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Kenmore planners present land-capacity analysis and middle-housing options as state mandates near deadline
Summary
City staff and consultants told the council and planning commission that Kenmore's 2024 land-capacity analysis shows enough housing capacity through 2044 but identified barriers for housing affordable to households at or below 80% AMI and outlined code changes required by HB 1110 and HB 1337 for middle housing and ADUs.
City planning staff and consultants presented a updated Land Capacity Analysis (LCA) and a discussion of required middle-housing and ADU code changes, telling the Kenmore City Council and Planning Commission that the city currently has sufficient gross capacity for projected housing targets but faces barriers producing housing affordable at or below 80% of area median income.
Joel Ferreras of Kimley-Horn summarized the LCA methodology, noting the analysis followed King County and Department of Commerce guidance and updated the city's housing supply through September 2024. The LCA estimates gross developable land by zoning and applies assumed densities to calculate potential yields; staff reported the city meets county targets across income bands but that recent production has trailed projections for low-income units.
A broad council and planning-commission discussion followed on HB 1110 (middle housing) and HB 1337 (ADUs). Staff explained that as a Tier 2 city Kenmore must select six of nine authorized middle-housing types (duplex, triplex, fourplex, fiveplex, sixplex, townhouses, stacked flats, courtyard apartments, cottage housing) and adopt units-per-lot density standards by the June 30, 2025 deadline or the model ordinance will apply.
Key items discussed: - Zoning applicability: HB 1110 applies in Kenmore to the R1, R4 and R6 residential zones. Staff noted R1 comprises about 10% of the applicable parcels and explained the statute allows an "alternative compliance" option to exempt up to 25% of qualifying lots (subject to review if over the threshold). - ADUs: HB 1337 requires allowing up to two ADUs per single-family lot and removal of owner-occupancy requirements; the city's existing code is mostly compliant but needs specific revisions. - Development standards and incentives: Staff described options to tailor code (setbacks, height, parking, design standards) and to offer targeted incentives to encourage cottage housing, courtyard apartments or stacked flats while limiting forms that would undermine environmental goals.
Public commenters and planning commissioners urged clarity of purpose for a proposed STEP (shelter, transitional, emergency, permanent supportive housing) advisory committee and suggested using the planning commission or council workshops rather than forming a new long-term group. Several commissioners and councilors favored routing the STEP work through the planning commission to leverage existing expertise and avoid duplicative staff work.
Council direction and next steps: Staff will draft code-change proposals reflecting council and planning-commission feedback, including a recommended set of permitted middle-housing types (council discussion indicated general support for excluding fiveplexes and sixplexes from the required six types), ADU clarifications, and options for alternative compliance that preserve habitat corridors. The city must complete required code updates by state deadlines; staff also recommended additional coordination with public-works, parks and transit planning to ensure infrastructure can support increased housing in single-family areas.
