The City of Tukwila is preparing a draft urban center plan for the Southcenter area - one of the region's primary retail and employment centers. The Plan presents the community's vision for the evolution and continued growth of the area for the next 20 years, and establishes the primary means of regulating land use and development.
Meetings & Events
Planning Commission Worksession - December 15, 2011
Planning Commission will review a revised draft of Book 1, containing the context for preparing the urban center plan, the community’s vision for the Southcenter area, and the proposed redevelopment strategy for implementing the plan. (View the revised draft of Book 1)
Public Comments
We would like to hear from you! There will be opportunities to provide public comment on the revised draft Southcenter Plan documents early in 2012, including an open house and a Planning Commission Public Hearing on the draft Plan. In the meantime, to add your name to our list of Interested Parties, please email us at SouthcenterPlan@tukwilawa.gov
Previous Meeting Information
November 10, 2011 - Planning Commission worksession on a set of revised goals, policies and implementation measures contained
in the Tukwila Urban Center chapter of the City’s Comprehensive Plan. (View a draft copy). Planning staff also
provided a briefing on the Walk & Roll Plan, the City’s plan for non-motorized transportation.
September 22, 2011 - Staff provided a briefing on the background of the planning process to prepare the Planning Commission for
the upcoming review of and public hearings on the revised draft Southcenter Plan. Staff has been developing the draft plan for
Southcenter, one of King County’s designated urban centers, since 2002. On March 14, 2011 the Council Committee of the Whole
recommended that staff reduce the scope of the project and revise the current draft plan prior to seeking any additional
stakeholder input or public comment.
SOUTHCENTER PLAN
REVISED PUBLIC REVIEW DRAFT
Please note that these files may take a few moments to download depending on your internet connection speed.
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Draft Book 1 – Revised December 2011
The Draft Southcenter Plan & Regulations – Public Review Draft
PUBLIC REVIEW DRAFT
February 2009
*Please note that these files may take a few moments to download depending on your internet connection speed. You will need Adobe Reader to view the following.
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Book One:
Introduction
Community Intent -
Book Two:
Development Code, including Architectural Guidelines
Glossary of Terms -
Book Three:
Implementation Strategy & Actions
Appendix (Existing Conditions) & Acknowledgements
**A hard copy is located at the City of Tukwila’s Dept. of Community Development (6300 Southcenter Blvd.) or the King County Library at Westfield Southcenter Mall.
Public Comments Received as of June 11, 2009:
(Click to expand/contract comments list in PDF format)
3/26/2009 Hearing
- No Exhibits
4/23/2009 Hearing
- Exhibit 1: Photographs of Westfield Mall Expansion
- Exhibit 2: Aerial Photograph of Westfield Mall
- Exhibit 3: Charts: Westfield Southcenter Economic Contribution
- Exhibit 4: 4/23/09 Comment Letter from Lee Michaelis on behalf of Desimone Trust
Mailed Comment
5/28/2009 Hearing
- Exhibit 6: 5/28/09 Comments from B/C Tomaso on behalf of Tukwila Fire Department
- Exhibit 7: 5/28/09 Comment Letter from J. Kal Gibron on behalf of Sears Holdings
- Exhibit 8: 5/28/09 Comment Letter from Brent Carson on behalf of Westfield Southcenter
- Exhibit 9: 9/17/04 Business Journal Article on Santana Row Mixed use Development
- Exhibit 10: 4-5/2009 New Urban News Interview with Robert Gibbs
Mailed Comments
- Exhibit 11: 6/3/09 Comments from Alison Van Gorp on behalf of Cascade Land Conservancy
- Exhibit 12: 6/9/09 Comments from Mon Wig on behalf of Wig Properties
- Exhibit 13: 6/9/09 Comments from Gary Hotaling on behalf of Chevron
- Exhibit 14: 6/11/09 Comments from J. Kal Gibron on behalf of Sears Holdings
- Exhibit 15: 6/11/09 Comments from Davis Wright Tremaine on behalf of Innkeepers USA Trust
- Exhibit 16: 6/11/09 Comments from Gordon Derr on behalf of Westfield Shopping Mall
- Exhibit 17: 6/11/09 Comments from Gordon Derr on behalf of Walton CWWA Tukwila 1, LLC and So.Ctr 4 LLC
- Exhibit 18: 6/11/09 Comments from R.W. Thorpe & Associates, Inc on behalf of Desimone Trust
- Exhibit 19: 6/11/09 Comments from HCMP on behalf of Target Corp.
- Exhibit 20: 6/11/09 Comments from Regency Centers
- Exhibit 21: 6/11/09 Comments from Segale Properties
- Tracks individual comments received by close of hearing on June 11, 2009
- Contains staff's comments, analysis and recommended response to comments.
