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HomeMy WebLinkAbout006741 - ZA �j ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT SCOPING MEETING ( Vvs' CS MAY 8, 2006 .rv►,c ,� For MLA06-87; STATESMAN GROUP PROPOSE D BRINNON MASTER PLANNED RESORT BRINNON SCHOOL, BRINNON, WA. 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. The scoping meeting was preceded by an open house attended by about 70 people from 5:00 to approximately 7:00 p.m, at the Brinnon School multi-purpose room. The proponent had representatives present to talk about the proposal" and to provide handouts on the project.. County DCD had representatives present to guide the open house and to discuss the Comp Plan amendment and EIS process. They also provided handouts to the public. The scoping meeting was both audio.and video taped. Those who signed the guest list were: Bill and Wendy Webber, Debbie.Kronk, Dan and Kathy Ackerman, Clair and Anne Pittman, Janet Hardy -Look, Lori Berisga, Bob and Robin'Scott, County Commissioner Pat Rodgers, Janice Richards, Hal Richards, Jan and Glenys McFall, Hal Beattie, Arnold Swan, Sue Bettinger, Connie Gallant, Diane Denralk, Olivia Alfano, Ruth 0. Didomenico, Louis Didorhenico, Wayne King and Bill Graham of the PUD #l, Larry Hartley, Ron Stephens, Gene and Nancy Thompson, Ron and Susan Spencer, Sam Boling, Bud Schindler, Stan Walter, Eleanor Sather, Robert M. and Lu Schultz, Lynn Leon, Joy Baisch, Joe Baisch, John Dowd, Dalila Dowd, Kasia Pierzga of the Leader, Jody Weed, M. Schmidt, Miriam Murdoch, Lawrence Dimino, Brinnon Fire.Chief Bob Herbst, Joan Hendricks, Mike Jones, Ted Labbe of the Port Gamble S'Klallam Tribe, Wayne Schlaefli, Jack Turner, Tillie Springer, Charles Springer, Margaret Mooney, Dana Starfire, Donna Simmons, Janet Subino, Mitchell Draper, Matthew Onifer,.Marc Horton, B. Moore Lewis, Kathy Barth, Carl Sheats, Helen Noke, Shyla Visser, Jolene Visser, and Richard Whitcomb. At approximately 6:45 p.m. Al Scalf opened the meeting by welcoming everyone. He explained the purpose of the scoping meeting. He introduced Garth Mann from the Statesman Group who would make a presentation on their proposal before county staff took comments from the public on the environmental issues of concern. He introduced the DCD staff present as well. Al Scalf explained the three alternatives currently proposed for the EIS: No Action, the Preferred Alternative represented,by the Statesman proposal, and the Brinnon Subarea Plan alternative. He stated that from the three alternatives a fourth alternative could be developed as the process unfolded. Garth Mann introduced his staff, both consultants and Statesman staff. Garth Mann explained the elements of the proposal, the Preferred Alternative. He explained the "condotel" concept. He provided information on the golf course, which would be designed to.use the natural topography. They also wished to use the natural topography for rainwater catchments and storage to use for irrigation before returning it to the earth. He provided information on the restaurants, conference center, and spa that were planned. He stated that the facilities would be open to the public. The entire project would be done in phases. He provided information on the maritime village facilities at the present marina, including commercial and residential uses. He stated that they would.be housing the staff workers onsite, although they wanted to 1 4 4 hire from the local area as well. He briefly described the other properties they owned and/or .were developing. Al Scalf outlined the review process beginning with"the Draft EIS in August, Planning Commission review and public hearing with a recommendation to the BOCC, and.BOCC review and public hearing and .final decision by December. Al Scalf opened the scoping meeting to public.comments.. Sam Boling, Black Point: • Developed a couple hundred acres in the Black Point area; tried to leave it pristine; wanted to see it stay that way. • Thought 1100 units would be too much. • Eagle nest within a couple hundred yards of the project that he thought would be adversely impacted. • Black Point was a nice place. Thought the development would be. done well, but it was too much at this time. Olivia Alfano, Brinnonc • Concerned about water, specifically seawater intrusion from wells to serve the development. • Read from the county code on seawater intrusion. • Required long term monitoring. • The 95% occupancy period would be the most likely to draw the most water from the aquifer. • Site selection for recharge is critical. • Must determine the characteristics of the aquifer. • Thorough and complete studies and made public. • Be proactive before problems arise. She submitted written comments. Al Scalf announced that written comments on the scope of the EIS would be accepted until close of business on