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Council reviews plan to implement mandatory affordable‑housing in‑lieu fee; staff recommend $34.45/sq ft and ARCH administration
Summary
Staff briefed the council on implementing the new mandatory affordable housing program under SMC 21.10, recommending a fee calculated at $34.45 per square foot, administration of funds by ARCH, and annual reporting; council asked for flexibility on fund transfers and to revisit exemptions such as the 1,000 sq ft threshold.
City staff presented final policy recommendations and draft implementation steps for Sammamish’s new mandatory affordable housing program, which includes an “in‑lieu” fee for developers that choose not to build required affordable units on site.
Evan Fisher of Community Development told the council the program implements policy 3.6 of the 2024 Comprehensive Plan by requiring at least 10% of units in new projects be affordable at 80% of area median income (AMI), with options to meet the requirement by building on site, paying a fee in lieu, or using development agreements. Staff recommended using ARCH’s (A Regional Coalition for Housing) existing infrastructure to hold and manage fee revenue.
Staff described the fee methodology, developed by ARCH, at $34.45 per gross square foot and gave an example: three townhomes totaling roughly 2,700 square feet would generate a fee of about $275,000 under the proposed model. Fisher and David Pyle said the fee will be added to the city fee schedule by separate resolution; the proposed resolution would also set policy directions on fund use and reporting.
Council discussion: Councilmembers asked for clarifications and edits. Councilmember Pamela Stewart asked whether the fee should apply to rebuilding after disasters or only to voluntary demolitions and rebuilds; staff said they would check the adopted code language and report back. Deputy Mayor Amy Lamb asked that council retain discretion before any automatic five‑year rollover of funds to ARCH; staff agreed to craft policy language that would bring an annual account status to the council before any transfer, allowing the council to retain funds for a local project if appropriate. Councilmember Rosheen O’Farrell asked staff for projections about potential fund size; staff noted collections depend on project types, exemptions and developer responses, and gave an illustrative example that 40 typical new single‑family lots at 2,700 sq ft could generate several million dollars, but actual results will vary.
Exemptions and possible changes: Staff reminded the council that the code currently exempts units of 1,000 square feet or less (an intent to encourage ADUs and smaller units) but councilmembers asked staff to model adjustments—raising the exemption cap to 1,200–1,500 square feet was discussed. Councilmember Kent Treen asked staff to test effects of raising the exemption threshold; staff said it was an easy code amendment to return with the March package if council directs it.
Next steps: Staff will return on March 18 with two resolutions: one with policy language for fee administration and spending priorities and a second to add the fee schedule line item. No adoption occurred at this meeting.
