PUBLIC POLICY AND PLANNING

Shaping Communities Through Smart Policy and Planning

AHBL partners with cities, counties, and other public agencies to create plans and policies that guide growth, protect resources, and reflect community priorities. We help jurisdictions navigate complex regulations and deliver solutions that are practical and aligned with community goals.

Explore Our Work
Planning Projects We Deliver

AHBL helps jurisdictions ensure their development review processes align with local, state, and federal requirements. Our planners bring decades of experience interpreting municipal codes and applying them consistently to protect communities and reduce risk. We anticipate issues early, triage submittals for completeness, and provide clear, defensible recommendations that keep projects moving.

Our experience includes:

  • Aligning local regulations with comprehensive plan policies to support growth while maintaining community character
  • Auditing municipal codes to identify gaps, conflicts, and outdated provisions
  • Drafting practical and legally defensible code amendments
  • Facilitating pre‑application meetings, completing SEPA reviews, and preparing public notices to help jurisdictions meet statutory timelines
  • Integrating land use, transportation, utilities, housing, parks, and environmental stewardship into coordinated planning strategies
  • Integrating new state mandates such as middle housing and ADU requirements
  • Preparing GMA‑compliant comprehensive and subarea plans that balance growth with livability
  • Reviewing development applications including site plans, subdivisions, conditional use permits, shoreline permits, and critical area reports
  • Updating development regulations including zoning, subdivision, critical areas, shoreline programs, and design standards

See the Vision Come to Life

  • City of Richland On-Call Code Revisions

    Key code revisions for City of Richland

  • Edgewood 2024 Comprehensive Plan Update

  • Federal Way Brooklake Park and Steel Lake Park Master Plans

    Community‑centered master planning for two beloved Federal Way parks

  • Franklin County On-Call Planning Services

    On-call comprehensive planning services for development review and SEPA compliance

  • Maritime|253 Skills Center

    Strengthening maritime workforce education through collaboration of Port of Tacoma and Tacoma Public Schools

See More Policy Planning Projects

How We Collaborate With Public Agencies

AHBL understands the challenges jurisdictions face: limited resources, evolving regulations, and the pressure to meet statutory deadlines. Our planners act as an extension of your team, providing expertise and capacity when you need it most. We bring decades of experience supporting cities and counties across Washington with practical, defensible solutions. Our approach includes:

Facilitating Public Engagement

We design and lead outreach programs that build trust and consensus. Utilizing open houses, workshops, and online engagement tools, we ensure community voices shape planning outcomes.

On-Call Consulting and Development Review

AHBL provides flexible, task-based support for permit reviews, SEPA environmental analysis, and case management. We prepare clear staff reports and represent jurisdictions at planning commission meetings and city council sessions, helping you meet timelines without sacrificing quality.

Code Interpretation and Updates

Our team helps jurisdictions apply existing codes consistently and draft amendments that reflect new legislation, housing mandates, and local priorities. We focus on clarity and usability, so regulations are easy to implement.

Actionable Policy Development

We prepare comprehensive plans, housing action plans, and subarea strategies that align with Washington State GMA and other state requirements. Every deliverable is designed to withstand scrutiny and guide long-term decision-making.
  • Our Services
    Our Core Services

    AHBL provides integrated services around the planning, engineering, design, and long-term operations in support of numerous Tribal nations so that these critical initiatives move forward with careful consideration, honoring each Nation’s processes, priorities, and cultural resources.

    • Civil Engineering
    • Structural Engineering
    • Landscape Architecture
    • Land Use Planning
    • Land Surveying
  • Civil Engineering

    We provide civil engineering for the types of projects common to Tribal land initiatives and infrastructure, such as water systems, stormwater improvements, roadway design, wastewater upgrades, drainage systems, and site development. Our team helps Tribal Nations modernize infrastructure, assess alternatives, and coordinate with federal and regional agencies.

  • Structural Engineering

    Our structural engineers provide designs that honor the natural heritage of these culturally significant structures using sustainable materials and expressed heavy timber construction where appropriate. We provide resilient design for housing, healthcare centers, education facilities, entertainment and hospitality structures.

  • Landscape Architecture

    AHBL designs exterior environments that balance function, beauty, ease of maintenance, and long-term stewardship. Our work includes site layouts, pedestrian circulation, planting design with native and regionally appropriate species, stormwater-integrated landscapes, and design outdoor spaces that encourage community use, and respects natural heritage.

  • Land Use Planning

    Our planners work on zoning, permitting coordination, Tribal land use reviews, feasibility studies, and master planning and sustainability strategies for Tribal governments. We assist with agency coordination, environmental documentation, and regulatory alignment, including within NEPA and other federal processes.

  • Land Surveying

    Surveyors have an innate respect for the land, and the accuracy of their work is essential for roadway improvements, utility upgrades, and site development on Tribal lands. AHBL provides boundary and topographic surveys, utility research, construction staking, and mapping to help inform projects.