May 19. Stan Johnston, Brinnon: �� • Had done a lot of development in the Brinnon<area. • Lots of traffic one hour north and one hour south.' • Statesman was proposing a big development. • While he supported property rights, he just did not 'want 'to see this size.project in this rural area. • 'Would increase traffic through the community on Highway 101 tremendously. • Did not support this project. • Did not need the money. • It would impact the people in the_. community. • Wondered where you could get away from all the people in'.this county. • Impacts on the elk herd. • Nice area and liked living here. • Had developed a lot of property, but almost all.of it. was 2.5 acre minimums. • Needed 25 to 30 jobs here for the kids who wanted to stay here but they needed to'.be good jobs. • This project would not be for here. 2 r • It would wipe out our standard of living. • Would not help. this.community. • There were jobs in other areas that people could commute to; did not need them here. • Economic impacts to the community -adverse effects. Janet Subino, Brinnon: • Referenced the Port Townsend.Leader in.the Looking Back column 50 years ago this week, someone proposed a similar project, which was voted down then for quality of life issues. • Asked how Statesman found this place. Did they just happen to stumble onto Brinnon or were they approached? Al Scalf stated that Statesman applied for the Comp Plan amendment, but 'he could not say how they became aware of the area.. That would be a question for Garth Mann. Hal Beattie, Brinnon: • Water quality. 'IrJ • Traffic. • Shellfish. • Retired shellfish biologist. • 20 million oysters and several million clams in the Dosewallips and Duckabush tidelands. • Could Statesman guarantee that they would.not_impact Hood Canal and our resources? Guarantees weren't worth much. • Need more than just lip service to protect those shellfish resources. • Private and public shellfish resources on the Dosewallips side and private and tribal resources on the Duckabush side. Barbara Lewis, Brinnon: • Agreed with Stan Johnston. • Employment in the resort. One argument she had heard was that the resort would provide employment.Most of the jobs would be minimum wage. That was not what they wanted for the residents here. • It imposed a tax burden on.the rest of Lhe people. • Infrastructure. Questioned whether the developer would consider the 10, 20 and 30 -year infrastructure costs. Fire, roads, police, etc. All the costs such a development created. • Referred to Bend, Oregon, and the large amount of traffic and people. People came to be entertained and not to live and have their kids in the schools. Created a large amount of infrastructure costs. • Those costs would come back onto the community. Ron Stevens, Duckabush: • 310 people in the workforce in Brinnon; 34 unemployed. �� • He moved here a year ago to get away from the busy, higher populated areas. • Concern about the infrastructure during the construction phase. He estimated about 200 workers. There was no place to house or feed them. No place to buy groceries other than convenience items. i • He estimated there would be 60 to 80 employees at the resort. 5 to 10 would be well paying jobs. The rest would be minimum wage. 3 • Brinnon did not have`a workforce to support that, which meant they would come from out of the area. Wondered where they would live. Dana Starfire, Duckabush: • Loved the elk. ygj Worked at the Post Office. Heard from people there that the project was too big for Brinnon. • Most of her news came from the people. • Did not want to be taxed out of her home. • Some people moved here and then did not like the elk on their property,. similar to what was happening in Sequim. • Did not want to see that happen with this development. Carl Sheats, Duckabush: • Trained as an oceanographer, University of Washington. - '{�1 • Had seen the shellfish resources go downhill for 30 years. • Lived near the mouth of the Duckabush. • There were sewage pollution problems. • He could not harvest sea cucumbers due to pollution, which hurt his revenue (income) by making a resource jeopardized. • Did not want the water quality messed up; too much had been decertified. • Water quality was the most important thing we had left. • Water quality questions have not been answered and could not be answered. • Dissolved oxygen problem. Ted, Labbe, Port Gamble SlKlallam Tribe: • .Biologist. So • Involved in the first round of the Brinnon Subarea Plan. • Referred to Alternative #2. Given that it was a conceptual plan, asked how the county would flesh out the alternative in the EIS for comparison to Alternative #1 (the Statesman alternative)? • Would be interested in hearing from the Brinnon Planning Group members talk about what they had envisioned for Alternative #2. How many units^ Bigger or smaller than the