The 2024 Housing Element establishes the policy framework that an updated Housing Strategy Plan must implement. The following summarizes the key goals, objectives, and policy directions organized thematically.

Housing Supply and Diversity

The Housing Element recognizes that Kenmore has sufficient zoned capacity to meet its 2044 growth target (a surplus of 3,678 dwelling units), but that production at lower income levels has lagged. Key policy directions include:

• Plan for and accommodate a range of housing densities and types for all needs and incomes, including moderate-density housing options such as duplexes, triplexes, and townhomes
• Promote development of accessory dwelling units (ADUs) on single-family lots, consistent with HB 1110 and HB 1337 requirements allowing up to two ADUs per lot
• Encourage mixed-use and higher-density housing in the SR-522 corridor and Downtown Kenmore, designated as a Countywide Growth Center
• Identify sufficient land capacity for all housing types, including manufactured housing, multifamily, group homes, emergency housing, emergency shelters, and permanent supportive housing (PSH)

  
  Housing Affordability

  The Housing Element sets out Kenmore's share of countywide housing needs by income level through 2044. The City must plan for and accommodate:

  Income Level	% of AMI	Target Units (2020–2044)
  Extremely Low-Income (Non-PSH)	0–30% AMI	1,063
  Extremely Low-Income (PSH)	0–30% AMI (PSH)	559
  Very Low-Income	>30–50% AMI	483
  Low-Income	>50–80% AMI	393
  Moderate-Income	>80–120% AMI	160
  Above Moderate	>120% AMI	412
  Emergency Housing	N/A	587 beds

  Source: 2021 King County Countywide Planning Policies (amended 2023). PSH = Permanent Supportive Housing.  
  
  Affordability-related policy directions from the Comprehensive Plan include:

• Prioritize housing affordability accessible within a half-mile walkshed of high-capacity transit
• Expand the Multifamily Tax Exemption (MFTE) program and other incentive tools
• Implement inclusionary zoning requirements in the Downtown and TOD areas, requiring at least 25% of units to be affordable at 50% AMI or below in the TOD District
• Continue membership and financial contributions to ARCH (A Regional Coalition for Housing)
• Explore fee waivers and fast-track permit review for qualifying affordable housing projects

   

  Equity, Anti-Displacement, and Fair Housing

  The Housing Element acknowledges Kenmore's documented history of racially discriminatory housing covenants (417 recorded parcels) and the need to actively remediate these legacies. Key policy directions include:

• Identify and implement policies that do not result in racially disparate impacts, displacement, or exclusion
• Develop anti-displacement policies informed by the City's Racial Equity Analysis and the Eastside for All report
• Protect and preserve manufactured housing communities as an important source of unsubsidized affordable homeownership, particularly for low-income households
• Address displacement risk for lower-income residents and BIPOC residents, particularly in census blocks containing mobile home communities
• Advance the DEIA Strategic Plan's housing provisions and apply an equity lens to all housing decisions

  
  Tenant Protections and Housing Stability

• Implement and sustain residential tenant protection measures, including just cause eviction requirements and rent increase notifications
• Continue administering and publicizing emergency rental assistance programs available through King County and the Multi-Service Center of Northeast King County
• Address the needs of households at the lowest income levels, particularly those spending more than 50% of income on housing (severely cost-burdened)
  

  
  Emergency and Supportive Housing

  The Housing Element establishes that Kenmore currently has very limited emergency, transitional, and permanent supportive housing. The City is required by state law (HB 1220) to plan for and allow STEP housing (emergency shelters, transitional housing, emergency housing, and permanent supportive housing). Policy directions include:

• Plan for and allow STEP housing in appropriate zones consistent with state law requirements
• Develop clear, fair, and consistent regulations for emergency shelters, transitional housing, emergency housing, and PSH
• Coordinate with Hopelink, King County, and regional partners to address homelessness and housing instability

The City’s DEIA Strategic Plan provides a parallel and complementary framework to the Housing Element. Its housing and equity provisions should be integrated into the updated Housing Strategy Plan. The following summarizes the most relevant goals and objectives.

