Contact the Bellingham Plan Team

Thank you for providing your perspective and experience. There are a few things that staff work towards to help minimize these situations. First, the best time to get involved in development decisions is when the policy (like the Bellingham Plan) and code work is completed. When the development code is updated, it defines what can be built, where, and how. Development is then proposed and allowed within those boundaries. Engaging the community at this early point, such as in the upcoming work on our housing code, helps integrate their opinions in the outcomes. Additionally, as the City redefines some of these processes to comply with new state law, it will be important to focus community communication on what is “on the table” to clarify the process, achieve transparency, and minimize confusion.

Thank you for your comment and your concern for the representation of seniors in the Bellingham Plan. As you read through the goals and policies, you will find policies in multiple chapters that specifically bring attention to and address the needs and interests of people of all ages, including seniors. Specific examples include policy H-29 in the Housing Chapter, policy T-27 and T-28 in the Transportation Chapter, or CW-9 in the Community Wellbeing Chapter. This is not an inclusive list, just a few examples to keep in mind.

Planning Commission discussions from February through May are initial discussions on the important concepts and draft goals and policies. The full draft chapters, which will also include limited narrative, graphics, and charts, will be put together following these discussions and the completion of the final countywide Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). That draft will be released publicly for comment and a public hearing to help inform the Planning Commission recommendation to Council.

Several chapters of the plan will include draft policies that encourage and expand childcare opportunities, particularly in the Land Use, Community Wellbeing, and Economic Development chapters. Within land use, draft policies related to small-scale commercial uses in residential areas and encouraging childcare within development projects are included in the draft material within the 2/20 Planning Commission packet material.

We are sorry if you are having trouble moving the survey forward. We've contacted SurveyMonkey about this issue (which is rare but has occurred on occasion). If you have trouble moving past the first page (which has two questions on it), try the below. You are also always welcome to skip to the last step if you'd like.

1. Make sure both questions have 1-2 responses. You can't skip either of those questions.
2. If this doesn't work, try using Chrome or Firefox as your browser if you can. 
3. If you can't use those browsers or still get the error, you can try clearing your cookies and cache to improve SurveyMonkey's performance. https://help.surveymonkey.com/en/surveymonkey/site/enabling-cookies/
4. If that doesn't work, you can try again a few hours later.
5. You can always email theBellinghamPlan@cob.org if you'd like to get a pdf of the survey to send back to us instead.

Thanks for your question. The Bellingham Plan Vision Survey was mailed to all Bellingham residents in the early fall of 2023 and closed on November 20, 2023. If you still have your paper version, you are welcome to mail that into us. The online version of the Vision Survey is no longer open. Current engagement opportunities include the Scavenger Hunt and Self-Led Virtual Open House. Keep an eye on our Engage Bellingham project page for more engagement opportunities in early 2024!