Gig Harbor council presses staff to translate state housing mandates into local code changes and incentives

Gig Harbor city staff urged the City Council to pair a sustained policy push with concrete code changes to meet state housing requirements and expand locally available housing types.

Eric, a city staff member leading the housing discussion, told the council that state law and Department of Commerce guidance require jurisdictions to remove barriers to townhomes and multifamily housing and to provide incentives aimed at housing affordable to households at 80% of area median income (AMI) or below. "House bill 12 20 ... indicated that jurisdictions must remove regulatory barriers and provide incentives for housing at levels that are 80% of any annual median income or less," he said, describing the direction set by the legislature and Commerce.

Why it matters: Staff said these changes are not merely conceptual. Under Commerce guidance the city must demonstrate progress on specific unit targets; Eric said the city must plan for 662 units of townhome/missing-middle housing inside city limits by 2044 and adjust regulations to allow the building types Commerce counts. "Between now and 2044, the city of Gig Harbor, just inside the city limits, has to provide 662 units of that type of housing," he stated.

What staff proposed: The presentation identified a suite of tools the city can deploy: multifamily tax exemptions (MFTE), targeted fee waivers, adjustments to setbacks and lot-size rules, relaxed parking requirements for certain housing types and clearer objective design standards where the law requires them. Eric emphasized tailoring changes by area, saying some centers of local importance (for example, Kimball or Harbor Northwest) may be appropriate for denser housing while other residential neighborhoods should remain lower scale. He noted some code changes are already drafted and described a phase 2 code-revision plan that can be scaled up or accelerated.

Council concerns and clarifications: Council members pressed staff on which changes could be enacted quickly and what would actually prompt developers to build. One council member asked for a clear, deliverable workplan—timelines and priorities—so the council and planning commission can track implementation. Staff answered that the workplan exists in draft and can be segmented: "You could fast track certain code changes... focus on site design elements, just the setbacks," Eric said, adding that MFTE and fee reductions are other near-term levers.

Limits and dependencies: Staff cautioned that the city does not control all market variables. Changes to setbacks and incentives can remove local barriers, but there is no guarantee private developers will build in Gig Harbor. Eric also flagged budget and infrastructure consequences: the city must provide water, sewer and roads as housing develops and must weigh fee waivers against lost revenue.

Next steps: Staff asked the council to refine what "housing diversity" means for specific areas so staff can prepare focused code edits and incentive packages. Eric recommended continued council engagement through the interim, a prioritized rollout of code amendments and coordination with the city administrator and Planning Commission to convert discussion items into draft ordinances and a timeline for review and adoption.

The council did not take formal action at the session; staff said more detailed proposals will return for council direction and to fit into the 2027–28 work plan.