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Planning Commission

BEL-PLN-2025-09-25 September 25, 2025 Planning Commission Meeting City of Bellingham
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The Bellingham Planning Commission reached a critical milestone in their two-year comprehensive plan update process, unanimously approving the Bellingham Plan with minor amendments and forwarding it to City Council with a recommendation for adoption. This 20-year planning document will guide growth through 2045 and represents the culmination of extensive community engagement across 95+ written comments, 8,900+ survey responses, and 750+ online participants. The commission's primary focus centered on Urban Growth Area (UGA) boundary decisions, particularly the controversial choice to prioritize North Bellingham UGA development over the South Yew Street area. Staff recommended keeping the South area in "UGA Reserve" status, citing resource constraints that would prevent the city from adequately serving both areas during the planning period. The North area offers 1,300 housing units versus 200 in the South, with better terrain, infrastructure capacity, and a willing developer (Kitech Corporation). A significant discussion emerged around middle housing implementation, with public commentator Brian Gas criticizing the policy as misleading residents about homeownership opportunities. Staff and commissioners pushed back, emphasizing that middle housing creates pathways to ownership through various mechanisms including unit lot subdivisions and condominium reforms. The commission made one formal amendment to Housing Policy 11, accepting staff's wordsmithing changes to improve readability while maintaining the same intent regarding monitoring housing market affordability. The final vote was 6-0 to approve the comprehensive plan and forward it to City Council.

**The Bellingham Plan Approval (6-0 unanimous)** - **Staff Recommendation:** Approve the comprehensive plan as drafted with minor amendments - **Commission Action:** Unanimous approval with one amendment - **Key Details:** 20-year planning document covering housing, transportation, climate resilience, and community design - **Practical Impact:** Plan moves to City Council for final adoption by December 31, 2025 state deadline **Housing Policy 11 Amendment (6-0)** - **Staff Recommendation:** Accept revised language for H-11 regarding housing market affordability monitoring - **Commission Action:** Approved wordsmithing changes to break policy…

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**Urban Growth Area Strategy:** The evening's most substantive discussion centered on UGA boundary management and resource allocation. Staff presented a detailed comparison between North Bellingham UGA and South Yew Street Reserve areas, explaining that the city lacks financial and staffing resources to fully develop both areas during the 20-year planning period. The North area offers significantly more housing capacity (1,300 units vs 200), flatter terrain for development, and an established developer relationship with Kitech Corporation. Environmental constraints, steep topography, and recent greenway purchases limit South area development potential. Commission members questioned whether this either/or approach was necessary, but staff emphasized fiscal realism given infrastructure costs including fire stations, water systems, and road networks. **Middle Housing Implementation:** Following critical public comment from Brian Gas about middle housing being misleading to homebuyers, extensive discussion emerged about ownership opportunities. Staff explained that while House Bill 1110 doesn't mandate ownership models, it creates f…
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**Brian Gas (Public Commenter):** Delivered passionate criticism of middle housing policies, arguing they mislead residents about homeownership opportunities. Contended that middle housing primarily creates rental units rather than ownership opportunities and expressed frustration with the city's focus on rental housing over first-time homebuyer options. Warned that high housing costs threaten school district enrollment and long-term community sustainability, citing Aspen as a cautionary example of extreme unaffordability. **Commission Member Rose Lathrop:** Expressed excitement about the comprehensive plan's implementation potential, emphasizing that the document represents an aspirational framework requiring follow-up action through specific strategies. Highlighted current work using middle housing tools for affordable homeownership projects and anticipated unit lot subdivisions opening new ownership opportunities. **Commission Member Jerry Richmond:** Supported middle housing critics' concerns while acknowledging the need for large-scale development to achieve affordability goals. Advocated for concurrent planning of both North and South UGA areas despite resource constrain…
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**Brian Gas, on middle housing:** "The whole thing's built on lying to people. I can't put it any other way. When you say things that it's a style that can be owned, they cannot be owned." **Brian Gas, on housing affordability:** "Right now we are the second I think we're the first most expensive place for a city. And it's not okay. If we want to be the Aspen of the Northwest, I'm going to tell you that we're on our way because the average house sale in Aspen is $3.5 million and their median …
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**October 9, 2025:** Next Planning Commission meeting addressing ADU regulations **October 16, 2025:** Planning Commission to review co-living implementation for House Bill 1998 **Late 2025:** Additional code requirements coming before Planning Commission through November **December 31, 2025:** State deadline for comprehensive plan adoption **Next 8 yea…

