Airway Heights council hears extensive public comment on "missing middle" housing code amendments

Airway Heights City Council members on April 7 heard a lengthy presentation and public testimony on a 22-ordinance package to implement Washington State's middle-housing and ADU requirements.

Jeff Marengo, managing principal at Framework and the project manager for the code update, told the council the package aims "to expand housing choices and support middle housing implementation in Airway Heights," including a proposal to consolidate several residential zones into two new zones (Neighborhood Family Residential and Multifamily Residential) and to update dimensional standards, parking rules and unit-lot subdivision provisions.

The Department of Commerce cautioned the council that the state's model ordinance will take effect six months after the periodic update if the city does not adopt its own regulations. "The model ordinance was developed by professional builders, architects and planners," Ethan Porter, a housing planner at the Department of Commerce, said, and the state rule would apply unless the council adopts consistent local code.

Developers and nonprofit builders who testified urged the council to follow the planning commission's recommendations rather than the staff'proposed changes. Jim Frank of Greenstone Corporation said middle-housing should enable small, saleable homes that allow homeownership "rather than large apartment projects," and urged the council to adopt a 45-foot maximum height and higher lot coverage so three-story townhouses with pitched roofs are feasible. Frank also criticized the proposed floor-area-ratio (FAR) standard as too restrictive for duplexes and small clustered housing.

Morgan Will, senior planner at StoreHog Engineering, told the council his client supports the planning commission's recommendation to keep a 6,000-square-foot minimum lot size in the consolidated zone and to retain 50% lot coverage rather than reducing coverage to 40%. "The proposed increase to 7,200 square feet would take away rights" currently exercised under the R-2 zone, Will said, and he recommended removing the FAR requirement entirely.

Representatives from Habitat for Humanity and local consultants echoed those concerns, saying nonprofit and small-scale homeownership projects will be difficult to build under the more restrictive draft standards. Jerry Storhaug, a civil engineering consultant, told the council that raising height and coverage limits would make middle-housing more "livable" and marketable.

Planning Director Heather Troutman and Framework's team answered technical questions about building-height measurement under the International Residential Code, when a pitched roof can fit within a 35-foot envelope, and how the PUD (planned unit development) process can allow flexibility for larger master-planned projects. Troutman also explained unit-lot subdivision rules (short-plat administrative process limited to nine lots by Commerce guidance) and why the city is considering limiting that administrative pathway to smaller projects while using PUD/long-plat review for larger master plans.

Council members repeatedly asked for more time and deliberation. Staff suggested closing the public comment portion and continuing the hearing to a date certain if council wanted additional study; the chair closed public testimony at 7:34 p.m. and the council later tabled most of the ordinance package for further discussion.

Next steps: staff and the consultant team will return with more detailed recommendations, and the council must decide whether to adopt the package as drafted, adopt changes reflecting the planning commission's recommendations, or allow the state model ordinance to take effect if the city does not act within the statutory time frame.