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Burien planners brief commission on state law HB 1757 easing residential conversions of existing buildings
Summary
At the April 22 meeting, staff briefed the commission on House Bill 1757, which requires cities to allow residential conversions inside existing building envelopes and limits local ability to impose exterior, parking and SEPA requirements; staff proposed modest code edits, a May 27 public hearing and noted a June 30 state compliance date.
Burien's Planning Commission heard a briefing on state House Bill 1757 at its April 22 meeting, a law that requires cities to permit residential conversions of existing buildings in residential, commercial or mixed-use zones as long as the work is within the existing building envelope.
A planner identified as the commission's newest planner summarized the statutory requirements and the limited local discretion the law allows. The presentation said cities may not impose exterior design, architectural or open-space requirements, may not require new parking (though retaining existing on-site stalls can be required), and may not require SEPA environmental or transportation-concurrency studies for conversions. The planner emphasized that ‘‘these provisions do not exempt these projects from meeting all life and safety requirements; if a project cannot meet those requirements it will not be approved.’'
Staff outlined the limited BMC amendments proposed to implement the state law: creating a single, clear section in BMC 19.17 to house exemption language; adding clarifying language to the parking chapter about retaining existing on-site parking; and updating BMC 19.55 (nonconformance) to indicate when a director may find a nonconformity creates a specific detriment to the surrounding area. Staff proposed a public hearing on May 27 and said the city must comply with the state law by June 30.
Commissioners asked about predictable outcomes for applicants and about parking specifics. Staff said state law generally prohibits requiring additional parking and recommended the commission consider whether to require retention of existing on-site vehicle stalls or to treat such changes case by case; staff also said conversions are likely to be limited in scale in Burien and that market factors will guide whether property owners pursue conversions.
What wasn't decided: the commission did not adopt a final policy on whether to retain on-site parking as a general rule; staff will return with code language for a May 27 public hearing.
The briefing also noted that conversions must use the building's existing envelope (no new exterior expansions), and that the city cannot condition conversions on added open space, new parking or architectural redesigns except where state law allows (historic-landmark exemptions, for example).
