Planning commission unanimously recommends approval of Redmond East Gateway zone change and master plan

The Redmond Urban Area Planning Commission voted unanimously May 20 to recommend city council approval of the Redmond East Gateway zoning map amendment and master development plan, a proposal covering 204.56 acres at 901 E. Highway 126.

Staff planner Landon told the commission the application combines two quasi‑judicial requests: a master development plan covering the entire property and a zoning map amendment. "It's 204.56 acres," Landon said, and the proposal would reconfigure existing zoning by introducing a heavy‑industrial (M2) zone of roughly 68 acres, retain about 85 acres of light industrial (M1), and shift about 8.77 acres into limited‑service commercial (C4A). Staff recommended the commission forward approval to council subject to 10 conditions of approval, including road dedications, future subdivision review and a recorded development agreement tying infrastructure obligations to the property.

The applicant, Greg Blackmore of Blackmore Planning and Development Services, described the master plan as a long‑range framework that aligns with the city's Eastside Framework Plan and the Economic Opportunities Analysis. "The master development plan really sets the table for future development," Blackmore said, explaining the plan maps streets, utilities and block layout so future subdivisions and site plans can comply with required standards.

Traffic consultant Joe Bespin of Transite Consulting said the project has coordinated with ODOT and city staff on an extensive transportation plan. Bespin described a phased approach to off‑site intersection work and said the project will make pro rata contributions toward specific improvements, noting "our project is really looking to start building from Antler" and that the team anticipates contributions "to the tune of about $900,000" toward the Maple and 9th intersection as part of transportation system development charges and pro rata payments.

Civil engineer Adam Earlandson said the project has an infrastructure allocation from the city and that the team used the city's planning guideline of 1,000 gallons per acre per day as a conservative water‑use assumption for industrial lands. He described how water and sewer would be phased and looped from Antler and 9th Street to provide reliability and fire flow, and said detailed user‑level capacity checks would occur at the subdivision or site‑plan stage.

Assistant city engineer Lindsey Cromsad told commissioners that detailed responsibilities for road construction and subdivision phasing would be reviewed as part of future land‑division and construction plan submittals. Staff and the applicant emphasized that the current approvals do not authorize immediate subdivision or site work and that a mutual development agreement recorded with the property would ensure required off‑site and on‑site improvements are completed as development proceeds.

A member of the public, John Schmoller, asked whether the master plan included absorption projections; the applicant said the submittal includes a phasing plan informed by an economic analysis from Johnson Economics and that phase one is intended to introduce M1 and M2 blocks rapidly to attract users.

After discussion, a commissioner moved to accept staff's recommendation "to approve the proposed Redmond East Gateway zoning map amendment and master development plan subject to the 10 conditions of approval presented by staff." The motion was seconded and passed unanimously. The planning commission's recommendation will be scheduled for the next available city council meeting, where council will make the final decision.

Authority and next steps: The hearing was conducted under the Redmond Development Code and applicable state statutes; the record will be forwarded to city council and the development agreement will return for council authorization. The commission's recommendation is a non‑final procedural step and does not itself authorize subdivision or site construction.