Ordinance 4101-25 - Laserfiche WebLink

Introduction The Everett 2024 Comprehensive Plan (Plan) is a 20-year vision and roadmap for Everett’s future. The Plan guides City decisions on where to direct new jobs and residential units, how to improve the multi- modal transportation network, and where to make capital investments such as sidewalks, parks and other public facilities and services. Everett 2024 is the framework for many of Everett’s big-picture decisions on how to grow while improving the city’s housing opportunities and quality of life. It shapes how Everett will look, feel, and operate over time, and prepares the city to face challenges and opportunities today and into the future, reflecting the collective values and future vision of the community. The Plan was first adopted in 1994 consistent with the Washington State Growth Management Act (GMA). The GMA requires each Washington city and county to periodically review and, if needed, revise its comprehensive plan and development regulations as part of a periodic review cycle (RCW 36.70A.130). Less extensive revisions and updates are incorporated into the Plan on an annual basis and major periodic reviews were completed by the City in 2004 and 2015. Several targeted amendments were made in additional years with the last major update to the Land Use Element in 2019. Development regulations, such as zoning, must be consistent with the local government’s comprehensive plan. Counties and cities must be up to date with the requirements of the GMA, including the periodic update requirements, to be eligible for grants and loans from certain state infrastructure programs. The GMA goals and element requirements were amended in recent years to require jurisdictions to plan for and accommodate housing that is affordable to all economic segments of the population (HB 1220), to identify and address racially disparate impacts (HB 1220), to expand housing options by easing barriers for ADUs (HB 1337), and to increase middle housing opportunities (HB 1110). This updated draft Plan is the next major periodic review and fulfills the statutory requirements of the GMA. Additionally, the Everett 2044 Plan must comply with the goals and policies of Puget Sound Regional Councils Vision 2050 and the Snohomish Countywide Planning Goals. These are the region’s and county’s plans for growth and serve as a guide for sustaining a healthy environment, thriving communities and a strong economy. How to Use This Document The Everett 2044 Comprehensive Plan guides the city’s development over about a twenty-year planning period and is a tool to assist City Council, Planning Commission, City staff, and others involved in making land use and public infrastructure decisions. It’s a blueprint for the future character of the city. It guides decisions on land use, transportation, housing, capital facilities, parks, and the environment. It also sets standards for roads and other infrastructure, identifies how they’ll be paid for, and establishes the basis for zoning and development regulations and how city staff interprets and administers them. The Plan starts with the Our Community section that describes who lives and works in Everett, where people live and how they get around. The rest of the document is organized into elements or chapters. This Introduction explains the purpose of a comprehensive plan, states the overall vision for each element, and summarizes the planning framework and process. There are twelve elements: Urban Form, Housing, Transportation, Design and Development, Public Facilities and Services, Economic