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Leavenworth drafts rules to allow balconies over sidewalks with limits, safety requirements
Summary
City planner presented a draft zoning change to allow building projections (balconies, bay windows, signs) to extend over the public right-of-way above an 8-foot clearance, with a gradual allowance up to 4 feet between 8 and 15 feet above grade and stricter review, insurance and indemnity requirements.
City planner Maggie Boles asked the Leavenworth City Council on Feb. 11 to review a draft zoning amendment that would clarify when downtown building features such as balconies, bay windows and projecting signs may extend over the public right-of-way.
Boles said the draft language would put the approach into Title 18 of the municipal code and make explicit a practice already addressed by the building code. She told the council the proposal sets an 8-foot vertical clearance above the sidewalk before projection is allowed, and then allows an inch of horizontal encroachment for each inch of additional clearance above 8 feet up to a 4-foot maximum where the projection is between 8 and 15 feet above grade.
The change is intended to remove ambiguity for applicants and keep sidewalks and utilities accessible, Boles said. "I just like that consistency and balance, and it helps, just remove any ambiguity for, an applicant," she said. The draft also proposes that projections taller than 15 feet may go further out, consistent with the building code’s approach for high clearances.
The draft adds a multi-agency review and specific conditions. Boles said requests would need sign-off from the public works director, the building official and the design review board to confirm public-safety, utility access and aesthetic compatibility. She also proposed codifying existing administrative requirements: an indemnity/hold-harmless agreement and proof of liability insurance naming the city as additional insured.
Council members asked practical questions about sidewalk widths and snow-shedding hazards. Council member Clint Strain suggested specifying the projection limit as "the lesser of 8 feet or the sidewalk width," after staff noted downtown sidewalks vary and are often 8 feet but sometimes narrower. On snow and drainage, Boles said applicants must design for snow removal or mitigation and gave a recent project example that used heated drainage into the storm system.
Boles said staff researched other jurisdictions and found few local examples of charging an airspace lease; Wenatchee does not charge an annual or monthly airspace fee and relies on building permits and insurance. The planner said the council’s direction on fees would determine whether staff pursues language about a possible fee or simply relies on permit, indemnity and insurance requirements.
Boles asked for guidance to proceed to the planning commission. "If you're okay with us moving this forward with planning commission to work through," she said, council members signaled general support for drafting a formal ordinance and returning with visuals and standards for design review.
