‘Changing face of housing.’ 40 proposed subdivisions hint at Tri-Cities future neighborhoods
Homes in the Tri-Cities aren’t getting less expensive but they are getting more diverse.
In coming years, buyers will be able to choose from hilltop aeries, basic townhomes and pretty much everything in between.
The Tri-City Herald identified 40 subdivisions working their way through the approval process through state environmental records, local permitting offices and announcements by developers.
The subdivisions are sprinkled across an area that extends from Prosser to Pasco. They herald the potential of nearly 7,000 potential new homes in the region.
The list is not exhaustive, and not all the projects on it will come to fruition. But collectively, they represent a five-year supply of residential building sites based on the 1,300 permits issued by local agencies in 2024.
The future subdivisions will add roughly 3,600 residential lots in Benton County and 3,200 in Franklin County. And they hint at the changing face of housing in the Tri-Cities, long dominated by houses with yards. One third will be for townhomes.
A fraction represent the luxury end of the market. The balance land in between.
Pasco Out Front
Townhomes are increasingly the answer to the state’s well-documented housing shortage, noted for the “missing middle” — affordable homes somewhere between traditional single family homes and apartments.
Pasco embraced the idea in 2022, spurred by projections the city of 77,100 would add 50,000 residents in the coming 20 years. The population now tops 81,000, census records show.
It updated development codes to encourage denser development with immediate effect. The city had about 90, mostly near Walmart and Road 76. The number surged to 1,200 seemingly overnight.
“We’ve just seen a dramatic increase in townhomes in particular,” said Jacob Gonzalez, community and economic development director for Pasco.
It matters, Gonzalez said, because the townhouses cost less to build, which translates into lower prices than standalone houses. Pasco observed a noticeable cooling in home price increases.
“That’s just market dynamics,” he added.
The trend arrived in the rest of the Tri-Cities after the 2023 Washington Legislature updated the Growth Management Act to require cities to accommodate denser development, a strategy to address the missing middle.
Both the number of new developments and the proliferation of townhomes are welcome, said David Retter, owner of Retter & Co. | Sotheby’s International, the Tri-Cities’ largest residential real estate firm by sales volume.
Not only do townhomes offer a lower-cost alternative to traditional new homes, the diversity of choice coming for future buyers is a welcome response to a market that has been marked by low inventories of homes for sale — 782 in December, well below the 1,200 that would be considered balanced.
“We’re on the verge of a nice run,” he said.
It’s not guaranteed all 40 subdivisions will actually be developed.
It takes about two years to secure approvals. The list includes projects where grading and utility work has begun. Still others are theoretical and the land sits untouched.
Kennewick
There’s a bit of everything in the works in Kennewick, from hilltop properties to mid-range neighborhoods to townhomes taking shape in established neighborhoods.
Bob Olson Parkway is the backbone of Kennewick’s development zone. When it opened in 2017, Bob Olson offered access to the northern slopes of Thompson Hill and the Apple Valley area, with Interstate 82 anchoring the zone to the south.
- SouthCliffe Phase 8, 40 lots. Luxury hilltop subdivision on Thompson Hill, by Bauder Young Properties, will have 265 sites when the final 11th phase is done.
- Urban Trails, proposed mixed-use neighborhood near Desert Hills Middle School will have about 2,000 residences when complete. Developer Mitchel Creer LLC is seeking approval for the first phase, with about 545 lots, including 445 townhomes and 100 houses.
- Apple Valley Phases 7, 8 and 9: Tri-Cities Development is preparing 125 lots for future homes near West 32nd Avenue, south of Bob Olson Parkway.
- Canal Landing Subdivision Phase 1. Site work has started for the neighborhood of 101 townhomes at Canal Drive, near West Quinault Avenue.
- Desert Sands, 153 lots along West Clearwater Avenue.
- Morain Street Townhomes, An infill development at Morain Street and Fifth will bring 20 townhomes to an established central Kennewick neighborhood.
- Vista Field: 300 townhome-style residences are planned at the former municipal airport under a deal pending between the Port of Kennewick and BlueChart, a Western Washington development team.
Pasco
Pasco’s hottest development zones tend to be concentrated on its northern and western edges.
- The Grove at Broadmoor will bring 94 lots to a spot just south of Burns Road.
- Raven Place will feature 690 lots and is proposed by Pro Made Homes and SG Land Management for property near Burns and Dent roads.
- Barker Ranch 1st Addition, Phase 1, will bring 65 lots to an area near Road 108 and Cohol.
- Columbia Shores, a 498-unit townhome development by Pro Made Homes at the former Harris Farm, at the western end of Court Street.
- Glacier Park Phase 1 will feature about 300 lots on land bordering the future Sageview High School, which is under construction at 6091 Burns Road.
- Madison Park North by Hayden Homes will bring 464 lots to the northwest corner of Road 52 and Powerline Road.
- Crossings at Pearl Street will be a 65-lot townhouse development near Pearl Street and North Fourth, near the BNSF Railroad tracks.
- Osprey Pointe. In east Pasco, JMS Homes is finalizing development plans for Osprey Pointe, where it plans to develop homes as well as commercial and entertainment facilities on a Columbia River site owned by the Port of Pasco.
Richland
Most, though not all, of Richland’s development energy is being funneled into Badger South, the planned community on the city’s south side.
Mike Stevens, Richland’s planning manager, anticipates development in the future will be concentrated in Badger South and at City View, a former orchard behind the Target-anchored Vintners Square shopping center at Queensgate.
The Washington Department of Natural Resources leased a small part of CityView to Costco Wholesale for its second Tri-Cities location. Hundreds of acres are available for future development.
- Desert Sky, a subdivision of row houses, will bring 235 lots to a spot off Meritage, fronting Dallas Road.
- South Orchard Phase 2. The current phase will add 123 sites for homes near East Reata Road and Allison Way. At full build out, it will have 549 homes.
- Peachtree Estates II. Grading work has started for the subdivision, which contemplates 97 lots on about 26 acres.
- The Estates at White Bluffs, 79 lots near White Bluffs Elementary.
- The Terraces at Queensgate will bring 18 single family lots and 89 townhome lots to property at the junction of Keene Road and Queensgate. The private developer has built an extension of Queensgate to Shockley, but it won’t open to motorists until the city gives final approval and takes ownership of the roadway.
West Richland
- Watermark subdivision will have 198 lots on property north of Paradise Way and west of Onyx Avenue.
- Riesling Estates subdivision will have 398 lots for single-family homes near West Van Giesen Street and Belmont.
- Paradise Townhomes will have 20 lots near Yoke’s Fresh Market.
- Champion Townhomes will have 28 lots between the Bombing Range Sports Complex and Champion Avenue.
- The Ridge at Candy Mountain Phase 2 will bring 25 lots to the lower slopes of Candy Mountain, near Kennedy Road and Bombing Range.
- The Heights at Red Mountain Ranch is a continuing development by Aho Construction. The final four phases are expected to add 225 lots near West Van Giesen and Keene.
- The Bluffs will add more than 400 lots near Ruppert Road.
Benton City
- Cameo Vista Subdivision will add 12 lots near 14th Street and Willow Way.
- Babs Meadows Subdivision will add 46 lots on Babs Avenue.
Prosser
- Merlot (Wamba) Meadows is a 165-lot subdivision proposed by Hayden Homes, for a site just east of the new $125 million Prosser Memorial Hospital, which opens to patients at 8 a.m., Feb. 1.