Bothell's landmark preservation code update briefing was pulled from a cancelled May 13 meeting

What the records say

The City of Bothell published a packet for a May 13, 2026 Landmark Preservation Board meeting that was cancelled, according to the document's title ¹. The packet includes a staff presentation on updates to Bothell Municipal Code Title 22, the city's Landmark Preservation code, prepared by city staff ¹. The presentation states no draft code is proposed at this stage; staff were seeking high-level policy direction on the update's scope, regulatory flexibility, and process efficiency ¹. The stated themes include clarifying the Landmark Preservation Board's role versus administrative staff review, streamlining overlapping review processes, reorganizing the code (including relocating BMC 22.12 governance provisions to Title 2), and aligning designation and appeal procedures with state law ¹. The packet lists next steps including a Planning Commission study session in June and a historic inventory update ¹. Because the meeting was cancelled, the packet establishes what was proposed for discussion, not any board input or outcome ¹.

• The May 13, 2026 Landmark Preservation Board meeting was cancelled, per the published document's title.
• The staff presentation on the Title 22 (Landmark Preservation) code update states no draft code is proposed at this stage; staff were requesting initial input on scope, regulatory flexibility, and process efficiency.
• Proposed themes include clarifying the Landmark Preservation Board's role (policy guidance and designations) versus staff handling project-level reviews, streamlining overlapping reviews such as demolition reviews and downtown design standards, relocating BMC 22.12 to Title 2, and consolidating review and appeal pathways to align with state law.
• The presentation lists next steps of a Planning Commission study session in June and a historic inventory update.

Why it matters

Title 22 governs how Bothell reviews historic landmarks, historic districts, and alterations — and, under BMC 22.28.010(B), whether properties on the historic inventory can receive demolition permits ¹. The proposed themes would shift day-to-day project-level review from the Landmark Preservation Board to city staff and consolidate multiple decision points and appeal pathways, changes that would affect how quickly and predictably development proposals involving historic properties move through the city's process ¹. Residents following historic preservation or development in their neighborhoods will want to track the June Planning Commission study session listed as a next step ¹.

What changed / what's next

• A cancelled May 13, 2026 Landmark Preservation Board meeting packet was published, containing a staff presentation outlining proposed themes for updating Bothell's landmark preservation code, Title 22 ¹.
• The records do not establish whether or when the cancelled study session will be rescheduled, or what input the board would have provided.
• The June Planning Commission study session listed as a next step is a plan stated in the presentation, not a confirmed scheduled meeting in the supplied packet ¹.
• The available records do not establish the meeting's outcome.