Council advances comprehensive plan and development-regulation edits; debates sidewalks, small duplexes and police staffing

The Anacortes City Council and planning staff spent a major portion of the Nov. 24 meeting reviewing edits to the draft comprehensive plan and linked development regulations. Planning Director John Coleman and consultants explained proposed text changes, and councilmembers offered line-by-line clarifications on transportation, housing and level-of-service standards.

Process and schedule: Coleman told the council staff will publish the changes discussed and the list of planning-commission recommendations Wednesday, open a public-comment period that closes Dec. 11, and seek council consideration of the comprehensive plan and development regulations on Dec. 15. “We will publish all of your requested changes on Wednesday,” Coleman said.

Transportation and classification: Council discussed Policy T0.19 about West 2nd Street being an alternate arterial. Consultant Chris Como recommended striking the arterial language because West 2nd is residential and not intended to carry arterial traffic; council agreed to remove T0.19. The council and consultant also discussed Kansas Avenue, noting the city intends to seek federal functional-classification approval (collector/arterial) to make the corridor eligible for state and federal transportation grants once the roadway is constructed.

Sidewalk fee-in-lieu: Staff proposed Policy T1.27 to explore a fee-in-lieu-of-construction program for sidewalks that would allow the city to complete sidewalk gaps through collected fees rather than require every property owner to build a sidewalk directly adjacent to a new development; councilmembers discussed prioritization criteria (arterials first, other prioritizations possible).

Housing and small duplexes: The development-regulation edits create a separate table row to specify small-duplex lot sizes and define a small duplex. Staff presented proposed minimum lot sizes (R2: 7,500 sq ft; R2A: 6,000 sq ft; R3: 4,500 sq ft) and said the council had previously discussed 3,000 sq ft for some zones; council asked staff to revise text and maps and to retain the R3 4,500 figure pending further review. The council also clarified maximum gross floor area per unit for small duplexes at 1,400 sq ft.

Facade step-backs and bonuses: Staff showed revised drawings clarifying the 25-foot façade-length requirement and step-back rules for taller buildings tied to density bonuses; councilmembers said the illustrations helped resolve prior confusion.

Police level-of-service: Council revisited level-of-service tables in the capital facilities element that reference police staffing: one table shows 1.83 officers per 1,000 residents (the police chief's recommendation) versus an earlier 1.7 number. Staff said the 1.83 figure was the target used when the levy was proposed; council debated whether the figure should be a strict concurrency requirement or a rough guide linked to call volume and other metrics.

Public participation: No public speakers addressed the comprehensive-plan items at the meeting; counsel instructed staff to compile edits and publish them for public review and comment.

Next procedural steps: Staff will post the revised drafts and planning-commission changes Wednesday, accept comments through Dec. 11, and provide materials to the council for potential action on Dec. 15.