Issaquah committee backs revisions to street landscaping standards, forwards them to council

Council member Joe, chair of Issaquah’s Mobility & Infrastructure Committee, said the committee unanimously recommended forwarding proposed amendments to the city’s street standards and Issaquah Municipal Code chapter 18.606 (landscaping) to the full City Council for consideration on March 30, 2026, and suggested placing the item on the consent agenda unless a council member requests fuller discussion.

John Mortensen, the city’s transportation engineering manager, presented the proposed revisions and said they are intended to allow narrowly defined deviations from the current planter-strip requirement — which now generally requires a planted strip between the travel lane and sidewalk — when that requirement would conflict with tree preservation, critical-area protections, steep driveway grades or short interim pedestrian connections. “The purpose tonight’s item is to provide an update and seek the committee support on proposed revisions to the street standards in Issaquah Municipal Code chapter 18.606, landscaping,” Mortensen said.

Mortensen described several examples the administration…