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Yelm planning staff outline draft comprehensive plan updates, cite housing and climate requirements
Summary
City planning staff reviewed progress on the comprehensive plan update and said Yelm must plan for accelerated population growth and comply with recent housing and climate-change legislation; a full draft will go to the planning commission before a public hearing later this year.
City planning staff presented a progress update on Yelm's comprehensive plan update at the Oct. 7 study session, outlining required changes to the housing and climate chapters and a schedule for public review.
Why it matters: The comprehensive plan guides long-term land-use, transportation and capital decisions. Staff said the update is required, has grant funding attached, and affects future zoning, infrastructure and grant eligibility.
Planning director Gary told the council the city's population is roughly 11,000 now and is projected to reach about 26,000 by 2045, requiring an estimated 7,500 new housing units to meet projected demand. "We are projected to need 7,500 new housing units by 2045," he said, summarizing the land-capacity and housing analyses guiding the update.
Staff reviewed statutory drivers that must be reflected in the plan, including recent changes to housing law (House Bill 1220 cited in the meeting) that emphasize planning to "accommodate" housing and new state requirements to include climate-change and resiliency policies. The city has received grant funding to support a greenhouse-gas inventory and the new climate chapter and will submit draft material to the Washington State Department of Commerce for review.
Outreach to date includes meetings with the Nisqually Tribe, local businesses, the planning commission and two joint sessions with council and planning commissioners. City staff posted draft chapters and a survey on the city website; staff reported several thousand social media views and said they will present a complete draft to the planning commission in the coming weeks, followed by a SEPA review, an open house and a planning commission public hearing. The staff target is to bring a proposed plan to council this winter; while state law sets a Dec. 30 deadline for comprehensive-plan updates, staff said the council can extend deliberations into January or February if it wants added public engagement.
Ending: The planning director asked interested residents to review draft chapters on the city website and submit written comments to staff; formal adoption will follow the planning commission hearing and a council action ordinance.
