Summary of the new changes coming to the Snohomish County High Density Urban Growth Zone
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The SnoCo SWUGA upzoning (Ordinance 15-016), which launches the free market demand for the Transfer of Development Rights credits that I supply, is scheduled to wrap up with a county council vote on October 21, 2015. I attended the September 30 hearing and just received this summary document from the clerk of the council. Stretching for 3.5 miles along Highway 99 between Everett and Lynnwood, essentially, this upzone enables building at much higher density, from 22 units/acre up to 58, with building heights rising from 45' to 75'. The key to the 160% upzone is that these TDR credits must be "cashed in," along with the permitting application. So, the high-density developers are a captive audience. This upzone, which comes with the recommendation of the county Planning Commission, was years in process and the final, recent, amendment to be considered is 4B, which involves the a gradation of minimum densities from the central core out. None of these amendments will impact the demand for TDR credits.
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