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Bellevue planning commission directs staff to schedule public hearing on state-driven office-to-residential code changes
Summary
The commission voted Sept. 25 to schedule a public hearing on a Land Use Code Amendment implementing House Bill 1042, directing staff to prepare language that allows conversions of commercial buildings to housing while providing qualified exemptions for critical areas and recycling standards and removing a residential density cap.
Bellevue Planning Commission Chair Creighton Gapel on Sept. 25 directed staff to prepare a Land Use Code Amendment (LUCA) implementing state House Bill 1042 to encourage conversion of existing commercial and mixed-use buildings into residential units and scheduled a planning-commission public hearing to consider the draft.
The vote follows a staff presentation by Senior Planner Matthew Menard on the requirements of HB 1042 (2023) and a strike draft that would allow a 50% increase in residential density or FAR for qualifying buildings, exempt converted residential units from new parking requirements and design standards in most locations, and remove barriers tied to nonconforming site conditions. Menard told commissioners the region-wide feasibility work (PSRC/AECOM) estimates a funding gap of about "$50 to $125 a square foot" for conversions, meaning conversions will generally need additional incentives or subsidies to be financially viable.
Menard said the strike…
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