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Real Briefings

Joint City Council & Planning Commission

BEL-CON-SPC-2024-10-24 October 24, 2024 Committee of the Whole City of Bellingham
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The City of Bellingham held a rare joint work session between City Council and Planning Commission to discuss growth strategy for the 2025 comprehensive plan update. The primary purpose was to identify a preferred growth alternative to submit to Whatcom County as part of a multi-jurisdictional resolution that will inform the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) analysis. Staff recommended choosing "Alternative 2" — a middle-ground approach that would accommodate approximately 30,310 new residents (1,378 per year) and 18,443 new housing units over the next 20 years, representing about 53% of countywide growth. The discussion revealed tensions between environmental protection and housing needs. Staff presented an "all of the above" strategy that includes infill development, middle housing options under House Bill 1110, transit-oriented development, infrastructure investments, and potentially expanding urban growth areas both north and south. The recommended approach would require significant infrastructure investments, including new water reservoirs and road improvements, with estimated costs reaching tens of millions of dollars. Council members and commissioners expressed concerns about committing to expansion areas before completing environmental analysis, while acknowledging the housing crisis requires bold action. The group ultimately reached general consensus to support Alternative 2, understanding this provides input for the EIS process rather than final policy adoption.

The Planning Commission first voted 7-2 to change their regular meeting time from 7:00 PM to 6:00 PM, effective immediately. The main decision was reaching consensus on growth targets for county submission: - **Population**: Approximately 30,310 new residents by 2045 (Alternative 2) - **Housing**: Approximately 18,443 new housing units - **Employment**: Approximately 19,38…

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The central policy debate centered on whether Bellingham should plan for higher growth (Alternative 2) versus the more conservative medium projection (Alternative 1). Staff argued for Alternative 2 to provide housing options and prevent displacement, while some commissioners worried about environmental impacts and infrastructure costs. **House Bill 1220 Requirements**: Staff explained that new state requirements mandate planning for housing across all income levels, with Bellingham allocated approximately 60% of units in the 80% AMI and below categories. This represents a significant challenge, as current affordable housing production averages only 130 units per year. **Urban Growth Area Expansion**: Discussion focused on two reserve areas — North Bellingham and South Bellingham (Yew…
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**Dan Luetmer (Birchwood resident)** advocated for high growth planning, arguing that climate refugees will increase demand and under-zoning forces competition for limited housing. He promoted single room occupancy (SRO) housing as deeply affordable, citing his own $670/month rent in a converted single-family home. **Rick Edgar (Whatcom Environmental Council)** criticized the process as lacking transparency, arguing that selecting a preferred alternative before …
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**Chris Behee, on planning uncertainty:** "What we decide tonight will not be the preferred alternative for Bellingham. It's the ingredients that will go into that analysis when we get the draft EIS at the end of the year." **Council Member Michael Lilliquist, on planning impacts:** "High population numbers have only one reliable effect — they will drive up the cost of development. When we aim high we commit ourselves to spending tens of millions of dollars more than we would have in a not so…
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**November 2024**: Whatcom County Planning Commission will consider the multi-jurisdictional resolution incorporating all cities' preferred alternatives. **End of 2024**: Draft Environmental Impact Statement expected from consultants analyzing traffic, greenhouse gas emissions, and other impacts. **January 2025**: City staff will begin developing draft comprehensive plan chapters for Planning Commission review. **Late Spring 2025**: Draft chapters will come to City Coun…

