A neighborhood reborn

As Renton's downtown core has been redeveloping, it has become apparent that change is on the way for the neighborhoods surrounding downtown. South Renton is seen as a key neighborhood supporting the revitalization of downtown Renton.

Over time, this neighborhood will be transformed into an area with townhouses, carriage units over garages and up to five-story multi-family buildings. The Burnett Linear Park will contain upgraded play equipment and serve as a pedestrian pathway for area residents to walk to their jobs in a revitalized downtown. New streetscapes featuring trees, widened sidewalks and curb bulbs at intersections, slow vehicular traffic and make walking, jogging and bicycling within the neighborhood a pleasant experience. This is the vision developed for the South Renton neighborhood.

In November of 2000, the City kicked-off a neighborhood planning process for the South Renton Neighborhood. City staff and Planning Commissioners worked with an interdepartmental team and consultants to develop a Draft Plan for this neighborhood using public comments from the public meeting and subsequent Planning Commission meetings on this subject. Enacted by the City Council in 2002, highlights of the South Renton Neighborhood Plan include:

• Extending RM-U zoning along S 7th Street with an allowance for limited commercial on S 7th Street;
• A reduction in maximum allowable densities, from 150 dwelling units per acre in the RM-U zone east of Burnett Avenue S to 75 dwelling units per acre;
• Lower maximum heights, from 95 feet to 50 feet in the RM-U zone east of Burnett Avenue;
• The creation of a new zoning designation called Residential Multi-Family Traditional, or RM-T, in a sub-area of South Renton west of Burnett Avenue S that:
  
  • Reduces zoning density ranges from 25-150 dwelling units per acre to 14-35 dwelling units per acre;
    
  • Reduces maximum height allowances from 95 feet to 40 feet;
    
  • Creates a separate set of design guidelines for new development occurring in this sub-area to replace existing design guidelines; and
    
  • Allows narrower lots in order to allow for townhouse- and row house-type developments
• Changes in the zoning designations on several properties within the South Renton neighborhood;
• Streetscape plans for each of the two sub-areas within South Renton and for South 7th Street on the neighborhood's boundary;
• Advocating for:
  
  • Moving utilities underground within the neighborhood;
    
  • Improvements to the existing Burnett Linear Park;
    
  • Long-term plans for expansion of Burnett Linear Park.