City of University Place

The following plans at the City of University Place guide housing development in the City.

• Comprehensive Plan
• Subarea plans:
  • Northeast Business District Plan
  • 27^th Street Business District Plan
• Housing Action Toolkit

The following policies from the City’s Comprehensive Plan outline some of the City’s priorities for housing development.

Land Use Element

Policy LU7D: Promote compatibility of innovative housing with the character of surrounding single-family residences. Pay particular attention when such housing is located in the R1 Residential zone. Achieve this through techniques, such as:

• Requiring that innovative housing maintains the character and quality of single family homes;
• Ensuring that new residences do not appear oversized for their lot size;
• Ensuring that the height, bulk and design of new residences do not overwhelm existing adjacent residences through the application of floor area ratio standards and other bulk regulations; and
• Maintaining adequate separation between new residential structures to avoid overcrowding

Policy LU7E: Preserve and enhance the unique character of existing single family neighborhoods.

Policy LU7H: Support greater residential density and building height in the Regional Growth Center (Town Center, 27th Street Business, and Northeast Mixed Use districts) to accommodate growth consistent with Puget Sound Regional Council’s VISION 2040 and Pierce County population and housing allocations. Accommodate this growth without significantly impacting the character of existing single-family neighborhoods.

Policy LU7I: Ensure that multifamily residential development is designed and scaled in a manner that is compatible with nearby single-family neighborhoods. New multifamily development and redevelopment should comply with the City’s adopted multifamily design standards and guidelines.

Housing Element

Policy HS2B: Support increased housing choices, especially for smaller households, to help the overall housing supply better match the needs of an increasingly diverse population. Effectively administer existing regulations that allow development of housing that satisfies varied consumer preferences, including but not limited to: cottage housing, small lot development, cluster housing and attached units (two or three units per building) that are designed to fit the general character of, and have scale and bulk comparable to, other single-family homes in the neighborhood in which the new housing is located. As new and different housing styles become available, give consideration to how they might fit within existing single-family neighborhoods to provide increased affordability for low- and moderate-income families and increased options for seniors and small households.

Policy HS2D: Encourage increased density residential development in mixed-use zones, especially those located within the City’s Regional Growth Center, subject to compliance with appropriate development and design standards. Discourage or prohibit new detached single-family dwellings in these areas to promote more intensive use of commercial and mixed-use properties in order to accommodate an increasing share of the City’s anticipated future population growth.

The City of University Place provides the following incentives for affordable housing:

• UPMC 19.60.050: Reduced parking requirement for affordable senior multifamily housing

The City of University Place provides these other incentives for development:

• UPMC 19.85.050(C)(5): UP offers a design review alternative. There is a list of 4 criteria the applicant must demonstrate, but the main one is the design must be equal or better than the development requirements in the code.
• UPMC 4.80: Multifamily Property Tax Exemption (MFTE) in the Town Center, Northeast Business District, and Town Center South areas.
• Density: There’s no density min/max in the City’s Regional Growth Center. A density bonus is offered in the Residential zones for “small lot housing” and “multifamily” developments. Developers typically have to offer up a better design or more open space to get the bonus. These are specified under the City’s density and dimension matrix.

Find a map of water and sewer lines on Pierce County’s GIS system.

For information and questions about funding opportunities for affordable housing, contact Kevin Briske at kbriske@cityofup.com.