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File #: 25-0554    Version: 1
Type: discussion Status: In Committee
File created: 6/11/2025 In control: Social Justice & Equity Commission
Agenda date: 6/23/2025 Final action:
Title: Olympia 2045 Housing Element Chapter of the City of Olympia Comprehensive Plan Update - Housing Displacement Analysis
Attachments: 1. Housing_Displacement_Analysis_06June2025, 2. Housing_Public_Draft_09May2025, 3. Planning for and Accommodating Housing Needs in Thurston County 2025-04-09, 4. Olympia 2045 Housing Update Webpage
Title
Olympia 2045 Housing Element Chapter of the City of Olympia Comprehensive Plan Update - Housing Displacement Analysis

Recommended Action
Information only. No action requested.

Report
Issue:
Discussion on the update of the Olympia 2045 Comprehensive Plan Housing Chapter and Housing Displacement Analysis.

Staff Contact:
Casey Schaufler, Associate Planner, Community Planning and Economic Development, 360.753.8254
Christa Lenssen, Senior Housing Program Specialist, Community Planning and Economic Development, 360.570.3762

Presenter(s):
Casey Schaufler, Associate Planner, Community Planning and Economic Development
Christa Lenssen, Sr. Housing Program Specialist, Community Planning and Economic Development

Background and Analysis:
For the last periodic update, the City's Comprehensive Plan underwent a major rewrite through a planning process that took place from 2009 through 2014. The Plan was adopted in December of 2014. At least once every 10 years, cities and counties that are fully planning under the Growth Management Act (GMA), must update their plan through a process known as a periodic Update. The periodic update requires that jurisdictions update the planning horizon to a minimum of 20 years, update the population projection it is planning for, and address all new planning requirements that have been adopted since the previous update.

In 2021, the Washington Legislature changed the way communities are required to plan for housing. House Bill 1220 (2021) amended the Growth Management Act (GMA) to instruct local governments to "plan for and accommodate" housing affordable to all income levels. This significantly strengthened the previous goal, which was to encourage affordable housing.

The amended law also directed the Department of Commerce to project future housing needs for jurisdictions by income bracket and made significant updates to how jurisdictions are to plan for housing in the housing element of their comprehensive plans. These new ch...

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