
The Mountlake Terrace City Council Aug. 19 had the opportunity to discuss and ask questions of staff regarding the draft Town Center Subarea Comprehensive Plan and Development Regulations that would result in taller buildings and more density downtown. However, the majority of the discussion focused on how to better involve the public in providing comments on the Town Center Plan.
Councilmembers began by viewing a drone video taken by developer Duane Landsverk to demonstrate what a 150-foot view of the completed plan would look like. Then, Councilmember Bryan Wahl started off the discussion by stating that he felt the timeline for adopting the draft Town Center Plan isn’t realistic.
“I’m concerned at this point that we haven’t had sufficient time as a council to work through these changes and the suggested changes,” he said.
Multiple councilmembers and Mayor Kyoko Matsumoto Wright requested more time for the council to discuss the plan, not only to ensure speedy adoption, but to accommodate as much public involvement as possible.
“This is our highest priority, this should be the first thing on our agenda every night that we have a meeting between now and adoption,” Wahl said.
Councilmembers and one person during the public comment period added that it’s important to include the developers, as well as members of the public, as part of these discussions.
As for next steps, some councilmembers asked for additional time to go over what information they had. They also indicated a desire to schedule a Saturday council meeting to present their opinions.
However, Wahl countered that he felt the direction had already been given, and that the next steps were public comment. Councilmember Laura Sonmore and some other councilmembers also suggested taking a walking tour of the city to envision the design ideas put forth by staff.
In addition, Sonmore said it would be beneficial to discuss changes in an organized fashion. “Sometimes for us it’s nice to take it in smaller chunks so we’re on the same type of level that you (staff) are,” she said.
Mayor Matsumoto Wright then directed that the Town Center — and public comment on issues related to it — would be the priority for all meetings in the near future.
City Manager Scott Hugill agreed to prioritize Town Center discussions in all public meetings in September. “So you’re getting that input on where it stands now with the assumption that the plan before you now is the plan that would be implemented and that’s what we want to hear public comment on,” he said. Hugill added that the plan “would be the first thing on the agenda so the public does not have to wait through the whole meeting to get to it.”
In addition, Hugill said he would ensure that council receives additional details the council needs for future discussions. These items include “step backs” on buildings, building heights, parking, the “lobe” section of the Town Center boundaries, transitional zones, and more. (See more in our related story.)
Mountlake Terrace resident Victor Eskenazi emphasized during the public comment period that it would be beneficial to ensure each of these items was clearly identified for the public to comment on at the beginning of the meetings.
In other business, the council heard the city’s financial report for first quarter 2019 and Police Chief Pete Caw reviewed the second quarter police department report. Caw also noted that the department was just reaccredited last week. Both of these reports can be found online attached to the Aug. 19 agenda.
Also during the public comment period, several citizens requested that the city implement
more strict speed limit monitoring and enforcement of what they described as a dangerous stretch of 66th Avenue West.
— By Mardy Harding
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