Kirkland council weighs early adoption of state parking law to speed development near 85th Street station
Loading...
Summary
Councilors discussed implementing Senate Bill 5184 early to reduce minimum parking requirements citywide or in targeted station-area zones, with several members urging an early-action ordinance to help small businesses and catalyze development.
City planning staff briefed the council on implementation choices for Senate Bill 5184, the 2025 state law that limits local governments' authority to impose minimum on-site parking requirements for many uses.
Senior Planner Martha Rubart summarized the bill's main numeric limits: "cities may not require more than 1 space per single-family dwelling unit, a half space per multifamily unit, and no more than 2 spaces per 1,000 square feet of commercial space," and said the statute does not cap absolute parking supply but restricts minimums. Staff identified a January 2027 statutory compliance deadline and proposed three options: early minimum compliance citywide, option 1 plus eliminating requirements within station-area boundaries to catalyze development, and option 1 or 2 with an allowance letting existing commercial spaces expand up to a percentage without adding parking.
Several councilors urged early action. "There are business owners in Kirkland today, or people who want to invest in Kirkland today, that this is impacting," Deputy Mayor Black said, urging an early-action ordinance so applicants could be vested under the lower requirements. Council Members Falcone and Pasco also supported moving earlier and adding protections for small businesses; some councilors supported targeted station-area relief to accelerate investment around the 85th Street station.
Councilors also asked staff to plan for bicycle-parking standards tied to units or square footage rather than vehicle-parking ratios, and to track performance and spillover after changes are implemented. Staff noted one near-term operational benefit of early adoption: applicants and small business tenants could begin projects or lease spaces sooner without undergoing the city's parking-modification process, which can add cost and delay.
Next steps: staff will return with drafts for either a typical zoning-code amendment (a summertime timeline) or an early-action ordinance (targeting April adoption) depending on council direction; council signaled support for early implementation, at least to provide relief for businesses and station-area development.
