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Senate committee hears bill to allow housing in commercial and mixed‑use zones
Summary
A governor-request bill (SB 6,026) would require larger cities and counties to allow residential uses in areas zoned commercial or mixed-use, limit mandatory ground-floor retail outside station areas to 20% of a jurisdiction's zoned area, and offer limited height incentives where commercial requirements remain; supporters call it urgent to add housing capacity, opponents warn about local planning and commercial tax base impacts.
Trevor Press, staff to the committee, told the Senate Ways and Means Committee that substitute Senate Bill 6,026 would require cities and counties planning under the Growth Management Act with populations above 30,000 to allow residential uses in areas zoned for commercial or mixed use, with enumerated exceptions. Under the bill, local governments may not require ground-floor commercial or retail as a blanket condition for permitting residential housing; where jurisdictions do require mixed use or ground-floor commercial, they must allow height increases and other concessions.
“Under this bill, cities and counties planning under the GMA that have populations above 30,000 must allow residential uses in areas zoned for commercial or mixed use development,” Press said in his briefing. He also outlined a fiscal note estimating state Commerce costs for technical assistance and an estimated local impact as jurisdictions review ordinances.
Lieutenant Governor Hack testified in strong support, framing the bill as a necessary capacity measure. “This is the most important piece of housing legislation you all will deal with this year,” Hack said, arguing the measure adds land capacity for housing without imposing ground‑floor retail requirements that can block projects. He warned that permitting at current rates will not meet projected housing needs and said the proposal had incorporated feedback from cities and counties.
Supporters at later hearings — including builders, housing advocates and some cities — said the change would unlock underused commercial sites and help produce more housing near services and transit. City representatives that already removed or loosened ground-floor retail mandates said mandatory retail has led to vacant, unusable storefronts that make projects infeasible.
Some city and county officials and municipal associations urged refinements. They cautioned that wholesale removal of ground-floor requirements can affect commercial tax bases and local services, and asked for clearer exemptions for station areas, downtown cores and publicly subsidized affordable housing. Several speakers asked for specific rules to protect designated urban centers and neighborhood plans.
The committee did not vote on the bill during the session covered by this transcript. The next steps presented at the hearing included continued stakeholder work and possible amendments to clarify exceptions for transit station areas and for certain publicly funded affordable housing projects.
