Design Review - Design Guidelines

What Is It?

Sidewalk outside Joule Apartments Our design guidelines are the backbone of the Design Review Program. They direct designers and project reviewers to look closely at the neighborhood and its character to design new buildings that enhance their surroundings. The guidelines are used by the Design Review Boards and our staff to assess the merits of a project.

Design Guidelines

We have two sets design guidelines that cover the entire city:

In addition, we have several sets of neighborhood-specific design guidelines that supplement the Citywide and Downtown design guidelines. The neighborhood-specific guidelines are listed below and divided into the their respective design review districts:

Northwest Design Review Board District

Northeast Design Review Board District

West Design Review Board District

Southeast Design Review Board District

Southwest Design Review Board District

Downtown Design Review Board District

Belltown

East Design Review Board District

Central Area Design Review Board District

Central Area

Previous Design Guidelines

The following design guidelines were effective until January 18, 2014.

Citywide Design Guidelines

Design Guidelines Correlations