- Will track the Planning Commission's recommendations & direction.
Previous Meeting Information
December 10, 2009 - Planning Commission Briefing on ECONorthwest Findings
At their May 14, 2009 meeting, the PC made a motion to send the current Public Review Draft of the Southcenter Subarea Plan back to staff for revisions after the close of the public hearing on May 28th and the close of the written record on June 11th. These revisions should respond to the comments received during the hearing process from the public and from the Commission. The Planning Commission will hold another public hearing during their review of the revised Public Review Draft.
To respond to stakeholder concerns regarding the economic feasibility of the development regulations, Tukwila contracted with ECONorthwest (ECO), the consulting firm that prepared economic and market analyses during the preparation of the first draft of the plan. ECO’s analysis consisted of:
- Technical research on market and demographic forces that will influence Plan implementation;
- Creating four pro-formas for possible prototype developments in the TUC; and
- Conducting three focus groups and follow-up interviews with TUC stakeholders and other office, retail, residential and mixed-use developers. George Malina (Planning Commission Chair), Derek Speck (Economic Development Administrator), and DCD staff also attended the focus groups.
ECO has prepared a Technical Memorandum presenting their market research, a summary of the focus group discussions, recommended revisions to the development standards, and recommended implementation strategies.
May 28, 2009 - Planning Commission Public Hearing, continued.
Public provided comments on the draft plan and proposed zoning code changes directly to the Planning Commission. The written record for public comment kept open until June 11, 2009.
May 14, 2009 - Planning Commission Worksession
Public Works staff described the collaboration and coordination with planning on the development of the urban center plan, and provided an overview of the transportation-related issues and goals for the urban center. Planning Commission reviewed the requirements for new streets.
April 23, 2009 - Planning Commission Public Hearing, continued.
Additional public testimony was offered on the draft plan. The Commission continued the hearing until May 28, 2009 and written testimony will be accepted until June 11, 2009.
April 9, 2009 - Planning Commission Worksession
Staff provided an overview of the plan development process, vision for the area and plan organization. Discussion began on the thresholds for conformance chart, p. 15, and the Workplace District.
March 26, 2009 - Planning Commission Public Hearing
A public hearing was held by the Planning Commission on the draft plan. The commission continued the public hearing until April 23, 2009, and the written record will be kept open until May 7, 2009.
March 12, 2009 - Planning Commission Kick-Off Worksession
At this meeting, our consultants introduced the draft Plan.
March 4, 2009 - Open House at Albert Lee Appliance Store.
The public viewed the draft Plan and talked with City staff about the proposed regulations & urban design guidelines.
Streaming Video from Previous Meetings
The City of Tukwila is currently testing online options for presenting video recorded at public meetings. Below are
links to streaming video from Planning Commission meetings for the Urban Center Plan for Southcenter. Due to microphone placement at some meetings, the audio
may be be difficult to hear at times on your computer. Be sure that your computer's master volume is turned all the way up, and if you have external
speakers attached, you may need to turn those up as well.
Microsoft Silverlight is required to view this video and you will have an option to install prior to viewing.
If you encounter any problems please
contact the Webmaster.
Past Public Workshops:
Review previous meetings’ public comments from 2003/04:
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May 21, 2003
Public Workshop #1 on Tukwila Urban Center Plan -
June 30, 2003
Public Workshop #2 on Tukwila Urban Center Plan -
July 1, 2003
Public Workshop #1 on Transit-oriented Development (TOD) Plan -
September 15, 2003
Public Workshop #3 on Tukwila Urban Center Plan -
September 16, 2003
Public Workshop #2 on Transit-oriented Development (TOD) Plan -
February 26, 2004
Public Workshop #4 on Tukwila Urban Center Plan &
Transit-oriented Development (TOD) Plan
Area Maps & Figures
Review the Draft Supplemental EIS for the Plan
Currently, all projects proposed in the TUC area must undergo significant environmental review, as required by Washington's State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA). However, under SEPA, the City of Tukwila is designating the TUC Plan as a "planned action". This streamlines the development process by shifting environmental review of a proposed project from the time a permit application is made to an earlier phase in the planning process. Early environmental review provides more certainty to permit applicants with respect to what will be required, and to the public with respect to how the environmental impacts will be addressed.
The draft SEIS will be available for review in 2009, after the Planning Commission has completed their review of the draft Tukwila Urban Center Plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
Contacts
Nora Gierloff, Deputy Director, Dept. of Community Development
ngierloff@ci.tukwila.wa.us
206.431.3670
Lynn Miranda, Senior Planner
lmiranda@ci.tukwila.wa.us
206.433.7162
