September 1, 2026 Committee of the Whole Workshop and Regular Council Meeting

The City of Duvall Committee of the Whole workshop and regular Council meeting on September 1, 2026, focused primarily on proposed comprehensive-plan and zoning-code amendments intended to address state housing-capacity requirements and remove barriers to affordable housing. Staff discussed draft changes to development and design standards, including clearer and more objective design rules, and the Council generally supported revising the process for design-standard departures so they receive additional review. On affordable housing, Council members discussed mandatory inclusionary requirements versus voluntary incentives; staff will prepare a possible option requiring 10% affordable units for developments above a threshold, with the threshold and applicable zoning districts still to be determined. Property-tax exemptions and development bonuses, including potential height or density flexibility, were discussed but not adopted.

The Council also discussed priorities for the next two-year community-development work plan, including an affordable-housing overlay, building-height measurement standards, permanent signage, historic preservation, and economic-development initiatives. Staff identified the shoreline master plan as near-term required work and climate-change resiliency planning as a future task. Public commenters requested a town hall on the proposed housing and zoning changes. No procurement actions were identified: there were no contract awards, RFPs, vendor selections, or purchasing or capital-spending approvals; the code and incentive proposals remain under discussion, with further staff work and Council feedback planned.