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Council schedules ordinance update after unanimous planning commission recommendation on emergency-shelter standards
Summary
City staff presented proposed zoning amendments to remove spacing and occupancy caps for emergency housing and shelters to comply with state requirements; the Planning Commission recommended approval and council asked staff to return with an ordinance for a future meeting.
City planning staff told the Liberty Lake City Council Wednesday that the city must amend its development code to comply with state requirements on emergency housing and emergency shelters and to meet the state-required land-capacity analysis.
Lisa (planning staff) explained that existing local limits — a 75-person cap per facility, a three-quarter-mile spacing requirement between facilities, and a requirement that shelters be within a quarter-mile of fixed-route transit — would prevent the city from demonstrating sufficient land capacity for the state’s 2046 housing targets. She said the code changes being proposed would eliminate the spacing requirement and the 75-person cap and would revise occupancy limits to align with state law.
Nut graf: Planning staff described the changes as technical amendments to conform city code to state directives and to allow the city to demonstrate the number of emergency housing beds required by the land-capacity analysis. The Planning Commission held a public hearing, considered testimony and unanimously recommended the amendments.
Staff documented that RCW guidance (state statute) requires jurisdictions to allow emergency shelters in zones that permit hotels and motels; Liberty Lake had earlier adopted limited-use standards in 2021 but must adjust those standards to comply with current state expectations and to avoid an inability to demonstrate required bed capacity. Lisa said most land in Liberty Lake already has entitlement or development approvals, so the amendments are primarily regulatory and not a sign of an imminent shelter application.
Public comment during the council hearing included a request for clarity about how long individuals might stay at an emergency housing site; staff answered that duration depends on the program and legal definitions: temporary emergency housing can be a short-term shelter or a leased transitional space, and the ordinance relies on state definitions.
Ending: The council raised no objections to staff drafting the ordinance; staff will return to a future council meeting with the proposed ordinance for formal action after the required public-notice and SEPA steps.
