Advocacy Update – June 2025

This Month in Advocacy: Seattle City Council passes interim legislation to meet compliance deadline for the state middle housing bill. AIA Seattle members continue to meet with elected officials and staff to provide input on important legislation including design review changes + phase I of the Comprehensive Plan.

Seattle City Council Passes Interim Legislation to Meet Compliance Deadline for State Middle Housing Law (HB1110)

On May 27, Seattle City Council voted unanimously to approve amended interim HB 1110 legislation, also referred to as the ‘middle housing’ bill, which requires cities to allow a broad range of housing types besides single family homes, such as multiplexes, townhomes, and cottage housing. Legislation will take effect June 30.

What’s Next on the City of Seattle Comprehensive Plan?

On June 23, Seattle City Council held two public hearings on Phase 1 of the Comprehensive Plan. AIA Seattle and other allies like the HDC and CCC showed up to advocate in support of pro-housing policies.

Now that Council has adopted the interim legislation, they are free to move forward with Phase I of the final Comprehensive Plan legislation. The Comprehensive Plan is required of every city under the state’s Growth Management Act, serving as a 20-year vision and roadmap for Seattle’s future growth.

Phase I of the Comprehensive Plan covers two important areas:

Final Comprehensive Plan – including the Future Land Use Map, which will determine the boundaries of new Neighborhood Centers and expanded Urban Centers where additional housing will be allowed near transit, jobs, stores, and amenities.
Permanent Neighborhood Residential Legislation – this will establish zoning rules for neighborhood residential areas, including potential bonuses for stacked flats and affordable housing that can encourage more accessible and inclusive development.

Moving forward, AIA Seattle members are continuing to meet with Seattle City Council members on possible amendments to the final comprehensive plan.

Housing Advocacy Committee (Formerly the Housing Task Force) – Join the Conversation

The Housing Task Force was created before 2020, and has been a powerful voice and source of support for AIA Seattle’s advocacy efforts for plentiful housing everywhere. The regular monthly meetings of Housing Taskforce are continuing to convene under a new name, the Housing Advocacy Committee, reflecting the group’s commitment to ongoing work around advocacy and engagement on housing.

The AIA Seattle Housing Advocacy Committee serves three purposes:

Engage members to support advocacy efforts aligned with AIA Seattle’s Housing Policy Statement and our Housing Imperative
Promote the interests of architects and built environment professionals for the development of housing
Provide AIA Seattle members a learning and resource sharing space for key issues that impact housing

Visit the Housing Advocacy Committee page to learn more and get involved.

AIA Seattle Members Weigh in on Design Review

Members of AIA Seattle’s Housing Advocacy Committee played an important role in guiding legislation by providing input on Mayor Harrell’s proposed interim Design Review legislation.

Under the new rules, the review threshold would increase to buildings with 150+ housing units or 20,000+ square feet of commercial space. This means that smaller projects would be exempt.

AIA members advocate for including stacked flats under IRC

Stacked flats are a small multifamily building of 6-20 units where units are arranged vertically.

Residential buildings are governed by one of two codes. The International Residential Code (IRC), which typically applies to everything from single family homes, townhomes and ADUs up to duplexes. The second is the International Building Code, which applies to everything else – from small 6 unit stacked flat buildings to apartment buildings with hundreds of units. Last year, WA State legislature passed House Bill 2071 into law, requiring missing middle housing to use the IRC.

The interim Design Review legislation requires the State Building Code Council to consider amendments to the state’s IRC to accommodate stacked flats, significantly lowering the cost of constructing said buildings. Local AIA members have been instrumental in drafting amendments to keep stacked flats in the IRC, and organizing support for these amendments in the Technical Advisory Group charged with making the final decision.