23.58A.042

A. Scope and applicability 1. This Section 23.58A.042 contains rules for TDP and TDR when their transfer or use is authorized by other provisions of this Title 23 that specifically refer to provisions of this Chapter 23.58A . 2. Whether a lot may be eligible as a TDP or TDR sending site is determined by the provisions of the zone in which the lot is located. To be eligible as a sending lot for a specific category of TDP or TDR defined in this Chapter 23.58A , the lot shall satisfy the applicable conditions of this Section 23.58A.042 and definitions in Chapter 23.84A except to the extent otherwise expressly stated in the provisions of the zone. Whether a lot is eligible as a TDP or TDR receiving lot, whether the lot may receive TDP or TDR from another lot, and what categories of TDP or TDR the lot may receive are determined by the provisions of the zone. The transfer and use of TDP or TDR on any receiving lot are subject to the limits and conditions in this Chapter 23.58A , the provisions of the zone, and all other applicable provisions of this Title 23 . B. General standards for sending lots 1. TDP calculation. The maximum amount of TDP floor area that may be transferred from a sending lot is the amount by which the residential floor area allowed under the base FAR, or floor area that could be allowed under the base residential height as determined by the Director if no base residential floor area exists, exceeds the sum of: a. Any nonexempt floor area existing on the sending lot; plus b. Any TDP or TDR previously transferred from the sending lot. 2. TDR calculation. The maximum amount of TDR floor area that may be transferred from a sending lot is the amount by which the non-residential floor area allowed under the base FAR of the sending lot exceeds the sum of: a. Any nonexempt floor area existing on the sending lot; plus b. Any TDP or TDR previously transferred from the sending lot. 3. Floor area limit after transfer. After TDP or TDR is transferred from a sending lot, the total amount of residential and non-residential floor area that may then be established on the sending lot, other than floor area exempt from limits on floor area under the provisions of the zone, shall be as follows: a. The amount of residential floor area that may be established shall be the base residential floor area, or floor area that could be allowed under the base residential height as determined by the Director if no base residential floor area exists, plus any net amount of TDP previously transferred to that lot, minus the total of the existing nonexempt floor area on the lot and the amount of TDP or TDR transferred from the lot; and b. The amount of non-residential floor area that may be established shall be the base non-residential floor area, plus any net amount of TDR previously transferred to that lot, minus the total of the existing nonexempt floor area on the lot and the amount of TDP or TDR transferred from the lot. C. Standards for Landmark TDP or TDR sending lots. Landmark structures on sending lots from which Landmark TDP or TDR is transferred shall be rehabilitated and maintained as required by the Landmarks Preservation Board. D. Standards for open space TDP or TDR sending sites. The following standards apply unless provisions of the zone state otherwise: 1. General conditions. Open space TDP or TDR sites shall meet the following conditions, unless an exception is granted by the Director through subsection 23.58A.042.D.2: a. Each portion of the open space shall be accessible from each other portion of the open space without leaving the open space. b. The open space shall have a minimum area of 5,000 square feet. c. The open space shall be directly accessible from the sidewalk or another public open space, including access for persons with disabilities. d. The open space shall be at ground level, except that in order to provide level open spaces on steep lots, some separation of multiple levels may be allowed, provided they are physically and visually connected. e. No more than 20 percent of the open space may be occupied by any above grade structures. f. A minimum of 35 percent of the open space shall be landscaped with grass, ground cover, bushes, and/or trees. g. Either permanent or movable seating in an amount equivalent to 1 lineal foot for every 200 square feet of open space shall be available for public use during hours of public access. h. The open space shall be located and configured to maximize solar exposure to the space, allow easy access from streets or other abutting public spaces, including access for persons with disabilities, and allow convenient pedestrian circulation through all portions of the open space. i. The lot shall be located a minimum of 1/4 mile from the closest lot approved by the Director as a separate open space TDP or TDR site, unless the lot is abutting another TDP or TDR site and is designed to be integrated with the other TDP or TDR site. j. The open space shall be open to the