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**Planning Commission Recommendation:** The commission officially recommended approval of the Bellingham Plan to City Council, completing their role in the comprehensive plan update process that began in 2023. **Housing Policy 11 Language:** Modified from single-paragraph format to bulleted structure for improved readability while maintaining identical policy intent regarding housing market affordability monitoring. **UGA Development Priority:** Formally endorsed staff's recommendation to prioritize North Bellingham UGA development over South Yew Street area, directing city resources and plan…
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# Bellingham Planning Commission Approves 2025 Comprehensive Plan — A Long Journey Reaches a Milestone On a September evening in City Council Chambers, the Bellingham Planning Commission reached the culmination of a years-long process, unanimously recommending approval of the 2025 Comprehensive Plan — to be known as "The Bellingham Plan" — and sending it forward to City Council for final adoption. ## Meeting Overview The September 25, 2025 meeting represented a critical milestone in Bellingham's once-a-decade comprehensive planning process. Six commissioners were present — Chair Mike Estes, Dan Bloemker, Jed Ballew, Jerry Richmond, Rose Lathrop, and Russ Whidbee — with Lisa Marx absent. After nearly two years of public engagement, technical analysis, and deliberation across 18 Planning Commission meetings, the body was ready to make its recommendation. The evening began with general public comment, where Brian Gas, a Bellingham resident, delivered passionate remarks about middle housing policy that would set the tone for deeper conversations about the city's housing challenges and growth strategy. ## The Challenge of Growth and Housing Choices Gas expressed frustration with what he saw as misleading messaging around middle housing, arguing that the city was creating "more capacity for the city, which generates more fees for themselves" rather than true homeownership opportunities. "When you say things that it's a style that can be owned, they cannot be owned. You cannot buy them," he said, referring to mid…
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### Meeting Overview The Bellingham Planning Commission met September 25, 2025, to consider a recommendation to City Council on the draft Bellingham Plan, the city's comprehensive 20-year plan for growth. After reviewing public comments and discussing Urban Growth Area boundaries, the commission unanimously approved the plan with minor amendments. ### Key Terms and Concepts **Comprehensive Plan:** A 20-year vision document that guides the physical, social and economic development of the city, required by state law to be updated every decade. **Urban Growth Area (UGA):** Land designated for future city growth where urban development is encouraged and rural development is discouraged under state growth management law. **UGA Reserve:** Areas identified for potential future inclusion in the UGA but not expected to be developed during the current 20-year planning period due to resource constraints. **Middle Housing:** Housing types between single-family homes and large apartment buildings, such as duplexes, townhomes, and small apartment buildings, mandated by state House Bill 1110. **House Bill 1220:** State legislation requiring comprehensive plans to ensure housing supply and affordability at all income levels, with specific requirements for housing below 80% of area median income. **Annexation Plan:** A detailed study of opportunities and costs for bringing areas from the UGA into the city limits, including infrastructure needs and service provision. **Impact Fees:** Charges paid by developers to offset the costs of new infrastructure needed to serve new development, such as roads, parks, and schools. **System Development Charges:** Similar to impact fees but specifically for utility infrastructure like water tanks and pump stations. ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Mike Estes | Planning Commission Chair | | Chris Behee | Long Range Planning Manager | | Blake Lang | Director, Planning and Community Development | | Elizabeth Erickson | Senior Planner | | Mike Wilson | Assistant Director of Public Works/City Engineer | | Brian Gas | Community member providing public comment | ### Background Context This m…
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Land Use & Planning Housing Transportation & Infrastructure Government Operations HB 1110 HB 1220 HB 1998 Bellingham City Council Bellingham Planning Commission Kitech Corporation Whatcom County Whatcom Environmental Council Wta Blake Klein Brian Gas Chris Behee Dan Bloemker Elizabeth Erickson Jed Ballew Jerry Richmond Mike Estes Mike Wilson Rose Lathrop Russ Whidbee Affordable Housing Annexation Budget Finance Climate Action Comprehensive Plan Growth Management Act Housing Policy Impact Fees Infrastructure Investment Land Use Policy Middle Housing Public Safety Transportation Policy Urban Growth Area Zoning