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Public hearings held on Bothell affordable- and middle-housing code amendments
Summary
The council held public hearings on proposed affordable housing and middle housing code amendments. Developers urged changes to multifamily tax-exemption rules to keep projects viable, while local housing advocates supported incentives to increase affordable units.
Bothell held public hearings Nov. 18 on two related code-amendment packages: one on affordable-housing incentives and one on middle-housing code allowing up to six units on certain residential lots.
Ray Sosa, senior long-range planner, explained the affordable-housing code amendments and the middle-housing proposal, which would allow more-than-four-unit buildings on residential lots in specified zones. The affordable-housing amendments were initiated earlier in 2025 and respond in part to state law (HB 1220 referenced in the staff presentation) requiring jurisdictions to plan for affordable housing.
Tom Rice, representing Mill Creek Residential Trust, told council that Bothell must deliver thousands of new homes across income levels and that current inclusionary requirements (10% at moderate income, identified in the record as 65% of area median income) paired without meaningful incentives can render projects unviable. Rice recommended aligning the multifamily tax-exemption (MFTE) program so that the 10% inclusionary requirement qualifies for the 8-year exemption, and a revised 12-year option where additional units at 80% AMI are provided during the exemption.
Reverend Kristen Joyner of Bothell United Methodist Church spoke in support of the affordable-housing incentives and highlighted years of community work on housing and homelessness. Sosa closed both hearings (one hearing for each code set); no final council action was taken that evening—both items remain in the public-review and consideration stage.
Outcome: Public hearings closed; no votes on code amendments Nov. 18. Staff will return drafts for future council consideration.
