• Section I - Introduction
• Section II - Community Profile
• Section III - Elements - Goals and Policies
• Section IV - Elements - Supporting Analysis
• Section V - Appendices

• Fact Sheet
• Cover and Cover Letter
• Chapter 1 - Shoreline DEIS Introduction and Background
• Chapter 2 - Shoreline DEIS Proposal and Alternatives
• Chapter 3 - Shoreline DEIS Community Profile
• Chapter 4 - Shoreline DEIS Consistency with Plans and Policies
• Chapter 5 - Shoreline DEIS Land Use Housing Built Form and Housing Needs
• Chapter 6 - Shoreline DEIS Natural Environment
• Chapter 7 - Shoreline DEIS Transportation
• Chapter 8 - Public Services
• Chapter 9 - Utilities 
• Shoreline DEIS Appendix
  

• Draft Development Code Amendments
• Draft Zoning Map

The Comprehensive Plan is a 20-year vision and roadmap for Shoreline’s future. It guides city decisions on housing, infrastructure, the natural environment, and more. The Comprehensive Plan is the framework for most of the City’s major decisions and it is under that framework that our other guiding documents are developed, including the Parks, Recreation, Open Space, and Arts (PROSA) Plan; the Transportation Master Plan; and the Surface Water Master Plan. The Comprehensive Plan outlines how we will grow over the next 20 years while also preserving and improving all those things that make Shoreline great today.  

The state’s Growth Management Act (GMA) requires the City to review and update its comprehensive plan and development regulations as part of a periodic review cycle every eight years. As part of its review, Shoreline is required to plan for its share of King County’s growth targets for jobs and housing, including affordable housing. Below are Shoreline’s growth targets for 2044.

• Regulatory compliance: As part of the Growth Management Act Shoreline is responsible for complying with state, regional and county requirements.
• The Department of Commerce GMA Update Resources will be used to determine minimum compliance for policy/regulatory updates under state laws;
• The Puget Sound Regional Council (PSRC) periodic review requirements and the PSRC’s Vision 2050 Regional plan;
• The King County Countywide Planning Policies(PDF, 3MB)(CPPs) adopted by December 2021 which address growth management issues in King County.

The City adopted its first Comprehensive Plan in 1998. The plan has been updated twice since then, in 2005 and 2012. 

Growth in context

The central Puget Sound region is expected to grow by 1.5 million people by 2050. This means that by 2050, some 5.8 million people will call central Puget Sound their home. As this four-county area grows, we must act in a coordinated effort at the local and regional level to provide exceptional quality of life, opportunity for all, connected communities, a healthy natural environment, and an innovative, thriving economy. Shoreline’s Comprehensive Plan helps us clarify Shoreline’s piece of that puzzle and work in concert with the regional growth strategy.

Countywide Centers Designation

The King County Countywide Planning Policies establish a “Countywide Growth Centers” framework. A “Countywide Growth Center” refers to an area selected as a place for equitably concentrating jobs, housing, shopping, and recreational opportunities. These are often smaller downtowns, high-capacity transit station areas, or neighborhood centers that are linked by transit, provide a mix of housing and services, and serve as focal points for local and county investment.

Building on decisions from earlier Comprehensive Plans, in 2021, the City received notice that its application for four “candidate” centers were accepted. The locations for the centers in Shoreline are:

• 148th Street Station Area
• 185th Street Station Area 
• Shoreline Place
• Town Center 

This means that as we look to the future, we will plan for these areas to concentrate housing, jobs, transit, and shopping. 

The Comprehensive Plan is the guiding document for the City. This is the time when you have the most say in what happens in Shoreline. The vision, goals and policies in the Comprehensive Plan influences all other master planning documents, such as the Transportation Master Plan. From the Transportation Master Plan come decisions about the type of street and sidewalk improvements we make. With each step down the ladder, your input has less impact because the major decisions have already been made earlier. Think of it this way: 

Picture it:  

This is the visioning stage for the City. This is where we adopt the vision for the City and set out priorities to achieve that vision when updating the Comprehensive Plan. This is where you have the most say in what you want Shoreline to look like in the future.  

Plan it: 

This is where we take the vision and priorities outlined in the Comprehensive Plan and create master plans, such as the Transportation Master Plan, which will guide transportation improvements.  

Build it: 

This is where we see all of that visioning and planning taking shape in our community. At this stage, most of the major decisions have already been made during the Picture it and Plan it stages. 

Whether you’re a Shoreline resident, business owner, student, community organization, property owner, or employee in Shoreline, we want to hear from you. The Comprehensive Plan is the most important document in determining how Shoreline will develop and grow over the next 20 years. The light rail station subarea plans stemmed from the vision and priorities outlined in the Comprehensive Plan. The 2022 Park Bond and forthcoming park improvements all started with the vision outlined for parks in the Comprehensive Plan. 

Shoreline must thoughtfully and intentionally address the legacy of historical inequities, while also facing the current and future challenges of climate change and housing. That is central to how we are approaching the 2044 Comprehensive Plan – we’re using the cross-cutting lenses of equity and social justice, housing, and climate to frame all aspects of the process, from planning and analysis to public participation and policy adoption.

