Neighbors,
Tonight, I’m writing about a new concern that would further degrade the environment and quality of life that we value in Lake Forest Park. Washington Senate bill 5466 would remove Lake Forest Park’s zoning control and allow multi-family apartments up to nine stories tall in most of Lake Forest Park around our new bus rapid transit corridor (see attach map and commentary). Astonishingly, it would waive parking requirements for developers with the assumption that all new apartment residents would use the new BRT instead of driving their own vehicles.
Lake Forest Park is a small city (less than 14,000 residents) that will be forever changed if this legislation passes, and the concrete corridor of BRT is coupled with high-rise building throughout our community.
This bill has passed the Senate and is currently pending a vote in the House. We are asking for an amendment to exempt small cities like ours from the bill.
Please write to our House representatives ( Rep. Davina Duerr and Rep. Shelley Kloba ) and tell them what you think about this bill. For your convenience, you may cut/paste the text below in your response.
Thanks.
Sample Letter:
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Amend SSB 5466 to Exclude Cities with Populations of 20,000 Residents or Less from Density Provision
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I am a resident of Lake Forest Park. I cannot continue to support you (to represent me) if you vote for Substitute Senate Bill 5466 in its present form. Many of my neighbors feel the same way. For the reasons described below, I am writing to urge you to consider an amendment that would exclude cities of 20,000 resident or less from the density provisions of the bill.
Our small city would be covered by these increased density provisions by virtue of three bus stops along SR 522 Bothell Way. Unlike every other Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor, the BRT corridor through LFP consists primarily of dozens of personal residences.
The notion that high density housing without parking in our area would not increase parking requirements because of proximity to transit is fundamentally flawed. Our narrow neighborhood streets will be choked with parked cars, making emergency vehicle passage slow if not nearly impossible.
LFP supports proportionate and reasonable increased density along transit corridors. Our current zoning already allows 5 story buildings and increased density at our Town Center, and 7 story buildings and increased density at the south end of SR 522. This current zoning will provide housing density that more than exceeds LFP's growth targets under the Puget Sound Regional Council's Vision 2050.
For a small community such as LFP, increased density and growth should be proportionate to our smaller geographic and demographic footprint. The magnitude of transit-oriented density in SSB5466 that makes sense for larger cities such as Seattle or Shoreline or Lynnwood will be overwhelming, disproportionate, and environmentally devastating for LFP. Our community is already heavily impacted by two major state highways. It is threaded with deep ravines and fish bearing streams, making protection of the tree canopy critical. Applying the density provisions of SSB 5466 in LFP will actually undermine regional climate resilience and watershed environmental goals. An amendment that excludes cities of 20,000 resident or less would be fair and reasonable.
Thank you for your consideration of this important matter.
Commentary by Vicki Scuri, www.lfpcore.org
ALSO,
Thank you to all who attended the CORE Community Meeting and the ST Drop-In Open House. We collected nearly 175 letters from community members at the ST Drop-in Open House, and we mailed hard copies of these to Sound Transit and to the City of LFP.
We continue to advocate for bus queue jumps and a lighter design for the Sound Transit bus rapid transit (BRT) project in our community. We need all of you to become even more engaged, to help us keep the pressure on Sound Transit. Recently, it was announced that Sound Transit is moving its stations out of Chinatown. Strong community advocacy and an engaged press pressured the Sound Transit Board to rethink and revise their 2016 plans.
Now, the Board is adopting “the preferred option,” which locates the new stations in Pioneer Square. Plans can change even late in the game! Do not give up hope for LFP.