The Seattle City Council will review a proposal in the next two months that would increase building height in an Interbay commercial area from its current 40-foot limit up to 125 feet.

The Council anticipates a draft proposal to be submitted from the Department of Planning and Development by April, according to central staff. It will outline zoning options that would help spur the development of a mixed-use neighborhood at 15th Avenue West and West Dravus Street.

The Dravus Commercial Area Zoning Study has been underway since 2005 when the Interbay Neighborhood Association, a group of business and property owners, asked for a revision to the city's comprehensive plan to revitalize the area. A mixed-use zone is proposed with heights ranging from 40 feet, the current limit, to 125 feet. It would also include a broader range of commercial uses allowed and an increase in residential density.

Nancy Bainbridge Rogers, president of Magnolia Community Club, said there has been a general support for the upzone among her organization because right now, the area is underdeveloped and unattractive.

"This area is in dire need of a clean-up ..." said Bainbridge Rogers.

It's hard to gauge a community consensus from Magnolia's 22,000-plus residents, but allowing a broader range of businesses and residences on a main corridor into Magnolia and downtown, could bring some benefits, she said.

The Interbay Neighborhood Association is considering a Local Improvement District, in which property owners agree to tax themselves to pay for area improvements, such as transportation and pedestrian upgrades.

Potential transportation enhancements include installing a traffic signal at West Dravus Street and 17th Avenue West intersection, and improving the intersection at West Bertona Street and15th Avenue West southbound ramp.

Other street and traffic upgrades could be focused on mitigating traffic from the added 1,300 new residential units a rezone could produce.

Some residents have commented to the city that traffic will likely get worse with an upzone, while others say the area needs more housing, especially for industry workers. There's been some concern about what kind of developments a maximum height of 125 feet could bring, but Bainbridge Rogers said the proposal includes setbacks to avoid a "canyon effect."

The city is also considering upzoning areas of South Lake Union, Northgate and South Downtown, which include parts of the International District, Pioneer Square and commercial industrial areas.

Higher density zones are not currently being considered for Ballard or West Seattle, said Alan Justad, spokesman for the planning department.

This month, the council is considering a resolution proposed by Mayor Greg Nickels last fall that establishes principles for incentive zoning provisions to be implemented whenever major changes are made to zoning regulations that significantly increase development capacity, such as the Dravus proposal.

Developers who use an increase in height and density limits would be required to either build affordable units as part of the residential project, or pay into a fund for affordable housing or other neighborhood amenities like parks and open space.

"With proposed major increases in development rights, (the Dravus) proposal needs to be tied to the incentive zoning plan that council is reviewing," said Justad. "So, how this will be developed is still a work in progress."

The council's planning, land use and neighborhoods' committee is scheduled to review the proposal Wednesday (March 12).

The city is also weighing how increasing heights in the Dravus Commercial area and adding more residential opportunity could impact bordering industrially zoned land.

It's bounded by the Burlington Northern Railroad tracks on the west, the Emerson Street overpass to the north, 15th Avenue West on the east and the Interbay playfields and golf course on the south.

For more information visit http://www.seattle.gov/dclu/news/20060627a.asp.

Rebekah Schilperoort can be reached at 783-1244 or rebekahs@robinsonnews.com.