Washington House Approves Neighborhood Cafe Bill in Early Floor Vote
By a vote of 94-2 Thursday, the Washington House approved a bill legalizing neighborhood cafes and corner stores on residential lots throughout the state, sending it over to the state Senate. The second time the House has approved legislation tackling this topic, the nearly unanimous vote on the fourth day of this year’s 60-day session signals strong support for the idea and bodes well for the bill’s chances in 2026.
While targeted at fostering cafes and bodegas, House Bill 1175, sponsored by Representative Mark Klicker (R-16th LD, Walla Walla), requires most cities and towns in Washington to allow a fairly broad set of commercial uses in residential areas. A cafe is defined as an establishment with at least 500 square feet of gross floor area that must serve food along with any alcoholic beverages, and the goods a “neighborhood store” sells are “not limited to” food, beverages, and household items.
A floor amendment put forward by Rep. Amy Walen (D-48th, Kirkland) and adopted ahead of the floor vote exempts cities and towns in major urban areas with fewer than 5,000 residents, impacting places like Medina, Clyde Hill, and Yarrow Point — jurisdictions where neighborhood zoning is considered sacrosanct and local elected officials have been increasingly vocal about not wanting to see additional land use mandates handed down to them from Olympia.
Klicker revamped this bill to be less prescriptive after the failure of his previous attempt (HB 2252) in the Senate in 2024. That bill required local governments to allow cafes and corner stores by right, if certain conditions are met, including a cap on the total size of the store and limited hours of operation from 7am to 8pm. HB 2252 ran into opposition from local elected officials, who raised concerns around the aesthetic impact of signage, noise, and traffic. The Association of Washington Cities, a local government advocacy group that lobbies in Olympia, warned that the proposal could lead to “heavily parked residential streets” and that its broad language raises “real concerns beyond preemption.”
https://www.theurbanist.org/2026/01/16/washington-house-approves-neighborhood-cafe-bill-in-early-floor-vote/