Seattle Shoreline Master Program

Situation
For the first time since 1987, the City of Seattle’s Department of Planning and Development (DPD) is updating its Shoreline Master Program (SMP), the policies and regulations governing development and uses on and adjacent to marine and freshwater shorelines. Updating the SMP is required by the Washington State Department of Ecology, under the State of Washington’s Shoreline Management Act (SMA). DPD retained Triangle to design and conduct a community visioning process for the SMP update, and then to convene and facilitate a Citizens Advisory Committee, to provide a forum to discuss shoreline management issues, provide input on policy, technical work and regulations, and promote communication with the general public concerning shoreline management issues.

Process
From January through March 2008, Triangle designed and facilitated seven open house community workshops in each section of the City’s shoreline to describe the state Shoreline Management Act, introduce the SMP update process, and develop a citizens’ vision for the future of Seattle’s shorelines. The workshops used a variety of small group discussion exercises and techniques to obtain rich public input. Concurrent to the visioning process, Triangle interviewed nominees for an SMP Update Citizens Advisory Committee, leading to recommendations for a slate of candidates. Once those candidates were approved by the DPD Director, Triangle helped DPD design the Committee process, including a charter, work plan, schedule, materials, key themes from the interviews, etc. From May 2008 to June 2009, Triangle facilitated monthly meetings of the 20-member Committee, designed agendas, conducted meeting dry runs and debriefs, drafted decision lists and meeting summaries, conducted a mid-point check-in with each member, and interacted with members and DPD between meetings to address and resolve issues. Cascadia Community Planning Services provided technical expertise and advice to DPD and Triangle as a subcontractor on this process.

Results
The input from the community visioning workshops was consolidated into a Vision Report drafted by Triangle and formatted by DPD. Triangle led the Committee through its own visioning exercise at its second meeting, which resulted in a consensus vision statement for the future of Seattle’s shorelines that the Committee used as a touchstone throughout its deliberative process. After facilitating a successful series of Committee meetings at which the Committee considered shoreline designations, commercial, industrial and residential development standards, shoreline modifications and many other elements of the SMP update, Triangle and Cascadia helped the Committee author a report to the Seattle City Council and Seattle Planning Commission containing its findings and recommendations. Triangle was widely praised by the Committee for helping a group with widely diverging opinions and positions to communicate respectfully and effectively with each other and DPD.