacement mitigation strategies are included in the comp plan and would be addressed in project design and during any future development agreement processes. Staff said the TIP includes a listing of design work to allow the city to pursue design‑phase funding and to be prepared should the property owner choose to redevelop.

Council members asked staff to confirm that unfunded projects on the TIP would return to the council for review before proceeding. "As we got that funding strategy, we would come back to you with, kind of the scope of the project to see if that scope is in alignment with council and community goals," Merrick said. Council member Ryan asked that the city consider design options that minimize business impacts, such as a pedestrian‑ and bicycle‑only alignment; Ishizaki had suggested at least one option without vehicular traffic as a way to reduce business impacts.

The council moved to adopt the TIP (motion made and seconded during the meeting) and approved it by unanimous vote. Staff said the adopted TIP will be submitted to the state to support future grant applications and does not itself obligate the city to construct listed projects; specific projects will require separate scoping, funding and council approvals before construction.

Authorities referenced during the discussion included city comprehensive plan policies on displacement and the TIP requirements under state law (staff noted the annual TIP update is required by state law and that the city submits adopted TIPs to the state for grant eligibility). The West Plaza commenter asked the city to recognize and perform a business‑displacement analysis and transportation analysis prior to committing further design funding for Main Street Phase 3.

Next steps: Staff will submit the adopted TIP to state agencies and pursue grant applications; council and staff will continue to work with West Plaza property owners if and when Main Street Phase 3 design work advances. Projects without funding will be returned to council for scope and funding review before moving forward.