City planners are considering zoning changes that will determine how industrial the future Fremont will be.
From 4 to 8 p.m. tomorrow (Nov. 18) at the Fremont Library, 731 N. 35th St., Seattle Dept. of Planning and Community Development (DPD) will present proposed rezonings of two industrial areas, one near the canal on the Ballard side of Fremont, and another near the neighborhood's border with Wallingford.
Subarea 1, a strip of land that runs parallel to the Burke-Gilman Trail along North Canal Street, is currently zoned as industrial and, in a wedge on the Ballard side, industrial buffer.
DPD recommends rezoning it to Industrial Commercial (IC)-U/45, defined as “intended to promote development of businesses which incorporate a mix of industrial and commercial activities, including light manufacturing and research and development, while accommodating a wide range of other employment activities. Housing is not permitted in the IC zone.”
But Fremont resident Brian Regan, who works in real estate, said only a few local industries remain, and that outdated industrial zoning is preventing the neighborhood from evolving. He favors neighborhood commercial (NC) zoning, which would allow housing.
Others say rezoning is unnecessary. Jessica Vets, Executive Director of the Fremont Chamber of Commerce, said the Chamber’s position is that the current zoning has been working; “Let’s leave it alone.”
