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Community Development Committee adopts tight schedule to certify comprehensive plan; staff to brief F&A
Summary
Director Mona Davis presented an accelerated schedule to certify the comprehensive plan by year‑end, tying land‑use, housing elements and a zoning map update to public hearings this fall; members discussed data‑center language, sign code work, planning commission vacancies and hiring a senior planner.
Community and Economic Development Director Mona Davis told the Community Development Committee that the department’s top priority is getting the city’s comprehensive plan certified by the end of the year, including updated housing and land‑use elements and a revised zoning map.
Davis outlined a schedule that places a planning commission public hearing on Oct. 5, a final draft review by the planning commission on Oct. 19, a Community Development Committee review on Nov. 16, a council first reading on Nov. 23 and a second reading on Dec. 14. “We’ve focused right now on the most important thing, and that is getting our comprehensive plan certified by the end of the year,” Davis said.
The director said Burke (the consultant team) will present a draft land‑use and housing element and zoning‑map updates to the planning commission that night. Davis said staff intend to incorporate policy language on data centers into the comprehensive plan’s land‑use table and to take a deeper, separate review of specific zoning regulations for data centers early next year.
Council member Johnson called the timeline “tight but realistic” and asked whether wireless (cell tower) regulations remain on the department’s radar. Davis said wireless regulations are still a priority but are not scheduled yet; staff capacity and budget may require hiring a consultant to complete that work.
Davis told the committee the city must meet a mid‑September deadline to submit materials to the King County Housing Committee, which will review the draft and is expected to hold a hearing in early November. The committee’s recommendation is needed before the council moves forward with ordinance readings, Davis said.
Members also pressed on staffing and process risks. The planning commission currently has two vacancies, Davis said, and the commission recently missed a meeting because it lacked a quorum. Mayor (speaking without a recorded full name) said one seat had been filled but two vacancies remain and the city is actively recruiting; he added that the administration is trying to hire a senior planner to expand capacity.
Council member Murphy and others flagged sign‑code amendments and mobile‑food vendor regulations as issues residents are watching; Mayor and staff said those items appear in an internal work plan and will be slotted around the comprehensive plan schedule so they do not jeopardize certification timelines.
Council member Johnson emphasized the update’s potential effect on long‑term affordable housing opportunities, noting rezoning and parcel identification for housing are part of the effort. Davis said reviewing the Snoqualmie Ridge master plan and mixed‑use parcels will likely prompt municipal‑code amendments early next year to implement new zoning.
Chair Louis Washington proposed sending the work plan to the Finance & Administration committee as an informational packet item with a brief comment from the chair rather than a full presentation; staff agreed to include the document in the packet and to request room for short remarks at the council meeting. With no further business, the committee moved to adjourn and ended the meeting at 06:23.
The committee did not take any formal votes on policy items at this meeting; the next procedural steps are the planning commission hearing on Oct. 5 and the planning commission final review on Oct. 19 before committee and council readings later in November and December.
