On October 27, 2025, King County notified the City of Snoqualmie that a King County ordinance, which approved a Growth Management Planning Council (GMPC) Motion endorsing a formal request from the City of Snoqualmie to reduce its housing growth target from 1,500 to 719 units, was ratified. The ratification follows two years of work by Mayor Ross and City staff to reduce its growth target to a realistic number.
All Washington state cities have an assigned housing growth target as required by the Growth Management Act. The City’s assigned target number of 1,500 units was ratified by the King County Countywide Planning Policies (CPP) in 2022.
In response, the City conducted a comprehensive study that analyzed Snoqualmie’s assigned housing growth target and available land capacity. The 2023 study revealed that the City’s target number of 1,500 housing units exceeded its actual land capacity, as most city land is already developed, environmentally constrained, or located within the floodplain.
In March 2024, Mayor Ross formally requested that King County reconcile the City’s housing growth target, reducing it to 719 — an achievable number identified in the study.
In Spring 2025, the King County Growth Management Planning Council (GMPC), including representatives from the Sound Cities Association (SCA) Caucus, unanimously approved a request from the City of Snoqualmie to reduce its housing growth target.
“I would like to express my appreciation to GMPC, SCA, King County Council and staff, Puget Sound Regional Council, and Snoqualmie City Council for their collaboration on this positive outcome,” said Mayor Katherine Ross. “This reduced growth target ensures we grow responsibly while preserving the character and natural beauty that defines Snoqualmie. We remain committed to expanding affordable and missing-middle housing options for local employees, seniors and our next generation who want to call Snoqualmie home.”
The King County Council then approved the request in July 2025. Following a 90-day deadline, during which all jurisdictions in King County had the opportunity to review the approval of Snoqualmie’s growth target reduction request, the ratification was adopted on October 22, 2025.
[Information provided by the City of Snoqualmie]
