Update: A reader suggested that Joni Mitchell’s song applies. “Big Yellow Taxi”. š¼They paved paradise and put in a parking lot.š¹ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2595abcvh2M
Richland Council postponed a vote during their Tuesday night meeting that would have increased the height limit along the waterfront to 85 feet because of concerns that the cityās existing parking requirements could create a sea of asphalt.
The council had the choice of two proposals, one by city staff to simply increase the maximum height of waterfront buildings and another presented by the Richland Planning Commission to approve the increase in height along with some parking requirements that included a parking garage.
The discussion seemed to be driven by the prospect that a developer wants to build on the city-owned, waterfront property on Bradley Blvd. known as Tract D&E and wants the height limit increased.
Councilmember Ryan Lukson described what the council seemed to see as the dilemma, āWe have to come up with some solution. We donāt want to increase the height and then not allow for the proper density. Weāre not going to really develop the sorts of projects that weāre thinking we want to develop.ā
āOur parking standards in the code are absolutely ridiculous,ā Councilmember Kurt Maier said.
Maier pointed out the council kept amending the parking codes until a table of them couldnāt fit on one page. He noted that the many special requirements included five parking spots per lane for bowling alleys. He said he was against both proposals until the city’s outdated parking requirements were completely revised.
Councilmember Jhoanna Jones recommended a one-item workshop to discuss the parking issue.
The city council met with developer David Copenhaver of Cascadia Development Partners based in southwest Washington during an October 24, 2023, workshop. Copenhaver offered some ideas about how D&E could be developed.
āItās likely that their plans are built around an increased height and so they wonāt want to invest a lot in that project with the uncertainty ahead,ā Deputy City Manager Joe Schiessl told the council.
Mayor Theresa Richardson, who has made it known that she wants to see high-rises along the riverfront, tried to salvage the height increase.
Richardson made a motion to accept the height increase for parcels D&E contingent on councilās approval of the parking design.
Staff explained to the council that such a plan wouldnāt be acceptable under the city codes. The council voted no on the motion and postponed the vote on building heights.
How many stories high is an 85 foot building? Anything over 3 stories is going to look wackadoodle out of place.
Hi Phyllis, I appreciate your comment. A building height of 85 feet is about 7 to 8 stories high, approximately the height of the Federal Building on Jadwin. The International Code Council defines a high-rise as “an occupied floor more than 75 feet above the lowest level of fire department vehicle access.” Thank you for reading the Observer. Randy
They are creating all this high density living areas and not increasing our parks or facilities. It seems they keep shutting down parks also. I looks to me they want to develop Lawless Park also, theyāve done nothing but encourage industrial around it. That Plot beside river should be the cities park with a nice public swimming pool and kids water area and so fourth. This way these people in these new high density living areas have a way to stretch their wings. Our leaders are so backwards they think building public swimming areas will decrease local Gym memberships. Thats a weird point of view given our population size. But thatās the mindset keeping a nice public pool out Richland. I just see tax breaks for low paying jobs and building building building from this new board and itās like āus peopleā donāt even live here! Our Parks and Rec is at mercy of these people who donāt recognize public spaces induce creativity and helps mold a community. They really baffle meā¦.
Hi Mike, I appreciate your comment. The city has rezoned several pieces of parks and public facility properties recently, including the so-called riverfront Tract D on Bradley Blvd. which became available for development and the land on George Washington Way that the city gave WSU and rezoned for development. In addition, an easement that was an access to the riverfront trail at Comstock and Bradley Blvd. was eliminated, no strings attached. Thank you for reading the Observer. Randy
Thank you, Randy, for bringing these issues to light.
I hope redoing the codes for parking won’t end up shorting the high-rise occupants of needed spaces. Around here, I don’t know of any families with less than two cars. A parking garage seems like the only way to go for not having a “sea of asphalt”.
My experience in Seattle with high density housing, but too little parking, is that it just shoves the excess cars into adjacent neighborhoods and those folks park in the next and so on, ad infinitum. Not a solution, just moves the costs from the developer to distant neighborhoods and what should be public spaces.
Hi J,
I appreciate your comment. The parking issue has to be carefully thought out to assure that the area doesn’t become a big parking lot. A parking garage may be the only solution. Thank you for reading the Observer. Randy
It makes sense if a developer wants a fancy high rise to āwarrantā premium prices, I think they should have to foot the bill for a garage. I get the idea that a sea of pavement for parking spaces is a waste of land and unappealing idea, but it always seems thereās a drastic swing in the other direction, like requiring one space for a 2 or 3 bed residence or something. Lack of parking can be very frustrating, even with decent public transit. Also hilarious that it used to be a landfill, not sure they could have gotten any closer to a water way if they wanted to!
Hi Andrew, I appreciate your comment. I think a parking garage, either underground (depending on what’s buried under there!) or above ground with businesses on the street level, is probably the way to go. Thank you for reading the Observer. Randy