Olympia Council advances Capitol Mall Triangle rules, approves permit-fee grant for affordable housing; proclaims Heritage Month

The Olympia City Council on May 20 moved forward two sets of land‑use regulations for the Capital Mall Triangle subarea on first reading, approved a funding plan for a permit‑fee grant program to support affordable housing projects, proclaimed May 2025 as Olympia Heritage Month and heard public comment on park renaming, sidewalks, tenant relocation assistance and tree removal.

The council voted, by voice roll call, to forward for a second reading an ordinance adopting revisions to the city’s engineering design and development standards specific to the Capital Mall Triangle and to approve on first reading a separate ordinance establishing a planned action for the same subarea. David Ginther, the city’s senior planner, told the council the engineering changes "are actually quite simple" and said they implement the subarea plan adopted in July 2024. The planned‑action ordinance sets a process to do upfront environmental review tied to a trip cap for new traffic from redevelopment in the subarea; Michelle Swanson, the senior planner for transportation, described the cap as a negotiated way to manage SEPA (State Environmental Policy Act) impacts and WSDOT concerns.

Why it matters: the two code packages are intended to make redevelopment of the mostly commercial Capitol Mall area more likely to produce a denser, walkable mixed‑use neighborhood by allowing smaller block sizes, raising maximum building heights in portions of the subarea, creating an affordable‑housing height bonus overlay and relaxing parking minimums for certain uses. Supporters said the changes streamline the review path for redevelopment and give developers more flexibility to build housing and public spaces; critics and public commenters sought stronger guarantees for parks and other public amenities.

On transportation and the trip cap: Swanson said the subarea plan’s street‑grid recommendations and new block connections are intended to reduce reliance on the area’s few major arterials as redevelopment occurs. She also told the council that monitored vehicle volumes at multiple city locations have “actually have not been increasing, in the last 18 years,” and that shifting land use to allow people to live closer to services can change travel patterns. Ginther and Swanson described the trip cap in the planned‑action ordinance as a limit on new development‑generated trips (the draft used a benchmark of roughly 1,025 AM peak or 1,900 PM peak new trips to trigger a full environmental review) negotiated in part with the Washington State Department of Transportation.

Affordable housing permit‑fee grant: Jacinda Stelches, housing division manager, presented a proposal to fund a permit‑fee grant program intended to pay full or partial permit fees for qualifying affordable housing developments (units affordable at 80% of area median income or below, with larger incentives for deeper affordability). The council approved the finance committee’s funding recommendation to seed the program with $500,000 from the economic development fund, maintaining a baseline balance of $500,000–$700,000 and permitting up to 10% of net proceeds from future city property sales to replenish the fund if it drops below the baseline and proceeds are otherwise available. Stelches said, “This is a grant program, that is intended will cover full or partial costs of, permit fees associated with affordable housing development.”

Councilmembers who spoke in favor said the program is designed to help projects pencil out and to prioritize support for lower‑income units. The finance committee recommended a two‑year review of the pilot to evaluate demand and program sustainability.

Heritage Month proclamation and presentations: The council issued a proclamation recognizing May 2025 as Olympia Heritage Month and invited representatives from heritage organizations to speak. Brittney Gillier, the city’s historic preservation officer and staff liaison to the Olympia Heritage Commission, outlined outreach and volunteer work; Garner Miller, chair of the Olympia Heritage Commission, described the commission’s advisory role; Elaine Bradenberg of Window Seat Media and Mark Lee Morrison of the Olympia Music History Project described oral‑history and music‑history efforts. Councilmembers emphasized the value of oral histories and a broad definition of heritage beyond historic buildings.

Public comment highlights: A group of Lincoln Elementary students and teacher Michael Stein asked the council to rename Stevens Field for Randy Edwards, a longtime teacher and coach. Ben Levitt told the council, “Our class wants to rename Stevens Field to Edwards Field.” Mayor Pro Tem Nguyen said, “unfortunately, we will not be renaming the field tonight,” and signaled intent to establish a clearer parks‑naming process.

Other public commenters pressed the council for faster sidewalk repairs; Jim Lazar said, “We need sidewalk repairs now,” and urged immediate hiring of repair crews and use of efficient techniques used in neighboring jurisdictions. Montana Jordan asked about a tenant‑relocation rule that requires landlords who raise rent by a specified threshold to provide moving assistance; the council pointed to city resources and said staff would follow up. Natasha Hayes and others raised concern about recent large tree removals in a housing development and urged policies that preserve mature canopy where feasible.

What the council decided: the council (with a quorum; one councilmember excused) approved the motions on first reading to advance both Capitol Mall Triangle ordinances to a second reading, and approved the finance committee recommendation to fund the permit‑fee grant program. Several items — including the detailed locations and timing for parks in the subarea and the exact mechanics of the trip cap — remain to be resolved as redevelopment proposals are submitted.

Looking ahead: the Capitol Mall Triangle ordinances will return for a second reading and final vote. The permit‑fee grant program will be implemented as a pilot and revisited after two years. Staff were asked to post clearer information about tenant questions and to follow up on sidewalk repair strategies.