|
Committee Chair:
The Design Guidlines Committee is working on
defining the architectural character of Sehome, with your input.
What are the essential elements that make Sehome special? We are
working on building a photographic inventory that answers that question
with images to supplement our words. Check back for your opportunity
to evaluate the inventory for yourself, or contact
us to get an update
when the inventory goes live.
The most immediate need for enhanced guidelines in Sehome is in
the interpretation of the multifamily design requirements. We hope
to supplement the current City
of Bellingham Multifamily Residential Design Handbook with
an appendix that uses the visual inventory to specify what is meant
by "consistent with the neighborhood."
The committee proposes that single-family guidelines in the Neighborhood
Plan update will only take the form of expressed preferences, without
a call for any regulatory imposition on private homeowners regarding
their building or remodeling plans. Still to come are proposals
for providing some kind of incentives for owners of single-family
residences to follow the guidelines, and for outreach to present
the case to each owner who requests building permits.
The Samish Way committee is working on the roadmap to a master
planning process for the Samish Way Urban Village. Design requirements
and guidelines for that area will be discussed and evaluated in
a separate public process.
To make our design guidelines easy for the city to consider adopting,
we are working with other historic neighborhoods to create an appendix
to the Multifamily Residential Design Handbook that will be applicable
across many areas of Bellingham. If you would like to participate,
please contact committee chair .
|
