Mountlake Terrace council reviews draft 10-year housing action plan; public hearing set Dec. 4

Mountlake Terrace City Council on Monday reviewed a draft 10-year Housing Action Plan designed to translate the city’s housing element into concrete actions for increasing housing options and affordability.

Staff presented the plan’s priorities — supporting housing production, investing in centers, incentivizing affordable units, increasing housing diversity and preventing displacement — and described how actions are organized by implementation timeframe: completed, in progress, near term (1–3 years), midterm (3–5 years), long term and ongoing. Mackenzie, a planning staff presenter, said the plan is meant as a roadmap rather than a binding directive and includes appendices on community engagement, a development-feasibility memo and a crosswalk to comprehensive plan policies.

The plan proposes several near-term items including simplifying ADU permitting to a building-permit-only process, changing impact fees to a per-square-foot basis, updating mobile-home park standards to remove barriers to replacement, and clarifying rules for small and alternative housing types. Midterm options include waiving or reducing impact fees for affordable housing, adopting targeted density bonuses, expanding tenant-protection strategies and offering multifamily tax exemption (MFTE) options (eight- and 12-year terms) in additional zones. Long-term ideas include partnering with community land trusts to extend affordability beyond MFTE expirations and strategically using public land or long-term leases for mission-driven developers.

Council members focused on implementation detail and trade-offs. Council member Woodard asked staff to provide examples of successful code enforcement used to address blighted properties; staff pointed to a recent local demolition case that relied on property-maintenance code and a compliance process to restore safety and attract developers. Council member Salmore raised concerns about mobile-home resident protections and whether tax-incentive programs deliver adequate return on investment; staff said financial analyses and data will inform program design. Council member Page asked about community land trusts; staff identified a local organization, Hope and Home CLT, and said staff has also consulted larger King County CLTs for best practices.

Staff flagged one planning commission recommendation — adding action 5.13 to formalize ongoing engagement with the development community and regular reporting back to decision-makers — and said the commission otherwise recommended adoption with that single minor change. Staff invited further council feedback and said a public hearing on the Housing Action Plan is scheduled for Dec. 4.

The presentation emphasized that some actions will require code changes, partnership with county and regional funding programs, and periodic touch points with council and the planning commission during implementation. Staff said deeper affordability for very-low-income households will generally require partnerships with nonprofit developers and access to state and federal funds such as HOME and low-income housing tax credits.

If approved after the public hearing, staff said the plan will guide where the city directs staff capacity, incentives and outreach over the coming decade.