Planning Commission Meeting of Tuesday, October 20, 2026

The City of Kenmore Planning Commission met on October 20, 2026, to continue reviewing a proposed neighborhood retail code amendment. Commissioners discussed allowing neighborhood retail in residential areas, permit pathways, a proposed 2,500-square-foot size limit, building types, signs, parking, setbacks, operating hours, noise, and mobile food vendors. A motion on operating hours passed 5–1, though the transcript does not clearly preserve the hours. The commission also supported setbacks based on the underlying zone; the roll-call result is incomplete in the transcript. The discussion generally favored conditional-use (Type 2) review for neighborhood retail, while leaving the treatment of small-scale carts and home-based businesses for further staff work. Food trucks were to remain prohibited, with the distinction between trucks and carts needing clarification.

No contracts, purchases, or capital spending were approved. Conditional-use fees and possible fee reductions were discussed, but no fee change was adopted; commissioners suggested the City Council could consider reducing fees to make neighborhood retail more feasible. Staff will revise the draft, clarify the pathway for smaller and home-based businesses, and improve maps showing environmental and engineering constraints, then bring the material back to the commission before a public hearing and SEPA review. The consent agenda was approved unanimously, and the November 3 meeting was canceled unanimously.