### Meeting Overview The Bellingham City Council held its regular meeting on June 23, 2025, focusing on multiple transportation infrastructure decisions, behavioral health funding, and housing protection ordinances. The council also discussed a draft ordinance for LGBTQ+ community protections and approved significant watershed land acquisitions. ### Key Terms and Concepts **Public Facilities District (PFD):** An independent municipal taxing authority created solely to fund facilities that enhance economic development, such as the Whatcom Museum and Mount Baker Theater. **Alternative Response Team (ART):** A program that sends behavioral health specialists instead of police to respond to specific nonviolent behavioral health 911 calls, operating 10 hours a day, five days a week. **Six-Year Transportation Improvement Program (TIP):** A transportation planning and funding document adopted annually to plan and program funding for city capital projects that improve Bellingham's multimodal transportation network. **Lake Whatcom Watershed:** The protected area around Bellingham's primary drinking water source, where the city regularly purchases land to protect water quality for 110,000-115,000 people. **Designated Forest Land (DFL):** Forested areas that receive special tax treatment; when sold for development, a compensating tax must be paid. **House Bill 1110:** State legislation requiring cities to plan for different types of housing, including allowing multiple middle housing units on residential lots. ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Kim Lund | Mayor | | Holly Huffman | Council President | | Hannah Stone | Council Member, First Ward | | Dan Hamill | Council Member, Third Ward | | Skip Williams | Council Member, Fourth Ward | | Lisa Anderson | Council Member, Fifth Ward | | Michael Lilliquist | Council Member, Sixth Ward | | Jace Cotton | Council Member, At-Large | ### Background Context This meeting occurred during a period of significant state-mandated changes to local housing policy, with cities required to implement new zoning allowances for middle housing. The council has been working to balance state requirements with local character preferences. Additionally, the city continues its long-standing commitment to protecting the Lake Whatcom watershed, which supplies drinking water to the region. The discussion of LGBTQ+ protections reflects community advocacy following recent state and national political tensions around civil rights protections. ### What Happened — The Short Version The council approved making permanent the Eldridge Avenue bike lane pilot project after reviewing a year of data showing increased bicycle and pedestrian usage. They adopted the 2026-2031 Transportation Improvement Program, ensuring continued funding for infrastructure projects including the Rainier Avenue bridge replacement. The council approved continued funding for the Alternative Response Team behavioral health program through 2026, costing $375,000 from Justice Project sales tax revenue. Three tenant protection ordinances passed final reading, prohibiting unfair fees in rental agreements. The council also authorized $1.8 million in Lake Whatcom watershed land purchases and settled several litigation matters totaling over $200,000. ### What to Watch Next • July 7: Public hearing on utility easement relinquishment for vacated streets • July 21: Public hearing on 146-acre Northern Heights annexation • July 21: Public hearing on Berkeley Urban Village development regulations • Upcoming updates on the LGBTQ+ protection ordinance after additional community input ---