On Tuesday, August 19, 2008, the following proposed 2008 amendments to the Seattle Comprehensive Plan were sent to City Council for review:

• 2008 Comprehensive Plan Amendments Directors Report
• 2008 Comprehensive Plan Amendments Ordinance

The City Council’s Planning, Land Use & Neighborhoods Committee will hold a public hearing on the proposed amendments on Monday, September 22, 2008, at 5:30 p.m. in the Seattle City Council Chamber, 2nd floor, Seattle City Hall, 600 Fourth Avenue.

How to Propose a Comprehensive Plan Amendment
The Comprehensive (Comp) Plan Amendment Process is an opportunity for individuals, groups, City departments, and other public agencies to propose changes to Seattle's Comprehensive Plan.  Amendments may address changing conditions, emerging issues or ongoing planning efforts. Proposed amendments (see application) may include changes to policies, the future land use map, appendices, or other components of the Comprehensive Plan. Most rezones do not require amending the Comp Plan. The Council has adopted criteria that it uses in selecting Comp Plan amendments to consider.

The Washington State Growth Management Act limits the City to amending the Comp Plan only once a year. The City has established a process that allows several amendments to be reviewed simultaneously. The process involves two separate reviews by the City Council. In the first review, early in the year, the Council identifies the amendments that will be considered that year. To be eligible for consideration, applications for proposed amendments must be submitted by January 20 each year.

Executive staff then analyzes the amendments Council identified through its first review. On August 1st, the Executive submits an ordinance containing the Mayor’s recommended amendments for the Council to consider in its second review in the fall. The ordinance eventually adopted by the Council adds the selected amendments into the Comprehensive Plan.

In October 2007, the City Council adopted Resolution 31016, which changed the Comp Plan amendment process. Beginning with the 2008 amendment cycle, suggestions for amending the Plan should be sent by January 20 to the City Council at complan@seattle.gov, rather than to DPD as in the past. This is intended to streamline the review process and allow additional time to analyze requests. DPD will still be the executive’s lead for analyzing the possible amendments once they are identified in the Council’s resolution.

2007 Comprehensive Plan Amendment replacement pages (published in 2008):

• Cultural Resource Element
• Economic Development Element
• Environment Element
• Housing Element
• Human Development Element
• Land Use Element
• Neighborhood Planning Element
• Transportation Element
• Utilities Element
• Urban Village Element

Seattle's complete, updated Comprehensive Plan is available here.

Questions?
If you have questions or would like additional information about the Comp Plan or would like to be included on the mailing list, call Mark Troxel in DPD at (206) 615-1739, or email him at mark.troxel@seattle.gov.