Statesman alternative? • Was encouraged that Statesman would be coming out to speak to the tribes separately because it had huge implications for the tribes. • Heard a lot about water,.traffic, shellfish, economic impact, and the size and scope of the project. • His biggest concern was the very aggressive schedule. • The water issues were huge and paramount. • The level of detail that he would expect to see in the EIS on water issues and wastewater issues would required a level of analysis that would require teams and teams of people to make this schedule. • Needed a high level of detail to assure the public about what the constants would be. • Was hoping to see some preliminary work products tonight, but it did not look like it was started. • Concern about wastewater issues. • Value of the shellfish resource for the tribes and others: 2,003 Puget Sound Action Team numbers showed for Washington state it was about $76 4 million per year going into, the economy for commercial, tribal and subsistence shellfish harvesting. • Assuming that Hood Canal represented just ten percent of that, it was $7.6 million annually going into the local'` economy. • If you considered $76 million annually, _you could understand the level of concern that many folks in the community .had about the size and scope of this development. • The sheer size and magnitude of the proposal was worrisome. Al Scalf briefly, summarized the Brinnon Subarea Plan conceptual plan fora MPR. Alternative #2 was about 305 acres, larger than the Statesman proposal.. It included many of the same amenities as those proposed now. It envisioned 25.single family residences, a mixed use zone and a commercial zone at.Black Point and Highway 101. Helen Moore, Boise, Idaho: 51 • Came from a place that used to besmalland beautiful. • It could be a good thing if planned and done right. • There was job potential for the community. • Shellfish was a concern. • Thought that growth was destruction. If you destructed too much of what you loved, what value did it have? • In the Boise area, they were now killing animals (wildlife). • Did not want that to happen here. Virgil Draper, Brinnon: • Brinnon Boy Scout. 5 L • Born and lived in Reno. • Moved here to get away from high_ population areas. Had been here for 16 years. • Liked the way itwasnow. Wanted to see the trees stay the way they were. Liked the animals the way they were. Did not want people coming in here and destroying the trees 'and animals. • Lived on a bad corner on Highway 101 that was already dangerous. There would be more traffic ,making it even more dangerous. • More crime. More drinking. • Did not need this development. Bob Herbst, Brinnon Fire Chief: • His position was neither for nor against this development. But there' were several issues the county: should address from a fire standpoint. • Concerns about easements for fire apparatus. • Supplies of firefighting water. • Wildlife interface issues with regard to personal encroachment. • Concerns with the development infrastructure itself. • Road surfacing and turn around capabilities. • Age of the resort users and the impact to the EMS service. • Concerns with things outside the scope of the department's capabilities. • High angle situation for rescue services on-someof the. bluffs. • Traffic congestion. 5 • There are traffic problems on Highway 101 already not considering additional traffic for the resort.' • Roadway lane width and shoulder width are issues now on Highway 101 with some areas not being able to be widened. Bob Scott, Duckabush: • Has not made up his mind yet. • Hoped the EIS would be an honest kind of work product so that it was the kind of document that would make people think about the kinds of 5'f tradeoffs.if this development went through. • He came from Jackson Hole, Wyoming and was involved in planning there for twenty years. • Moved because it was just overwhelmed with development. • Was troubled by the sheer size and scale of this development, although it possibly could work out. • It appeared the developer was interested in accommodating our environmental issues. • The transportation issue was a serious issue. • Impacts on Highway 101. • He could not think of a development proposal more different than the character of the place it was planning to come to. • Thought.that Alternative #2 from the Brinnon Subarea Plan should be revisited at least. • Was not a good handle on details.for that plan even though the narrative provided some insight. • Hoped the Brinnon Planning Group would have input on that plan as a possible alternative to Alternative #1. • Thought Alternative #1 would completely overwhelm the community if it went through, as Brinnon was known now, economically and socially.' • Said to watch out for what you wished for. Bud Schindler, Brinnon: • Suggested that when the financial