Goal 1: Leadership and Operations

Several DEIA Leadership & Operations objectives (Goal 1) have direct implications for housing strategy development and implementation:

1. When engaging the community in planning decisions, make extra and affirmative efforts to bring in community members who have not historically participated, using less traditional and more accessible engagement models

1.2.3    Fast-track permit review for affordable housing projects and projects that support increased public access to services

1.3.5    Planning Commission and other committee selection criteria should support broad demographic representation

1.4.2    Continue City membership in ARCH and leverage ARCH resources to build affordable housing units in Kenmore, including financial contributions to ARCH's housing trust fund

1.3.5    Planning Commission and other committee selection criteria should support broad demographic representation

Objective 2.3: Develop and Advocate for Affordable Housing and Diverse Housing Options

The objective under Goal 2 (Plans, Policies & Budgets) is particularly relevant to the Housing Strategy Plan. The specific objectives include:

2.3.1    Expedite plan review for affordable housing projects and public city projects

that increase public access to services and amenities

2.3.2    Develop and adopt planning and zoning regulations that will prioritize

affordable and more attainable housing

2.3.3    Develop land use regulations that allow for a diversity of housing types and

choices for different needs

2.3.4    Implement Transit Oriented Development (TOD) regulations that mandate

higher densities and affordable units (25% of units affordable at 50% AMI or lower)

2.3.5    Implement the residential tenant protection measures adopted by City

Council

2.3.6    Advocate for additional affordable housing policies at federal, state, and

county levels

Goal 7: Housing and Human Services

Provide access and referral to housing and human services to meet the basic needs of all residents.

This goal is operationalized through specific objectives across the plan. The core intent is that the City should actively connect residents, particularly those with low incomes, BIPOC residents, and other vulnerable populations, with the housing resources and human services they need to thrive.

Additional DEIA provisions relevant to housing policy include:

1. The Comprehensive Plan and other city-wide planning documents will be

developed with a focus on DEIA and will include policies that advance DEIA and root out systemic inequality

2.2.3    Think outside the box to bring more people of diverse backgrounds into

policy discussions; make extra and affirmative efforts to include those who have not historically participated

2.5.1    Adopt a Non-Discrimination Ordinance (relevant to fair housing and tenant protections)

The table below identifies key housing strategy topics and how each of the three guiding documents addresses them. This is intended to identify areas of strong consensus and any gaps requiring further discussion.

Housing Production and Supply

Kenmore has sufficient zoned capacity to exceed its 2044 target of 3,070 units overall, but production of lower-income units (<80% AMI) has lagged.

The average home value reached $1,055,872 in 2024; 25% of households are cost burdened.

ADU and middle housing regulations were updated in 2025; production trends are as yet unclear.

• How should an updated HSP prioritize housing types and locations to accelerate lower-income unit production?
• What monitoring and accountability mechanisms should be established to track production progress against the 2044 affordability targets?
• Should the updated HSP recommend additional incentives or fee modifications to encourage ADU construction?
  
  Affordability Tools and Programs
  
  Context
  
  

• Current tools include MFTE (expanded to TOD in 2019), density bonuses, inclusionary zoning (TOD: 25% at 50% AMI), and ARCH partnership.

• Only one property (Spencer 68) currently has long-term affordable units through the MFTE program.

• 122 Housing Choice Voucher households currently assisted in Kenmore.

  
  Equity, DEIA, and Anti-Displacement
  
  Context

• BIPOC residents represent 35% of the population. Black or African American households are disproportionately severely cost-burdened.

• 417 parcels in Kenmore were subject to historic racial restrictive covenants.

• No census tract has a 'high' displacement risk, but mobile home community census blocks have elevated risk.

  
  Manufactured Housing Communities

  Context

  Nearly 300 manufactured homes in six parks represent a critical source of affordable, unsubsidized homeownership.

  More than half of MHC residents are low-income; two parks are reserved for seniors.

  The MHC overlay is mostly implemented; future rezoning of four communities north of SR-522 is under consideration.
  
