On April 19, 2011, Seattle’s new Multi-Family Code, comes into effect. Five years in the making, it’s a huge step forward for multi-family housing in Seattle.
On December 13, the City Council approved the first major revisions for lowrise zoning regulations since the late 1980s. The changes include a new streamlined administrative design review process for townhouses. Some changes, such as a new height measurement technique apply to other zones in addition to multifamily.
Some of the new changes include:
At least 20 percent of street facing façades must be windows and doors, building materials must be varied.
Provide incentives for “green building” and hiding parking underground or at the back of the lot
landscaping requirement, which promotes keeping trees or planting new ones
Allow for shared open space, for larger usable common areas
Use a new flexible standard of measuring floor space, “Floor Area Ratio,” rather than previously restrictive setback and lot coverage requirements.
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