Title
2021 Code Amendments - Briefing
Recommended Action
Information only. No action requested.
Report
Issue:
Discussion on the revised draft 2021 Code Amendments.
Staff Contact:
Joyce Phillips, Principal Planner, Community Planning and Development, 360.570.3722
Presenter(s):
Joyce Phillips, Principal Planner, Community Planning and Development
Background and Analysis:
The Olympia Municipal Code (OMC) is made up of several Titles, Chapters, and Sections that pertain to a wide variety of topics related to laws and requirements. The Planning Division of the Community Planning and Development Department deals primarily with Title 14 (Environmental Protection), Title 16 (Buildings and Construction), Title 17 (Subdivisions), and Title 18 (Unified Development Code) of the OMC.
It can be challenging to keep code sections consistent with each other and to update the code when clarification is needed or to correct errors. In some cases, such as for the new sign code that was adopted in early 2019, staff seeks amendments related to questions that have come up over the course of using the new code for a year or two. In addition, sometimes a code amendment is desired but by itself does not warrant the time it takes to go through the code amendment process. City staff keep a list of these types of code amendments, generally thought of as minor or of a housekeeping nature, and periodically compiles the proposals into a set of code amendments for review. The last set of such code amendments were proposed in 2019. Staff estimates that these types of amendments will generally occur every two to three years.
The proposal consists of amendments to two chapters in Title 16 related to tree protection measures. These amendments are primarily at the request of the City’s Urban Forester. The remainder of the proposed amendments are to Title 18, to a variety of chapters at the request of multiple city planners.
In an attempt to make the proposed amendments easy to follow, the proposed amendments are numbered and identified by Title, Chapter, and Section number. Each proposal includes a brief statement as to the intent of the revision. The proposed amendments are show in “track changes” format, with new proposed text shown in red and underlined and with text proposed to be deleted shown in red strikethrough text.
The initial draft was made available in early March. Based on comments received from members of the public and city staff, additional revisions were made in late April. Additionally, a revision to the parking code has been added to address the number of parking spaces required for certain housing types within a certain distance of transit routes with frequent service. The revised draft amendments are attached.
Neighborhood/Community Interests (if known):
Neighborhood or community interests or concerns are not yet fully known. To help raise awareness of these proposed amendments, staff did route the proposed amendments to the designated contacts for all Recognized Neighborhood Associations in the City on March 12, 2021, with a request to share the information with their neighbors. In the materials, staff noted that public comments would be accepted through the end of the public hearing but that in order for comments to be considered by staff before the public hearing the comments should be submitted by April 16, 2021.
In addition, on March 12, 2021, the proposed amendments were also routed to other City Departments, adjacent jurisdictions, business organizations, Tribes, State Agencies, and the City’s media list.
Comments received will be provided to the Planning Commission for consideration.
Options:
Information only. No action requested.
Financial Impact:
The process of drafting and reviewing the proposed amendments are covered by the Community Planning and Development Department’s base budget.
Attachments:
Revised amendments
Public comments
RCW 36.70A.620