public, without charge, each day of the year for a minimum of ten hours each day during daylight hours, unless there are insufficient daylight hours, in which case the open space shall also be open during nighttime hours for the balance of the hours the open space is to remain open. Public access may be limited temporarily during hours that are otherwise required to be open to the public for necessary maintenance or for reasons of public safety. k. Within the open space, property owners, tenants, and their agents shall allow members of the public to engage in activities allowed in the public sidewalk environment, except that those activities that would require a street use permit if conducted on the sidewalk may be excluded or restricted. Free speech activities such as hand billing, signature gathering, and holding signs, all without obstructing access to the space, any building, or other adjacent features, and without unreasonably interfering with the enjoyment of the space by others, shall be allowed. While engaged in allowed activities, members of the public may not be asked to leave for any reason other than conduct that unreasonably interferes with the enjoyment of the space by others unless the space is being closed to the general public consistent with subsection 23.58A.042.D.1.j. l. The open space shall be identified clearly with the City's public open space logo on a plaque placed at a visible location at each street entrance providing access to the amenity. The plaque shall indicate, in letters legible to passersby, the nature of the bonus amenity, its availability for general public access, and additional directional information as needed. m. Unless the open space will be in public ownership, the applicant shall make adequate provision to ensure the permanent maintenance of the open space. 2. Special exception for open space TDP or TDR sites. The Director may grant, or grant with conditions, an exception to the standards for open space TDP or TDR sites in this subsection 23.58A.042.D and any applicable Director's rules, as a special exception pursuant to Chapter 23.76 , Procedures for Master Use Permit and Council Land Use Decisions. In determining whether to grant, grant with conditions, or deny a request for special exception under this subsection 23.58A.042.D.2, the Director shall consider: a. The extent to which the exception would result in an open space TDP or TDR site that better meets the intent of the provisions of this subsection 23.58A.042.D; and b. The extent to which the exception would allow the design of the open space to take advantage of unusual site characteristics or conditions in the surrounding area, such as views and relationship to surroundings. 3. After any TDP or TDR is transferred from an open space TDP or TDR site, lot coverage by structures shall be permanently limited to 20 percent, or any greater amount that was allowed as a special exception prior to the transfer, and no development shall be permitted that would be inconsistent with the standards under which it was approved as an open space TDP or TDR sending site. E. Standards for housing TDR sending lots 1. Housing on lots from which housing TDR is transferred shall be rehabilitated to the extent required to provide decent, sanitary, and habitable conditions, in compliance with applicable codes, and so as to have an estimated minimum useful life of at least 50 years from the time of the TDR transfer, as approved by the Director of Housing. If housing TDR is proposed to be transferred prior to the completion of work necessary to satisfy this subsection 23.58A.042.E, the Director of Housing may require, as a condition to such transfer, that security be deposited with the City to ensure the completion of such work. 2. Restricted units provided as a condition to transfer of development rights shall be generally comparable in their average size and quality of construction to other units in the same structure, in the judgment of the Director of Housing, after completion of any rehabilitation or construction undertaken in order to qualify as a TDR sending lot. 3. For transfers of housing TDR, the owner of the sending lot shall execute and record an agreement, with the written consent of all holders of encumbrances on the sending lot, unless such consent is waived by the Director of Housing for good cause, to provide for the maintenance of the required housing on the sending lot for a minimum of 50 years. Such agreement shall commit to limits on rent and occupancy consistent with the definition of housing TDR site and acceptable to the Director of Housing. F. Standards for vulnerable masonry structure TDR or TDP sending lots. Within the portion of the University District Regional Center west of 15th Avenue NE or within the Uptown Regional Center, TDR and TDP may be transferred from lots that comply with the following conditions: 1. The sending lot is located in the University District Regional Center west of 15th Avenue NE and is in an