Lake Forest Park planning commission narrows 2026 work plan, creates subgroup to pursue smaller-scale housing incentives

The Lake Forest Park Planning Commission spent much of its most recent meeting refining its 2026 work plan and making a near-term push to promote housing diversity in the city.

The commission agreed to form a small volunteer subgroup to research incentives and code changes aimed at encouraging smaller-scale housing — cottage housing, stacked flats and similar building types — that commissioners said would add diversity to the local housing stock.

Why it matters: Commissioners said Lake Forest Park’s existing code and recent regional market pressures are likely to produce larger, higher-priced townhomes rather than smaller units that would broaden housing choices for seniors, young families and single residents who want to remain in the city. Members argued that targeted incentives or modest code changes could help align what gets built with the types of units the city has said it wants to allow in its comprehensive plan.

What the commission decided and who will do the work Janek Aya offered to chair the subgroup to explore incentives and examples from nearby cities; Sheree Fonazo and Marty Ross volunteered to join. The commission asked staff to publish the whiteboard list of potential "leverage points" (street-frontage requirements, pervious-surface requirements, number of units, parking, building heights, and deed-restriction approaches) and to circulate a shared spreadsheet so commissioners and interested residents can add references and prior meeting material.

Commissioners described two near-term threads of work: (1) assembling the list of leverage points and "if–then" tradeoffs the commission has discussed for more than a year, and (2) a short research effort by the subgroup to talk with developers and study examples of incentives and code changes that have produced smaller units elsewhere. The commission asked that the subgroup meet before the next full commission meeting and report initial findings back to the commission and council liaison.

Quotes from the meeting "We want to increase the diversity of housing in our community, not necessarily to become more dense, but to ensure any new development is filling a gap in our housing inventory," Madeline Larson said during the discussion, invoking the commission's long-running focus on smaller units.

"Let's build off what we already said in the comp plan — pick tangible things we said we want and figure out what's stopping us from getting them," Janek Aya said when proposing the subgroup.

Technical and budget context Staff told the commission that Item 2 (a critical areas ordinance update) will require outside expertise to address best-available science and buffers and that any consultant engagement would need to be funded through a professional services budget. Staff also said a full transportation-element update had previously been estimated at roughly $50,000, but that scope could be adjusted downward if staff handles more of the work.

Next steps and timeline The commission requested that staff distribute the whiteboard notes and the compiled spreadsheet of leverage points within a week, and the subgroup agreed to meet and report preliminary findings at the commission’s next regular meeting. Commissioners also flagged a Feb. 26 city council meeting where the commission's work plan and annual report will be heard; commissioners said they will bring initial recommendations to council after the subgroup's early work.

Votes at a glance - Motion to excuse Commissioner Labonte: moved and seconded; approved by voice vote (no further formal tally recorded). - Motion to approve the meeting agenda: moved, seconded and approved by voice vote. - Motion to approve draft minutes of Jan. 13 special meeting: moved and seconded; approved by voice vote (one abstention noted). - Motion to adjourn: moved, seconded and approved by voice vote; meeting adjourned at 9:06 p.m.

What the record does not show The commission did not take any formal code-amendment votes at this meeting; the actions agreed were to form the research subgroup, to collate past materials, and for staff to circulate the list of leverage points. Specific numeric goals (for example, a target square-footage threshold or unit count) were discussed as research items but were not adopted or finalized at the meeting.

Ending The commission expects the subgroup to return preliminary findings at the next meeting and to bring more specific proposals to the full commission and, as appropriate, to the city council for direction and potential funding.