The Shoreline City Council must take legislative action on the Comprehensive Plan, and the plan must undergo a State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) review. The Comprehensive Plan affects everyone who lives, works, or plays in Shoreline, so it is important that it reflects community values. We are listening to and learning from our community members to understand priorities, hear ideas, and build the City’s vision, goals and policies together. 

The Planning Commission will work with the community and staff to develop recommendations based on community input and staff suggestions. Once the Commission has completed their review, the Commission will make a recommendation to City Council who will then adopt the plan.

As part of our commitment to building an anti-racist community, we are making an intentional effort in our public participation to elevate the voices of communities that historically have been excluded from or who have been most impacted by City decisions.

The Comprehensive Plan is composed of several elements (or separate pieces or topics that make up the whole document). Some of these elements, or pieces, are required by the state’s GMA, while others are optional. We have included all the elements below in the past, both optional and required.

Required Elements:

• Land Use
• Housing
• Transportation
  • The City's Transportation Master Plan (TMP) is different from the transportation element of the Comprehensive Plan. The TMP will help to implement goals and policies in the transportation element
• Capital Facilities 
• Utilities 

Optional Elements:

• Economic Development 
• Parks, Recreation & Open Space 
• Subarea Plans 
• Community Design 
• Natural Environment 
• Shoreline Master Program 

Three Lenses / Filters

Although the Comprehensive Plan is made up of individual topic areas or “elements”, each is interconnected to the others. As we go through this planning process, we will make sure the elements are consistent with one another. We’re also using the cross-cutting lenses of equity and social justice, housing, and climate to frame all aspects of the process, from planning and analysis to public participation and policy adoption.

1. Equity and Social Justice: With Resolution 467, Shoreline declared its commitment to building an anti-racist community. As a city government, Shoreline has a responsibility to address systemic racism. Systemic racism is racism that is institutional or structural and causes persistent discrimination and disparate outcomes in many areas of life, such as housing, education, employment, criminal justice, and health.

   For the Comprehensive Plan, Shoreline is developing a framework to review each element through an equity and social justice lens. An example of this is identifying local policies and regulations that result in racially disparate impacts, displacement, and exclusion in housing. We are also applying equitable practices to how we will carry out public involvement in the creation of the Comprehensive Plan.

2. Climate: With Resolution 494, Shoreline declared a climate emergency stating, in part: Climate change is an urgent unfolding crisis that presents a serious threat to the survival of human, animal, and plant communities and ecosystems around the world, including the City of Shoreline. If unchecked, climate change will bring increasingly drastic declines to the health and prosperity of future generations, particularly for the most vulnerable communities.

   Shoreline recently updated our Climate Action Plan with a focus on reducing emissions, enhancing ecosystem health and sequestration, and increasing resilience and preparedness. Shoreline isn’t working to address climate change alone. Shoreline is part of King County-Cities Climate Collaboration (K4C), a partnership of 22 cities representing more than 85% of the County’s population. K4C is committed to accelerating collective climate action in King County. K4C has Comprehensive Plan alignment recommendations, such as model policies with areas of focus in adaptation, mitigation, and climate equity. Shoreline’s commitment to combatting climate pollution won’t be limited to the natural environment element; it will be a factor considered across all elements of the Comprehensive Plan.

3. Housing: Housing prices are dramatically increasing in the region. Many people in Shoreline have a hard time finding a home that is the right size for their household, is near where they work or go to school, and is within their budget. Shoreline’s Housing Action Plan, adopted by City Council in 2021, performed a housing needs assessment, which found Shoreline has an overall housing shortage, part of the regional problem of lack of supply. This has created upward pressure on prices, particularly in for-sale units. Rents have also risen in Shoreline and around the region. Renters making between 50% and 80% Area Median Income (AMI) struggle to find affordable rental units in Shoreline. Renters making above 80% AMI struggle to build sufficient savings to buy a home in Shoreline.

Over the next two decades Shoreline’s population, and the whole central Puget Sound region, is anticipated to increase significantly. An estimated 1.5 million more people will call central Puget Sound home by 2050. Shoreline is anticipated to add 13,330 new households by 2044.

 Where and how people live is intertwined with other areas of life, such as jobs, transportation, health and wellness, education, and much more. This is why housing is a cross-cutting lens that will be considered across all elements of the Comprehensive Plan. 

The target completion date for the current update is 2024. The 20-year plan will set goals and policies that will take us to 2044. 

This is a draft timeline and subject to change. Project planning is still underway as we embark upon the plan update. 

Prepare Community Engagement Plan – Autumn 2022

Community Outreach and Visioning – Winter – Spring 2023

SEPA - Winter 2024 

Boards and Commissions Meetings – Spring 2024

Draft Plan – Summer 2024

Public Hearing and City Council Adopting – Fall 2024

2022 Comprehensive Plan Amendment Docket (PDF)

2012 Comprehensive Plan (PDF, 26MB)

King County Countywide Planning Policies (PDF, 3MB)

Puget Sound Regional Council, Vision 2050 Regional Plan (PDF, 13MB)

Department of Commerce Growth Management Act Update Resources

Sign up for Planning & Community Development News!

We are just starting our outreach efforts. If you would like to stay informed of input opportunities and other aspects of the Comprehensive Plan update, sign up for our email alerts. On the ALERT Shoreline page, check the envelope for “Planning and Community Development News” to receive planning related news and information.