SM-U, NC3, or NC3P zone with a mapped height limit of 55 feet or greater, or is located in the Uptown Regional Center and is in an SM-UP, MR, LR3, or C2 zone; 2. The lot includes a structure that contributes to the historic architectural context of the neighborhood and is identified as such in the Department of Neighborhoods' (DON) Historic Resource Survey, and is also identified on a list of structures meeting specific criteria in a rule promulgated by the Director according to Section 23.48.627 ; and 3. The qualifying structure on the sending lot shall be retained as follows for a minimum of 50 years: a. The structure is rehabilitated and maintained to comply with all codes applicable to seismic retrofitting of vulnerable masonry structures; b. All exterior facades shall be retained; except that portions of a new structure may abut facades that are not street-facing facades or that set back a minimum of 30 feet from a street lot line that is generally parallel to the facade, and connections between the new structure and the facades of the retained structure are allowed; and c. Additions or alterations to the structure that extend the useful physical life or economic viability of the structure are permitted, provided that: 1) The additions do not significantly alter the original structural system or result in significant alterations to any historic or architectural characteristics of the exterior appearance of the structure as documented in the DON Historic Resource Survey, except as may be required to comply with applicable codes; and 2) The total floor area of any additions to the original structure, excluding floor area added to reclaim floor area that may have been removed from the original structure over time, does not exceed one story in height and the equivalent of 0.5 FAR, as calculated on the lot on which the structure was originally permitted. 4. If development rights from a lot certified by the Director of the Seattle Department of Construction and Inspections as a vulnerable masonry structure sending site have not been sold within three years of certification, the lot must be recertified by the Director to determine if the structure continues to qualify as an eligible sending site; and 5. For transfers of vulnerable masonry structure TDR and TDP, the owner of the sending lot shall execute and record an agreement with the City, with the written consent of all holders of encumbrances on the sending lot, unless such consent is waived by the Director for good cause, that provides for the maintenance of the required structure on the sending lot for a minimum of 50 years. Such agreement shall commit to limits on additions and modifications to the structure consistent with the provisions of this subsection 23.58A.042.F and that are approved by the Director. G. Standards for TDP sending lots in South Downtown. This subsection 23.58A.042.G applies to TDP sending lots in South Downtown, in addition to the general provisions in this Section 23.58A.042 . 1. Limit on open space TDP. The maximum amount of open space TDP that may be transferred from a sending lot is the amount by which three times the lot area exceeds the total gross floor area of all uses on the lot. 2. South Downtown Historic TDP a. Only lots in the Pioneer Square Preservation District or the International Special Review District may qualify as sending lots for South Downtown Historic TDP. b. In order to be eligible to send South Downtown Historic TDP, a lot shall contain a structure that includes at least 5,000 gross square feet in above-grade floor area and has been finally determined to be a contributing structure under Section 23.66.032 within no more than three years prior to the recording of the deed conveying the TDP from the sending lot. c. Contributing structures on a sending lot from which South Downtown Historic TDP is transferred shall be rehabilitated and maintained in accordance with an agreement pursuant to subsection 23.58A.042.K.3. d. South Downtown Historic TDP shall not be transferred from a lot from which South Downtown Historic TDR has been transferred or from a lot on which any bonus floor area has been established based on the presence of a contributing structure. 3. Limit on combined TDR and TDP. A cumulative combination of TDR and TDP exceeding a total of six times the lot area may not be transferred from any lot. H. TDP or TDR required before construction. No permit after the first building permit, no permit for any construction activity other than excavation and shoring, and no permit for occupancy of existing floor area by any use based upon TDP or TDR will be issued for development that includes TDP or TDR until the applicant's possession of TDP or TDR is demonstrated to the satisfaction of the Director. I. Time of determination of TDP or TDR eligible for transfer. The eligibility of a sending lot to transfer TDP or TDR, and the amount transferable from a sending lot, shall be determined as of the date of transfer from the