  

  Emergency and Supportive Housing (STEP)

  Context

•  Kenmore's 2044 housing targets include 587 emergency beds and 559 units of PSH.

• State law (HB 1220) requires STEP housing to be allowed in specified zone types.

• Currently only Kenmore Place (9 units, operated by Hopelink) provides emergency housing in the city.

• A STEP Housing Advisory Committee was appointed by Council in March 2025
  
  
  Community Engagement
  
  Context

• The DEIA Strategic Plan calls for affirmative outreach to underrepresented and non-traditional participants (Objective 1.1.3).

• Kenmore's population is becoming more diverse; multilingual engagement capacity is needed.

• The Housing Strategy Plan update presents an opportunity to establish a model engagement process.

Planning Commission Meetings

4/7/2026 - Agenda, Minutes and Recording

4/21/2026 - Agenda, Minutes and Recording

6/16/2026 - Agenda, Minutes and Recording

7/21/2026 - Agenda, Minutes and Recording

An implementation measure from Kenmore’s 2015 Comprehensive Plan was to, “Adopt a Housing Strategy Plan that outlines action steps and priorities.” In April of 2016, the City Council directed the Planning Commission to develop this plan, focused on affordable housing and outlining actions that could be taken over the coming years to implement the housing goals, objectives and policies of the Comprehensive Plan. The Commission, with staff assistance from A Regional Coalition for Housing (ARCH), completed the draft strategy plan and presented it to the City Council at a joint meeting on January 23, 2017. After review, the City Council adopted the plan on March 20, 2017. The strategies are described in the table below, along with prioritization for consideration (Tiers 1-3).  Inclusion of actions in the Housing Strategy Plan does not imply that specific strategies should be adopted. It is possible that later, when considered in more detail, the City may decide not to pursue a listed strategy.

The four top tier (Tier 1) land use strategies that showed the most promise for addressing affordable housing issues in Kenmore were:

• Techniques to preserve existing affordable housing; e.g., density transfers from affordable properties to areas where additional density has been proposed, and consideration of a manufactured housing community overlay.

Status: Most of the manufactured housing communities project has been completed. Final implementation to address potential future upzoning of the four communities north of SR-522 after 10 years is expected once Court consideration is finalized.

• Review of accessory dwelling unit (ADU) regulations. The review should include evaluating current code provisions, the permitting process, fees, and utility requirements. Other actions could include a clemency program to legalize existing ADUs, community outreach, and targeted direct assistance.

Status: The City Council adopted revised ADU amendments in 2020.

• Flexible re-use of tax-exempt or publicly-owned sites through a special process to increase housing supply and enable more diverse forms of housing if linked to providing some affordable housing.

Status: The City Council adopted special permit review process for some affordable housing projects in 2021. 

• Expanding density bonuses, adding density transfers, and other methods with mixed-use and multi-family developments; e.g., mandatory programs with increased development capacity and layering local incentives to create greater affordability (multifamily tax exemptions with density incentives, for example).

Status: Density incentives to achieve affordable housing in the Community Business zone were adopted in 2018. The Multifamily Tax Exemption was expanded to the Transit-Oriented Development District in 2019. Density transfers were approved as part of the manufactured housing communities project in 2019.

The City has undertaken other actions related to the Housing Strategy Plan since the Plan’s adoption, including:

• Approved Mary’s Place homeless shelter at the former King County Sheriff’s Office site (2017)

• Continued funding ARCH’s Housing Trust Fund for affordable housing projects (ongoing)

• Developed code amendments for indoor and outdoor temporary homeless shelters (2018)

• Adopted school impact fees with exceptions for low-income housing projects (2018)

• Provided information to residents on King County’s Housing Repair Program (ongoing)

• Reduced permit review processes for projects containing affordable housing (2021) 

• Updated the City's accessory dwelling unit (ADU) regulations (2020)

• Adopted several residential renter protection measures (2021/2022)

• Authorized spending for an affordable housing project on surplus City land (2022)

• Adopted Comprehensive Plan amendments that allow consideration of "Missing Middle" housing near transit corridors (2022)