Aug. 20, 2019: STCA, developer of much of the Sammamish Town Center, and city staff pondered dramatic upzoning in 2017.

The idea would have added 250,000 sf to the 600,000 sf of commercial already approved and 1,500 more residential units to the 2,200 approved.

The ideas never made it to the public domain for debate nor to a Docket Request stage to amend the Comprehensive Plan. The 2017 city council quietly, and out of public view, killed the idea before it reached the public or the stage of a formal request.

Latest controversy

Controversy exploded last week over two concurrency certificates issued by staff to STCA for 56,000 sf of commercial space and 419 residential units, just one phase of STCA’s development.

Efforts to upsize the Town Center from the recommended, and later, approved plan have been constant since planning began in the mid-2000 decade.

Former Mayor Don Gerend wanted 700,000 sf of space, more residential units and no height restrictions on buildings.

The city council tonight is reviewing last week’s staff action.

The stories about the 2017 effort to upzone the Town Center are here:

• As drivers sit in traffic, Sammamish ponders upzoning
• Council quietly killed STCA plans out of public view

Gerend’s efforts to up-size the Town Center and eliminate height restrictions are detailed here:

• Gerend wanted larger, taller Town Center