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After this meeting, Bellingham will submit Alternative 2 growth targets to Whatcom County representing approximately 53% of countywide growth allocation, higher than the historical average of under 50%. This commits the city to planning for more aggressive housing production — jumping from current levels of 677 units per year to approximately 850 units per year. The city moved from considering individual growth strategies to committing to an "all of the above" appr…
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## Meeting Overview On the evening of October 24, 2024, the Bellingham Planning Commission and City Council came together for a rare joint meeting at the Public Works Pacific Street Operations Center. What brought these two bodies together was a pivotal moment in the city's 20-year planning cycle: determining how much growth Bellingham should accommodate through 2045, and where that growth should occur. The meeting began with routine business—the Planning Commission voting 5-2 to move their regular meeting time from 7 PM to 6 PM—before diving into the substantive work session on growth strategies. Planning & Community Development's Long Range Division Manager Chris Behee led the presentation, walking officials through complex projections, housing allocations, and infrastructure needs that will shape Bellingham's future. This wasn't just an academic exercise. The numbers discussed would feed into a countywide Environmental Impact Statement and inform a multi-jurisdictional resolution that establishes the framework for the next comprehensive plan update. With housing costs rising and climate change driving migration to the Pacific Northwest, the stakes were high for getting these projections right. ## The Growth Projection Challenge Behee opened with sobering context: Washington state divides counties into three planning cohorts, with Whatcom County required to adopt its updated comprehensive plan by the end of 2025. The state's Office of Financial Management provides broad population projections, but local planners hired consultant Leland Consulting to refine those numbers into more realistic scenarios. The consultant's work narrowed the range considerably. Where OFM's projections showed a vast spread from very low to very high growth, Leland focused on three alternatives: an "OFM Medium" scenario of 292,000 countywide by 2045, an "Adjusted High" of just under 322,000, and an "Adjusted Low" of 274,000. "The scenarios we're talking about are all within this medium to adjusted high," Behee explained, noting that no jurisdiction was seriously considering planning for the lower growth scenarios. Looking backward provided some confidence in the methodology. Over the past decade, Whatcom County as a whole accommodated 99% of the population growth forecast in the 2016 plan, though housing co…
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### Meeting Overview The Bellingham Planning Commission and City Council held a joint special meeting on October 24, 2024, to discuss growth strategies for the city's comprehensive plan update. The primary focus was selecting a preferred growth alternative to inform the countywide Environmental Impact Statement and establish parameters for future development through 2045. ### Key Terms and Concepts **Environmental Impact Statement (EIS):** A detailed analysis examining the environmental, traffic, and infrastructure impacts of different growth scenarios, required before major planning decisions. **Urban Growth Area (UGA):** The boundary around a city designating where urban-level development and services are planned to occur over the next 20 years. **House Bill 1220:** State legislation requiring cities to plan for housing at all income levels, from 0% to 100%+ of Area Median Income, but not requiring cities to fund construction. **Area Median Income (AMI):** The middle household income for Whatcom County, used as a benchmark for categorizing housing affordability levels. **Single Room Occupancy (SRO):** Housing where individuals rent private rooms but share common facilities like kitchens and bathrooms, providing deeply affordable housing options. **Transit-Oriented Development (TOD):** Higher-density mixed-use development located within walking distance of frequent transit lines to encourage public transportation use. **Multi-jurisdictional Resolution:** A non-binding agreement between Whatcom County and all cities establishing preliminary growth allocations for the countywide planning process. **Middle Housing:** Housing types between single-family homes and large apartment buildings, including duplexes, triplexes, townhomes, and small apartment buildings. ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Chris Behee | Long Range Division Manager, Planning & Community Development | | Mayor Kim Lund | Mayor of Bellingham | | Hannah Stone | City Council Member | | Michael Lilliquist | City Council Member | | Dan Hammill | City Council Member | | Lisa Anderson | City Council Member | | Jace Cotton | City Council Member | …
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Land Use & Planning Housing Government Operations HB 1110 HB 1220 Ferndale Leland Consulting Lynden Silver Beach Neighborhood Association Whatcom County Whatcom Environmental Council Carrie Burnside Chris Behee Dan Luetmer Daniel Hammill Hannah Stone Jace Cotton Kim Lund Lisa Anderson Michael Lilliquist Rick Edgar Affordable Housing Budget Finance Comprehensive Plan Environmental Growth Management Act Housing Policy Infrastructure Investment Middle Housing Transportation Policy Urban Growth Area Zoning