Shoreline council approves changes to cottage housing

Published 11:46 am Friday, February 22, 2008

Homes built under Shoreline’s cottage housing ordinance will have a different look in the future, following action this week by the City Council.

On a 3-1 vote, the council amended the existing ordinance, adding more guidelines and requirements for developers.

Tim Stewart, director of planning development services for the city, said the amendments make the ordinance “more consistent with the community’s vision for cottage housing.”

The amendments were approved by Council members John Chang, Kevin Grossman and Rich Gustafson. Bob Ransom was the lone dissenting vote. Council member Scott Jepsen, Linda Montgomery and Ron Hansen were absent from the meeting.

Ransom said after the meeting he had two areas of concern, the overall intent of the ordinance as well specific fencing requirements.

“We’re allowing privileged status, putting it in the R-6 zone when it is really R-12,” Ransom said, referring to density levels in residential zones. “I said that if we’re going to do that, it should be affordable (housing).”

Stewart said the city’s code uses increased density bonuses to encourage for all types of housing in all zones and isn’t targeted at any one type of housing.

The motivation for revisiting the cottage housing ordinance was one of neighborhood compatibility, not affordability, Stewart said. He added that city officials had received complaints about large houses being built on small lots and that cottage housing was one strategy to help new housing fit in with existing neighborhoods. The amendments, he said, will help that happen.

Ransom said he also objected to a 36-inch maximum fence-height requirement for front yards in cottage housing developments. “A 36-inch fence is not really very private,” he said.

Shoreline has three existing developments under the cottage housing ordinance, including Meridian Park Cottages, 16 brightly hued two-story homes at 185th and Stone Avenue N.; Greenwood Avenue Cottages, 10 one-and-a-half story homes clustered around an open space area at Greenwood Ave. N. and NW Innis Arden Way; and Madrona Cottages on Dayton Ave. N near N. 160th St.

All three were built to the former code requirements and are considerably different in appearance. City officials have said that each existing development has received some concern from neighbors.

The code amendments passed by the council concern common open space and private open space for each unit, parking layout and screening, porch and entry regulations and fencing,

In addition, the code now includes “Don’t do this/Do this” illustrations to help developers understand concepts in the code.