Shoreline considers Land Conservation program but has concerns

An illustration from Forterra explains how TDR and LCLIP works

By Oliver Moffat

In the game Catan, players build cities and roads on a map of forests and farmland while trading resources like timber and wool. Emphasizing cooperation over competition, the interconnected fates of the players is often cited as the inspiration for modern tabletop games. 

Also sometimes criticized for its convoluted and hard to understand rules, Catan might resemble a land conservation program the city of Shoreline is considering called Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) and the Landscape Conservation and Local Infrastructure Program (LCLIP).

At the Monday, March 4, 2024 meeting the Shoreline city council reviewed proposed ordinance (1009) aimed at conserving rural land in King County. Several members of the council raised concerns and directed staff to come back later with a revised plan that addressed their concerns.

A map from the King County website shows the locations of land that has been conserved through the TDR program (green) in exchange for higher density developments (orange)

The proposed ordinance would have adopted Transfer of Development Rights (TDR), a free-market scheme designed to encourage conservation in rural areas while concentrating development in cities.

Under the TDR scheme, owners of undeveloped farms and forests can sell the right to develop their property in the form of credits. When a developer buys the credits, a conservation easement is placed on the rural land to permanently preserve it from future development. 

Cities (like Shoreline) can choose to designate areas where developers can spend the credits to acquire higher density development rights. Developers can then trade their credits for density bonuses that allow them to build taller buildings or fewer parking spaces.

Only land outside of the King County Urban Growth Area can be conserved under the TDR program. Shoreline, Lake Forest Park, Kenmore, Bothell and most of Woodinville are within the Urban Growth Area, meaning that the TDR program cannot be used to conserve land within these cities.

Back row (l-r): Councilmembers John Ramsdell, Betsy Robertson, Annette Ademasu, Eben Pobee, Keith Scully; Front row (l-r): Mayor Chris Roberts, Deputy Mayor Laura Mork.
Photo courtesy City of Shoreline

Councilmember Annette Ademasu asked for more details about the specific kinds of lands that would be conserved. “I would like for the city to prop up sustainable farms that are in King County and organic farms,” said Ademasu. However, “one farm is not the same as another farm as far as climate change is concerned,” she said.

First introduced in 1998, Shoreline has been considering participating in the program since at least 2014 but few cities in King County participate in the program.

Councilmember Betsy Robertson, who has served on the council since 2019, spoke of the scheme’s complexity and reflected that the proposal has been brought before the council repeatedly throughout the years. “I'd like to see it work, which implies it isn't or hasn't worked yet. So why not?” she said.

To encourage cities to participate in the TDR program, the state created the Landscape Conservation and Local Infrastructure Program (LCLIP) tax incentive scheme in 2011. With LCLIP, King County shares some tax revenue with cities that can be spent on infrastructure improvements like new sidewalks and parks.

But the proposed ordinance in front of the council did not include adoption of the LCLIP incentives. 

Deputy Mayor Laura Mork and Councilmember John Ramsdell said they wanted to see the financial incentives included with the TDR program. “What I am kind of concerned about is that there will be no financial advantage to doing the TDR without doing the LCLIP,” said Ramsdell.

Mayor Chris Roberts expressed skepticism. “I’ve had concerns with this program. I still have concerns with this program…. There’s definitely value in this program because the goals are right and the goals are just. Preserving land in King County is a very important goal. But ultimately I think we have to look as a council at does it work for Shoreline?” he said, “I’m not convinced that it is.”

A map from the LCLIP staff report shows neighborhoods that might receive greater density in exchange for land conservation and infrastructure funding.

The city already allows developers to build taller buildings in exchange for amenities that benefit Shoreline residents such as including restaurants, grocery stores and open space. 

Developers can build higher if they pay into the city’s parks and recreation funds and the city offers height bonuses through the deep green incentive program. 

“These are things that help the people who are living in these units right now,” Roberts said. If the city adopted the TDR program as is, developers could build taller buildings without providing Shoreline residents with those benefits.

Because taller buildings are more expensive, Roberts was also skeptical that developers would be enticed by height bonuses.

And Roberts raised concerns about the timing of the proposal because the city is revising its comprehensive plan this year. “I’m thinking that adopting something this year doesn’t make sense,” he said.