On June 25 DPD will host an open house to present its recommendation for changes in zoning, including permitted height and other development standards, for the South Lake Union Neighborhood. This event marks the culmination in a multi-year planning process that began with designation of the neighborhood as an Urban Center in 2004, the update of the Neighborhood Plan in 2007, completion of the South Lake Union Urban Design Framework in 2010, and release of a Final Environmental Impact Statement earlier this year. Key to each of these efforts was active collaboration with community stakeholders including residents, business owners, property owners and representatives from adjacent neighborhoods.
Meeting Details
When:
Monday, June 25
5:30 – 7:30 p.m.
Presentation starts at 6:00 p.m.
Where:
415 Westlake
415 Westlake Avenue N
Key provisions of DPD’s recommendations include:
- Sufficient development capacity that will allow the neighborhood to accommodate future residential and employment growth beyond the 2031 horizon. This means future updates to 20-year growth targets in the Comprehensive plan (State law requires this every eight years) are unlikely to require increases in development capacity each time.
- Height increases that allow for diversity in architectural form throughout the neighborhood while simultaneously guarding important view corridors through development standards such as tower setbacks, spacing, and limits on the number of towers throughout the neighborhood. These standards are more restrictive on properties near the edge of Lake Union.
- Reclassification of remaining Industrial Commercial zoned properties in the neighborhood to Seattle Mixed to promote development of a variety of land uses including additional residential development where currently prohibited by existing zoning.
- Incentive zoning provisions that provide for an increase in the amount of affordable housing in the city and investments in public amenities identified in the Urban Design Framework that promote a vital pedestrian environment and supports the needs of a growing residential population.
- Development standards that emphasize the pedestrian experience through transparency requirements and ground level use requirements.
Following the open house, DPD will forward their recommendations to the Mayor for his final approval and submission of his recommendations to the City Council for their consideration. Once received, the Council will hold a public hearing later this summer.
For more information about this project visit our website, www.seattle.gov/dpd/planning/slu, or contact:
Jim Holmes
(206) 684-8372
jim.holmes@seattle.gov