Everett, WA Zoning Overlays & Bonuses: Density Bonus Law (2026)

035 lets the city permit a nonresidential building located in a residential zone, but no longer economically viable in its original use, to convert to uses the underlying zone would not otherwise allow, including housing. Subsection D(1) is the density bonus itself: for dwelling units, density is based on the underlying zoning density plus one additional dwelling unit. In the neighborhood residential (NR) and neighborhood residential-constrained (NR-C) zones the request is reviewed administratively by planning staff; in every other residential zone it goes through as a permitted use subject to the section's standards.

If the building sits outside a historic overlay but is listed on a historic register or identified as a contributing structure in a historic district, the historical commission must review and make a recommendation before the review authority decides. The city may only allow the adaptive reuse if it finds the primary building likely could not survive if only the underlying zone's normal uses were allowed, that a different use would enhance the building and the surrounding area's character, and that the use would not harm surrounding properties.

100, whether the reuse aids preservation of the primary building, public safety impacts, compliance with building and fire codes, proposed hours of operation, and management measures to mitigate impacts. Physical growth is capped: any expansion to the primary building cannot exceed ten percent of its existing footprint or five hundred square feet, whichever is greater, and cannot change the building's outside character.