Bothell, WA Zoning Overlays & Bonuses: Downtown Design Guide (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing chapter
- Bothell Municipal Code Chapter 12.64, Downtown Subarea Regulations
- Addition trigger
- More than 10 percent of a building's floor area
- Improvement trigger
- Exterior work costing more than 10 percent of assessed value
- Outdoor dining exemption
- Structures of 1,000 square feet or less with existing businesses
- Façade offset depth
- Minimum five percent of largest adjacent façade segment width
- Permit process
- Title 11 procedures; director decides use-change rules
Summary
In the City of Bothell, Washington, Chapter 12.64 of the Bothell Municipal Code sets the Downtown Subarea regulations that govern all future private development downtown. Its design requirements and guidelines are the yardstick the city uses to evaluate projects and improvement plans in the Plan Area.
These Development Regulations govern all future private development actions in the Downtown Subarea, forming Chapter 12.64 of the Bothell Municipal Code, with some references to citywide regulations in BMC Title 12, Zoning, and other relevant parts of the Code. These design requirements and guidelines will be used to evaluate private development projects or improvement plans proposed for properties within the Plan Area. This section explains how the development regulations are applied and used. The subsequent six sections, 12.64.100 - 12.64.600, present the regulations themselves as follows: 12.64.100 District Requirements, 12.64.200 Site Development Regulations, 12.64.300 Street, Surface Water Management and Open Space Regulations, 12.64.400 Parking Regulations, 12.64.500 Architectural Regulations, and 12.64.600 Signage Regulations.
Full Breakdown
Bothell Municipal Code Chapter 12.64 opens with § 12.64.000, which says these regulations govern all future private development actions in the Downtown Subarea and organizes them into six sections: district requirements, site development, street and open space, parking, architecture and signage.
Applicability is set in § 12.64.001. New construction must meet every regulation in the chapter, except in the Campus District, where the chapter applies only as identified in § 12.64.108 and otherwise serves as guidance. Additions and improvements are caught when they exceed 10 percent of a building's floor area or when exterior improvements cost more than 10 percent of a property's assessed value, and then the rules reach only net new floor area. Improvements that increase nonconformities are not permitted, and outdoor dining structures of 1,000 square feet or less tied to existing businesses are exempt.
Under § 12.64.003, provisions using "shall," "must," or "is / is not permitted" are mandatory. Guidelines use "should," "may" or "are encouraged to," and developers are permitted to propose alternative design details that carry out the plan objectives. Where chapter rules conflict, § 12.64.004 says the more specific regulation applies, and every project must comply with all requirements to win approval in development review.
The architecture rules in § 12.64.500 through § 12.64.505 cover building mass, façade, roof, color, sustainability, style and historic resources. Under § 12.64.501, a horizontal base element is required within the first floor, and a top element must cap the uppermost floor of street and river façades. Side and rear façades can use flush treatments where wall to wall clearance is more than five feet and no greater than 10 feet, and need no height massing at five feet or smaller. Under § 12.64.502, a façade offset must be at least five percent of the width of the largest adjacent façade segment, and a notch must be at least 1/4 of its width deep.
Permits run through Title 11 of the code, and the Community Development Director or designee decides which regulations apply to a use change.
Violations & Fines
Projects that do not meet the mandatory requirements cannot get approval in the Bothell development review process under § 12.64.004. Unless the code provides otherwise, BMC 1.24.010 makes violating a mandatory requirement a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine up to $1,000, up to 90 days in jail, or both, and BMC 1.24.020 counts each day as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
What counts as mandatory in the Bothell downtown regulations?
When does a remodel in downtown Bothell trigger the chapter?
Do new downtown buildings need a base and a top?
Who decides how the rules apply to a change of use?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Bothell
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