Burien Comp Plan Changes Pushed Through

Seattle King County REALTORS® worked with Burien’s Planning Commission and staff, and later with the City Council, on amendments to Burien’s Critical Areas Ordinance, including changes to meet state mandates by:

• Encouraging housing developments in residential areas across the city.
• Expanding the number, and type, of housing units permitted.
• Enhancing neighborhood vitality by allowing neighborhood commercial uses.
• Implementing the updated Comprehensive Plan’s land-use goals, housing goals, and land-use designations.

SKCR also applauded the city’s development of an “interactive” draft housing code and zoning map that were created to foster public support for building more housing in the city. In Q2 of this year, SKCR encouraged the city to quickly implement the new 2025 Lot Splitting and Unit Lot Subdivision changes in state law that were recently approved by the Legislature.

In late June, residents in some of the city’s more affluent neighborhoods were publicly encouraged to descend on city hall and oppose Burien’s thoughtful efforts that had been underway since 2023 to comply with the new state mandates regarding housing. But instead of succumbing to the last-minute NIMBY pressure, the City Council held firm and approved the changes that had been supported by SKCR, and blessed by Growth Management Services of the Washington Department of Commerce