Sammamish looks at program to import density from county
November 17, 2010
New: Nov. 17, 10:26 a.m.
Sammamish can make money by maintaining the rural character of hundreds of acres just north of its city boundaries and possibly linking up two areas of prime green space used by many residents.
The catch? It’s got to stomach more density and development in Town Center — a touchy issue for some on the City Council who have tried for months to ensure that Sammamish isn’t building itself a downtown it can’t handle.
The council got its first look Nov. 9 at a proposed transfer of development rights (TDR) program to be jointly run by the city and King County. Under the program, the county would buy the right to build homes from properties the county would like to see stay as forest and farmland. Those development rights would then be transferred to Town Center developers who wish to build more housing units than the city’s normal regulations allow. Read more
