City Council Adopts Final Piece of Central Issaquah Plan

In a key decision, the City Council adopted the final piece of the Central Issaquah Plan (CIP) on April 15, 2013, capping a long effort to re-envision the City of Issaquah’s future.

The plan will guide the long-term evolution of the commercial core from strip malls, parking lots and office buildings into a mixed-use, small-scale urban area that is easier for pedestrians and bicyclists to navigate, and convenient to access via high-capacity transit.

The council adopted the plan’s design and development standards. Those standards outline the rules for buildings, landscaping, parking, signage and other features in the commercial core.

That area encompasses 1,100 acres along Interstate 90, and includes many of the City’s largest employers.

The decision is the last milestone in the effort to implement the CIP. The council adopted the bulk of the plan in December 2012, following a years-long public process.

Then, following review in a council workshop and a recommendation by the Land & Shore Committee, members adopted the design and development standards.

In a separate decision, the council also agreed to nominate the City as a regional growth center.

Such centers must meet certain population and employment thresholds, as well as other criteria.

The designation will make the City more competitive as it applies for funding to bring the CIP to fruition.

Next, City staff will submit a regional growth center designation request to the King County Growth Management Planning Council.

For more information on the CIP, visit issaquahwa.gov/centralissaquah.