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Tumwater council adopts 2026 housekeeping amendments to development code
Summary
Council unanimously adopted ordinance 02026-002 to make minor development‑code updates: clarify accessory dwelling unit language, allow child‑care centers in most residential zones, refine sign‑code rules for Interstate‑facing parcels, and update essential public‑facility language to reflect state law.
Tumwater’s City Council on May 5 adopted ordinance 02026-002, a package of minor "housekeeping" amendments to the city’s development regulations intended to clarify code language and bring local rules into alignment with recent state guidance.
Planning staff presented four categories of change: (1) clarifications requested by the state Department of Commerce about accessory dwelling units; (2) amendments to allow child‑care centers as a permitted use in residential zones except in light industrial and airport‑related districts to reflect 2025 state law changes; (3) sign‑code clarifications that adjust how maximum wall and monument signage is calculated, including allowances for buildings fronting Interstate 5; and (4) updates to essential public facility language to reflect current RCW requirements.
Brad Madrid, who presented the ordinance on behalf of planning staff, described the package as "very minor changes" intended to make the development code clearer for applicants and staff. Council asked for examples of the sign‑area calculations and staff showed an illustrative diagram of a large multi‑tenant building and how square‑footage allowances would be applied.
The measure received a motion and second and passed unanimously on a voice vote.
Why it matters: The amendments are procedural and clarifying rather than policy‑shaping: they remove ambiguity for applicants, implement changes required or suggested by the state, and streamline local review of ADUs, child‑care locations and signage.
What’s next: Staff will implement the amended code provisions and post updated code language online.
