Council Roundup: Apprenticeship requirements for public works projects approved and affordable housing work advances

Published May 26 2023

Plus, wrap-up of the 2023 state legislative session and proclamations recognizing mental health, motorcycle safety, boating safety and Jewish American heritage

NOTE: The next Bellevue City Council meeting will be June 5, due to next week (May 29) being the fifth Monday of the month.

On Monday, the City Council unanimously approved the creation of an apprenticeship utilization program in Bellevue. Councilmembers approved an ordinance amending the city's code to establish apprenticeship requirements for certain public works projects in order to encourage growth in the local supply of skilled construction workers.

On April 17, the council directed staff to prepare the ordinance following a February study session and additional stakeholder outreach by staff that included an online survey, two focus group meetings and two listening sessions.

The ordinance requires all public works contracts advertised for bid beginning Sept. 1, 2023, with an estimated cost of $2 million or more to include a requirement that no less than 15% of all labor hours be performed by apprentices. The city's ordinance incorporates provisions of House Bill 1050, which was passed by the state legislature and signed by the governor this year, but the city's program will begin sooner, providing earlier opportunities for outreach with stakeholders and to collect additional information. The council will review proposed amendments on enforcement before HB 1050 takes effect.

More information on the city's proposed apprenticeship program is available in the meeting materials.

State legislative session wrap-up

The council also received a presentation on the state legislative session that ended in April and bills that were signed by the governor.

The update focused on priorities in the State Legislative Agenda adopted by the council in November, as well legislation signed by the governor that could significantly impact the city and the city's budget priorities. The written report is available here.

Affordable housing Land Use Code Amendment

The meeting included a study session on a proposed Land Use Code Amendment (LUCA) that creates criteria and procedures for specific properties in single-family land use districts owned by religious organizations. The LUCA would allow these properties to be rezoned for permanently affordable multifamily housing. Owners of eligible properties will not be obligated to develop affordable housing or do other redevelopment, but the rezone ensures that building permanently affordable multifamily housing is an option on these properties.

In 2017, the council adopted the Affordable Housing Strategy, which includes Action C-1 to "increase development potential on suitable land owned by public agencies, faith-based and non-profit housing entities for affordable housing." The council initiated work on Action C-1 in 2020 and adopted a 50 percent density bonus for affordable housing developments in 2021 as a first step in implementing the action.

During that process, the council noted that some religious organizations' properties in single-family districts could support even higher density and multifamily housing, so they directed a second phase of work to further increase capacity for affordable housing on these properties through a Comprehensive Plan Amendment (CPA), land use code amendment and rezone. Following council adoption of the CPA, the Planning Commission considered the matter and voted to recommend the proposed amendment to the council.

The council voted to finalize the land use code amendment and accompanying rezone ordinance for final action at a future meeting. Additional information about the land use code amendment is on the Increased Affordable Housing Capacity on Faith-Owned Properties LUCA webpage.

Parks and Community Services Board Appointments

In other business, the councilmembers unanimously approved two appointments to the Parks and Community Services Board by Councilmember Stokes. Eileen Chou will serve a partial term expiring May 31, 2024, and Elizabeth Kronoff will serve a partial term expiring on May 31, 2025.

Proclamations recognizing mental health, motorcycle safety, safe boating and Jewish American heritage

Members of the community joined the council to accept proclamations recognizing the month of May for Mental Health Awareness, Motorcycle Safety Awareness and Jewish American Heritage Month. The council also recognized the week of May 20-26, 2023, as National Safe Boating and Paddling Week and heard from members of the community about water safety. The full reading of the proclamations and community commentary is available on Bellevue Television replay.