Sedro-Woolley planning commission schedules March 17 public hearing on street‑naming and addressing code

The Sedro‑Woolley Planning Commission voted Feb. 17 to schedule a public hearing for March 17, 2026, on proposed amendments to the city municipal code that would formalize address and street‑naming standards.

Staff said the draft—recommended by the city attorney and the Skagit County addressing authority—moves many current staff‑level practices into code to reduce liability and standardize how addresses and street names are assigned. An unidentified staff member (speaker 5) said most edits reference the city’s public works standards and that the city had incorporated comments from the fire department and Skagit County 911. “Most of the changes here work to reference the public works department standards,” the staff member said.

The proposal would require written notice to affected property owners, an official notice with coordinates and parcel information, and archival of official address records that are eventually sent to state archives. Staff walked commissioners through two example notice packages—one for a single address change and one for subdivision street naming—and showed a sample effective date (04/01/2026) for the mock notice used in the presentation.

Commissioners questioned several practical details. One commissioner (speaker 3) noted that address signs can be purchased through the city “starting at $30 per sign” and raised equity concerns for low‑income residents and ADU occupants; staff responded that homeowners may provide compliant signs themselves and said they would consider reduced or waived fees for low‑income households. Another commissioner (speaker 2) urged the code to require storing latitude/longitude (GPS) coordinates of primary entrances to aid emergency response; staff confirmed the Skagit County 911 GIS already maintains coordinates for Sedro‑Woolley addresses and agreed to include a reference in the code.

Skagit County 911 also recommended that the county review and approve nonstandard street suffixes (examples cited in the draft included alley, parkway and highway) and provided suggestions for historical names to consider for future street naming. Staff said police and finance department comments and a fee schedule for name‑petition filings remain outstanding.

Commissioner Fattizzi moved to hold the public hearing on March 17; Commissioner Jasper seconded, and the commission voted to place the item on the March agenda. The motion was procedural—setting a hearing date—not a final adoption of the code.

If adopted after public input and any further edits, the code amendments would formalize notification processes, require coordination with emergency and utility agencies listed in the draft, and add a definition for “addressable entity.” The next step is the March 17 public hearing, where the commission will accept public comment and may recommend further revisions to the city council.