2024 Comprehensive Plan Update

-UPDATE-

June 21, 2023

The 2023 Community Survey is now open to the public. 

The priorities identified by this survey will inform the 2024 Clyde Hill Comprehensive Plan and drive future City policies, services, infrastructure investment.

 

The survey will remain open through the summer and close in early September.

Comprehensive Plan Draft & Related Documents

Staff continues work on drafting the Comprehensive Plan and providing monthly progress updates to City Council. Starting in May, the Planning Commission began their review and discussion of early Comprehensive Plan chapter drafts. These drafts will continue to evolve as the city completes technical analyses and incorporates input from the 2023 Community Survey.

 

-UPDATE-

May 11, 2023

At the May 9, 2023 City Council meeting, Staff provided a detailed overview of what Clyde Hill can expect with its Comprehensive Plan moving forward. City Staff is also providing monthly updates on the Comp Plan's status. 

At the April 11, 2023 City Council meeting, Blueline presented to City Council three items. A presentation, a memo titled, "Comprehensive Planning 101," and an updated timeline for the Plan's completion. The memo outlines the who, what, where, and when of Comprehensive Planning.  The timeline includes milestones for completing each "element" or chapter of the Comprehensive Plan, as well as touchpoints for engagement with City Council, the Planning Commission, and residents of the City.

In 2022, the City's Planning Manager and consultant Blueline laid the foundations for the Comprehensive Plan periodic update by drafting a vision statement with community input and completing required planning documents. A summary of work completed in 2022 can be found here. Work products from 2022 are linked in "Quick Links" on this page.

BACKGROUND:

Washington State requires that all cities, including the City of Clyde Hill, periodically update their Comprehensive Plan...and that periodic update is now upon us!  This process, which now takes place every decade and was last performed in 2015, can take upwards of two to three years and can cost a considerable amount of money, depending on the needs of the community.  Thankfully, the Washington State Legislature is expected to help greatly fund this State-mandated update (estimated at ~$125,000 for Clyde Hill), of which is already well underway.  The process of updating the City's Comprehensive Plan will involve numerous outreach efforts to its residents - please be on the lookout for mailers, social media postings, and updates on this webpage!  If you have any questions, please feel free to contact Eric Jensen at eric@clydehill.org.

For a slightly more in-depth description of this process, please visit the Municipal Research & Services Center.  

WHAT IS THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN?

The Comprehensive Plan is the guiding document every city in Washington maintains in order to determine how it develops and manages its land as well as how it provides services to the public.  The Plan addresses issues including, but not limited to, how it provides services to the public, what types of residential homes can be built, where sidewalks are planned, and how solid waste is managed.  The City's Comprehensive Plan must be in alignment with King County's Countywide Planning Policies, the State's Growth Management Act, and other governing jurisdictional documents.  Lastly, the City's Land Use Code must be in alignment with its Comprehensive Plan.  Needless to say, the City's Comprehensive Plan is one the three most important documents that the City maintains and which has a significant impact on the lives of its residents (with the other two documents being the City's Annual Budget and the City's Municipal Code).  Public participation in the development of this Plan is a step that the City is required to seek, so your input is highly encouraged!

To view a copy of Clyde Hill's current Comprehensive Plan, please use the respective link on the right sight of this webpage. 

WHAT IS THE LAND USE CODE?

While a Comprehensive Plan lays out policies regarding land use and government services, a Land Use Code implements those policies into action through municipal code and makes them legally binding.  For example, Clyde Hill's Comprehensive Plan includes a policy of protecting the views (Land Use Policy 1.7).  The City's Land Use Code takes this policy and specifically codifies it by stating that residential homes can be no higher than 25 feet above original grade (the topography of the parcel from when it existed as of the incorporation of the City in 1953)(CHMC 17.60.020). 

Once the City has completed the process of updating its Comprehensive Plan in 2024, it will then begin the process of reviewing and updating its Land Use Code to align it with any changes made to the Comprehensive Plan.  That process will also require that the City seek public participation, so your input is highly encouraged!

HOW CAN I GET INVOLVED?

As a resident of Clyde Hill, your input regarding the Comprehensive Plan process (as well as the eventual Land Use Code process) is important.  Your elected officials (Mayor and City Council) and appointed officials (Planning Commission) play an integral part in these processes - ultimately, your City Council will approve the new Comprehensive Plan.  Following that step, your City (the City Council and Mayor, collectively) will approve the Land Use Code. However, the City will seek public participation at various stages in order to help guide the development of these deliverables.  This is how you can get involved - your contributions can be helpful, necessary, and impactful with respect to shaping the future of Clyde Hill.

Over the next year, there will be opportunities for you to provide input.  These will include, but are not limited to, surveys, public meetings, and public hearings.  Please be on the lookout for flyers/notices in the mail, social media posts (NextDoor & Facebook), and direct emails (if you have signed up for the Clyde Hill City News - sign-up form located at the bottom of the screen).  Additionally, please feel free to contact City Staff directly (maia@clydehill.org), members of City Council directly, and/or your Mayor directly.  You may also stop by or call City Hall if you are so inclined.  Lastly, you can check this web page for updates (provided at the top) regarding upcoming opportunities to provide input.