sending lot and shall not be affected by the date of any application, permit decision, or other action for any development seeking to use the TDP or TDR. J. Reservation in deed. Any TDP or TDR eligible for transfer may be reserved in the conveyance of title to an eligible sending lot, by the express terms of the deed or other instrument of conveyance reserving a specified amount of TDP or TDR, provided that an instrument acceptable to the Director is recorded binding the lot to the terms and conditions for eligibility to send TDP or TDR under this Section 23.58A.042 . Any TDP or TDR so reserved shall be considered transferred from that lot and later may be conveyed by deed without participation of the owner of the lot. K. TDP or TDR deeds and agreements 1. The fee owners of the sending lot shall execute a deed and shall obtain the release of the TDP or TDR from all liens of record and the written consent of all holders of encumbrances on the sending lot other than easements and restrictions, unless the requirement for a release or consent is waived by the Director for good cause. The deed shall be recorded in the King County real property records. If TDP or TDR is conveyed to the owner of a receiving lot described in the deed, the TDP or TDR shall pass with the receiving lot, whether or not a structure using the TDP or TDR shall have been permitted or built prior to any conveyance of the receiving lot, unless otherwise expressly stated in the deed or any subsequent instrument conveying the lot or the TDP or TDR. Any subsequent conveyance of TDP or TDR previously conveyed to a receiving lot shall require the written consent of all parties holding any interest in or lien on the receiving lot from which the conveyance is made. If the TDP or TDR is transferred other than directly from the sending lot to the receiving lot using the TDP or TDR, then after the initial transfer, all subsequent transfers also shall be by deed, duly executed, acknowledged and recorded, each referring by King County recording number to the prior deed. 2. Any person may purchase any TDP or TDR that is eligible for transfer by complying with the applicable provisions of this Section 23.58A.042 , whether or not the purchaser is then an applicant for a permit to develop real property or is the owner of any potential receiving lot. Any purchaser of the TDP or TDR (including any successor or assignee) may use the TDP or TDR to obtain floor area above the applicable base height limit or base floor area limit on a receiving lot to the extent that use of TDP or TDR is permitted under the Land Use Code provisions applicable with respect to the issuance of permits for development of the development intended to use the TDP or TDR. The Director may require, as a condition of processing any permit application using TDP or TDR or for the release of any security posted in lieu of a deed for TDP or TDR to the receiving lot, that the owner of the receiving lot demonstrate that the TDP or TDR has been validly transferred of record to the receiving lot, and that the owner has recorded in the real estate records a notice of the filing of such permit application, stating that the TDP or TDR is not available for retransfer. 3. As a condition to the effective transfer of Landmark TDP or TDR or South Downtown Historic TDP, except from a City-owned sending lot, the fee owner of the sending lot shall execute and record an agreement running with the land, in form and content acceptable to, and accepted in writing by, the Director of the Department of Neighborhoods, providing for the rehabilitation and maintenance of the historically significant or other relevant features of the structure or structures on the lot and acknowledging the restrictions on future development resulting from the transfer. The Director may require evidence that each holder of a lien has effectively subordinated the lien to the terms of the agreement, and that any holders of interests in the property have agreed to its terms. To the extent that a Landmark structure on the sending lot, or a contributing structure on a sending lot in a special review district requires restoration or rehabilitation for the long-term preservation of the structure or its historically or architecturally significant features, the Director of the Department of Neighborhoods may require, as a condition to acceptance of the necessary agreement, that the owner of the sending site apply for and obtain a certificate of approval from the Landmarks Preservation Board, or from the Director of the Department of Neighborhoods after review by the Pioneer Square Preservation Board or International Special Review District Board, as applicable, for the necessary work, or post security satisfactory to the Director of the Department of Neighborhoods for the completion of the restoration or rehabilitation, or both. (Ord. 127375 , § 94, 2025; Ord. 126855 , § 45, 2023; Ord. 125432 , § 15, 2017; Ord. 125267 , § 28, 2017; Ord. 124172, § 61, 2013.)