Commission hears overview of Title 12 and Engineering Standards Manual update; staff to return with drafts and environmental review
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Summary
Staff presented a comprehensive update to Title 12 and the Engineering Standards Manual to improve consistency with state and federal requirements, modernize stormwater and sewer guidance, and clarify technical thresholds. Staff highlighted schedule milestones and requested commission input on priorities and implementation timing.
City staff and consultant Keller Associates presented an introductory briefing on a comprehensive update to Title 12 (public works: rights of way, stormwater and utilities) and the Engineering Standards Manual (ESM), describing objectives, a schedule for drafts and public hearings, and early compliance findings.
Angie Silva framed the update as a modernization effort: "Both of those elements safeguard the public's health, safety, and welfare," she said, and staff noted the last full Title 12 update was in 2009 with a limited ESM update in 2021. The schedule presented calls for draft code amendments to return to the Planning Commission in late fall with a study session in early November, a public hearing later in November, Planning Commission action in early December, and council review with ordinance adoption anticipated in Q1 of 2026.
Key compliance findings included outdated cross references and technical details in street templates, sidewalk widths and ADA standards; stormwater practices that lean on Ecology's manuals; and a sewer chapter that lacks technical clarity since Lakewood relies on Pierce County for sewer service. Staff noted Lakewood has over 1,700 registered underground injection control systems with the Department of Ecology and recommended exemptions and design guidance for low-impact development and linear bioretention to meet Ecology Phase 2 stormwater permit requirements.
Technical thresholds were a recurring concern. Staff said current triggers for engineered site-development permits are low (example cited: 25 cubic yards of material triggers professional-engineer review) and that peer comparisons are informing proposed changes to make the code more predictable and proportional. "One of those threshold triggers for a site development permit in our code today is 25 cubic yards of dirt," Keller Associates staff said.
Commissioners asked for presentation conveniences (e.g., combined redline pages to more easily see proposed changes), for clarity about driveway/driveway spacing and signal bridge standards, and for public outreach to explain stormwater requirements and the scientific basis behind them. Staff committed to follow-up materials, more readable redlines, and outreach to neighborhood groups as the drafts are prepared, and cautioned that substantive changes to policies tied to the Downtown Plan Action EIS (such as the TMF calculation) could require an updated EIS and expand the project scope.
No formal action was taken; staff will return with draft code amendments, redlines and an environmental review summary for commission consideration and public hearings.
