Residents can weigh in on housing production and permit streamlining
Published 10:30 am Thursday, August 28, 2025
Mercer Island residents whose interests lie in housing production and permit streamlining can presently weigh in on a code amendment package that will comprise omnibus legislation related to those fields.
According to city documents, compliance topics set to be addressed by the omnibus legislation are: Affordable and emergency housing, residential parking requirements, clear and objective design standards, permit review timelines and co-living housing.
Islanders can review the package on the city’s Let’s Talk page and then submit comments via email to the planning commission by Sept. 24 or voice their thoughts during a public hearing at that night’s meeting, which will also feature a consideration of a recommendation to city council.
“That’s where the planning commission can receive comments and consider making amendments based on those comments. After that, the planning commission will make a recommendation,” said Adam Zack, the city’s principal planner in charge of the project that city council approved on July 15 of this year.
To set the stage for the Sept. 24 meeting, the planning commission will engage in an initial study session and discussion of proposed code amendments on Sept. 10. Further recommendation deliberations may take place if necessary at the planning commission’s Oct. 8 and 22 meetings, and city council will consider the planning commission’s recommendation beginning in November.
Zack said that city council will “ultimately make a decision on adopting these amendments into the code.” He said the city is aiming to have the project wrapped up by the end of 2025 so it can halt renewing ordinances and get things resolved.
Over the last few years, according to Zack, state legislature has enacted a series of bills that have altered requirements around zoning and comprehensive plans.
“The city has complied with that, we’ve adopted interim ordinances, which temporarily amend the code so that we comply with the state law. But eventually they need to be replaced with permanent amendments,” he said.
Other compliance topics that the city will address by the omnibus ordinance are: Removing references to the design commission review since city council dissolved the commission in 2025 and reassigned design review to the hearing examiner; and city council’s updating of the Mercer Island’s comprehensive plan and making implementing amendments to the Town Center development code in 2024.
Zack said that after speaking with planning commission and city council members, they’ve acknowledged that through the project, “this is an effective way to kind of get through that process and comply with the state law and get our code updated.”
Mercer Island hasn’t faced any big hurdles with this project thus far, Zack said.
Residents can send comments to meet the Sept. 24 deadline to planning.commission@mercerisland.gov. The code amendment package is available at: https://tinyurl.com/2xenxddf.
