A pair of bills advancing this week at the state legislature would finally allow Sound Transit to rise above the local permitting fray in several key areas. The reforms could save as much as nine months on key transit projects, according to the agency.

Intended to reduce barriers that are preventing lower-density commercial buildings from getting redeveloped into housing, Senate Bill 6026 would target mandates for storefronts in new housing projects. After concerns were raised around impacts on neighborhood vibrancy, the proposal was scaled back ahead of its first committee vote.

The close vote earlier this week was a strong signal of a change in direction for Burien, which saw a 5-2 moderate council majority flip to a 4-3 progressive one last November.

Birds Connect Seattle, Thornton Creek Alliance, and the Orca Conservancy are among the groups trying to send the City of Seattle back to the drawing board on its housing growth plan. They're pushing on behalf of an appeal that has been working its way through the courts since April.

Claudia Balducci, the second longest serving member of the Sound Transit board, will no longer be a member of the committee she's lead since 2018. The swap out comes just as the board faces critical decisions around the future of the Sound Transit 3 expansion plan, work that will largely be hashed out in policy committees.