Clyde Hill News: Administration to deploy cameras, license plate readers around entrances to city
Also: plans for municipal code updates related to “permanent supportive and transitional housing facilities”
Clyde Hill plans to deploy cameras with license plate readers at the main entrances to the city, forming a network with cameras watching Medina, Hunts Point, and Yarrow Point.
Tuesday’s city council meeting will also have two other topics of particular interest: changes to Land Use Code including “permanent supportive and transitional housing facilities” and the next update from the Mayor regarding “progress to improve relationship between Leadership and Police Department.” More on these topics, below. (The complete agenda for the meeting is available here, link.)
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Disclaimer: while I am a councilmember on the Clyde Hill City Council, I write this newsletter in my capacity as an individual resident. Any opinions expressed are my own and not necessarily the position of the City. The information and references here are from public sources. I welcome email responses — and if the topic is about City business I will respond from my City email account.
Protecting (and Surveilling) Clyde Hill
In a memo to city council members (link), Clyde Hill Police Chief Kyle Kolling described plans for a FLOCK camera system for Clyde Hill:
The planned system will enable officers from both Clyde Hill PD and Medina PD access to ~30 cameras covering all four Points Communities. (Clyde Hill PD provides police services to the Town of Yarrow Point; Medina PD provides police services to the Town of Hunts Point.)
Chief Kolling writes:
The FLOCK Camera System, with the license plate readers (LPR) has proven to be a valuable tool in keeping our communities safe as an early warning system alerting law enforcement to stolen vehicles, stolen plates, warrant subjects, etc., entering our city in real time. Currently the Yarrow Point cameras only notify us of vehicles coming off of w/b SR 520.
Changes to Land Use Code planned
On Tuesday night, the city council will consider sending four revised chapters of the municipal code related to land use on to the Planning Commission to hear public feedback.
The Process
Changes to Land Use Code happen only after there’s been ample opportunity for public comment. Here’s a diagram from the council packet (link) that shows the process and timeline; SEPA refers to the State Environmental Protection Agency.
Permanent supportive & transitional housing facilities
Washington State approved legislation that “required action from local jurisdictions to allow permanent supportive housing facilities in all areas where housing is allowed,” (link) according to Seattle-based online publication The Urbanist.
Clyde Hill is following Medina’s lead in adding restrictions related to affordable housing.
From a resident’s point of view, it’s not clear if the work (and associated cost) to modify the municipal code is overkill… if an organization trying to address affordable housing problems is about to spend several million dollars, it’s not clear why they would buy a small lot in Clyde Hill or Medina rather than choose a location where their money can go further.
In any case, Clyde Hill’s proposed legislation is modeled on Medina’s with minor changes that you can see in this document, “Changes made to Medina's code for Clyde Hill,” here (link).
Substantial remodels and codifying existing enforcement practices
As city code stands today, a kitchen and media room remodel can easily result in an expensive landscaping problem. Here’s how.
If the cost of a remodel (entirely inside your house) surpasses the threshold for a “substantial remodel,” then the structure is “subject to all of the regulations” in the municipal code — including stormwater drainage.
The city council will consider a change to Clyde Hill Municipal Code (CHMC) 17.60.030, “Damaged, destroyed, demolished or remodeled buildings and structures” (link) to add the following exception:
2. Exceptions. If a building or structure is substantially remodeled and the process of remodeling does not include land disturbing activity, then the building or structure is not subject to stormwater drainage requirements specified in CHMC 15.10.060.B.
The city’s enforcement practice has been to not require remodels inside of a house to come into compliance with stormwater drainage. This proposed code change codifies the current practice. You can see the proposed changes here (link).
Codifying in-place practices elsewhere
Another proposed change that will be considered Tuesday night involves CHMC 17.80, “Code Enforcement.”
During 2022, the city updated its code enforcement practices (link). The changes under consideration involve updating 17.80 to reflect these new enforcement practices as well as making the appeals process consistent with the rest of the code (by having appeals heard by the Hearing Examiner rather than the Mayor).
Other proposed changes involve definitions to support these updates (along with the ones made last year).
The Mayor’s trust problem with police
The community can expect another update on Tuesday night from the Mayor regarding her work to address trust problems with police officers.
A document in the city meeting packet (link) describes how “At December’s council meeting, the Mayor spoke to her plans to improve the relationship between Administration leadership and the police department.” The document includes a transcript of the Mayor’s remarks at last month’s meeting as well as a link to a timeline of the issues… it is good reading.
For example, at last month’s meeting, the Mayor clearly communicated her commitment to work on this issue: “So, we are extraordinarily committed in order to try to figure out how we're going to find the right kind of process and pattern that helps.”
From a resident’s point of view, the inclusion of another document (link) concerning commitment to solving this problem is… puzzling. It’s not clear what problem this document solves.
The commitments have been clear. What’s not clear is the plan.
As the other document in this section of the packet says, “we hope the community hears new information about progress on these issues.”
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Dean Hachamovitch