PORT OF SEATTLE

MEMORANDUM

COMMISSION AGENDA

Item No.

BRIEFING Date of Meeting

October 11, 2011

DATE: September 30, 2011

TO: Tay Yoshitani, Chief Executive Officer

FROM: Mark Reis, Managing Director, Aviation Division

SUBJECT: City of SeaTac: Potential Zoning Changes Regarding Park & Fly Facilities

BACKGROUND:

In September, 2010, the SeaTac City Council requested that a council-appointed committee, the

Ad Hoc Committee (AHC), review the existing zoning and design standards for city center

parking and recommend if there should be changes. The City Center is approximately 350 acres

located directly east and adjacent to the Airport. The AHC completed its work in July, 2011 by

identifying two new program models to take forward to the City Council and the Planning

Commission for consideration and action. The Port was not a member of the AHC.

The existing parking rules allow a base of 300 stalls per structure, with one stand-alone structure

per development site. The code contains the option of granting additional stalls in exchange for

amenities, such as open space, retail/office/hotel space, water features, new roads, etc. Two

building types, which determine building setbacks and requirements for commercial/retail space,

are allowed on International Blvd. Developers also can enter into development agreements with

the City that can provide further accommodations based on negotiated project enhancements.

MasterPark and Wally Park on International Blvd are both examples of facilities built under the

development agreements.

AHC RECOMMENDATIONS:

The AHC developed four new models and standards, and voted to take forward two models for

Council consideration.

Model 1 is similar to the existing program because it provides a base stall number and a bonus

program for adding stalls. This is the committee’s preferred model, with a recommendation for a

revised base of 1,000 stalls. As part of the bonus program, one stall would be granted for 25

square feet of commercial/service/or residential space, a change from the current rule of 1 stall

for 250 square feet. There are three separate building types covered by Model 1 with differing

design standards.

COMMISSION AGENDA

Tay Yoshitani, Chief Executive Officer

September 30, 2011

Page 2 of 2

Model 2, the next preferred option, is called the “form-based” program in which the stall count is

limited only by the building form. This program does not place a limit on the parking stalls, has

no base number of required stalls, and no bonus program. Various building design standards

apply. There are four building types, with some being the same or similar to those in Model 1.

The AHC could not reach agreement on some aspects of Model 2 and the City Council and

Planning Commission will need to provide their input to this recommendation.

REVIEW AND ADOPTION PROCESS:

There remain some decisions that the Council will need to make. For Model 1, they will need to

choose the base stall number. The AHC’s top choice was 1,000. For Model 2, they will need to

select standards for one of the building types and the amount of lot coverage. The City has

released a Determination of Non-significance (DNS) for the zoning change. Because this finding

was appealed, it is uncertain when the public hearing will occur and when the Council will

consider the recommendations and take action.

POTENTIAL IMPACTS TO AIRPORT REVENUE:

Airport concerns are mainly related to Model 2 coupled with the likely location for a significant

addition in park-&-fly stalls adjacent to Sound Transit’s Airport station and pedestrian bridge.

This access would allow off-site parkers to access the airport in minutes without the use of a

shuttle. Model 2 would remove existing limits on growth of parking at a time when there is no

market demand for additional airport parking capacity, thus supporting, in staff’s opinion, a

potential for as many as 7000 new stalls and a potential loss of Airport revenue between $5

million to $11 million. This level of reduction in non-aeronautical revenue, of which parking

revenue is the largest source, could severely reduce Sea-Tac Airport’s ability to fund critical

facility needs and community amenities.

OTHER DOCUMENTS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS BRIEFING:

 Power Point