portion of the EIS was done to look" At Brinnon as it was 30 to 50 years ago -when there was a booming 5 5 economy. Then look forward in time to 'what it was for.the last 20 years. Not many people employed with the school population going down. • The tourist business was bigger then than it is now. • It was tough to go from a thriving economy to a very poor economy. • Would like to see this EIS address the economic benefits of the development. • Wanted to bring some financial life back into Brinnon. Joanie Hendricks, Dosewallips State Park: • Family owned property in the Duckabush.area: • Concern about water issues with using the kettles for storage. • Loss of nutrients into Hood Canal. • If the irrigation and fire suppression was going to be dependent on rain water, what happens in a drought year? • If there was a lot of stormwater, how would it be handled? Make sure runoff did not occur in a large storm. • Concern with runoff of fertilizers from the golf course. - 6 • SI- s� • ,"R Lc�D • Also, would there be enough water for a golf course because golf courses took a lot of water? • Also enough for_fire suppression? • She thought it was way too big. Did not see how the Brinnon community could support something this size. It would change their quality of, life forever.. Jasper Hendricks,,Dosewallips State Park: • Traffic concerns. The state park was full in the summer. • Cannot get across the highway in the summer. Need some kind .of mitigation for that. • Concerned about shellfish and the decline that has been seen: • Would bring too many people. Need to slow down and maybe stop. Kathy Garth, Duckabush: • She agreed with the previous two speakers. • Has lived here five and a half years. • Concerned about traffic. The highway traffic was too much now.. There_ were too many accidents now. • Concerned about the wildlife in the area. • The proposal was way too large. • There were issues of shellfish, water quality,- traffic, tax revenue. .• She said that they live here because they chose to. Other people who did not live here everyday did not understand what it 'took and how much it meant if it was taken away. • While it was a depressed area, there were other ways to attract tourists, smaller ways. • Did not warrant a development of this size. Matthew Draper, Highway 101: • Loved trees and nature and hated golf. • His'idea of a vacation was'tent camping, hiking up'into the woods. • Did not like the idea of driving into a camp and liked the idea of a resort even less. • Trees, birds, and wildlife were all awesome and would be impacted -by this development. • Thought.the shellfish would be greatly affected. • He did not want to see the community change; he liked it the way. it was. Miriam Murdoch, Highway 101: • It seemed to be difficult for a small land owner or home owner to get a permit from the county. • Had lived in rural King County for a long time. They had a`small victory there some years ago. Port: Blakely wanted to do a 200 home development. After much work and certain environmental concerns, they were able to stop the development. They finally got it down to 40 homes, which was more compatible with their area. • This development was much too big. • Urged that it be put to a vote of the South County people. 7 Lawrence Dimino, Brinnon: • Should consider the impact to property taxes. • Property values could easily double for a lot of people in the community and, therefore, their taxes would increase as well. • Referred to California's Proposition 13. • Recommended considering keeping "property values to a small increase each year until the property was sold. • It would give people the opportunity to live on their property and not get taxed.out. Thought there was probably enough property tax -revenue coming in anyway given the development we were experiencing in the county. Ruthie Didomenico, Black Point: • Even if we had a vote,. people would.come here anyway. You ,.cannot vote G 1 to not let people come here. • Growth was coming whether we liked'it.or not. • The growth must be controlled. Al Scalf stated that this proposal would not go on the,November ballot. He stated that there was a Comprehensive Plan adopted in 1998 consistent with the Growth Management Act. Also, there were development regulations in place. All were adopted by the BOCC. The standard for review.for`this application is derived from the Comprehensive Plan, the development regulations, and other applicable local, state and federal regulations. Once - we had gone through the EIS process and then to the Planning Commission for a hearing on the merits of the proposal, including the environmental analysis, it would then proceed to the BOCC for legislative action. The BOCC got to make their choice. They were our elected officials. As the consultant team prepared the EIS, county staff would review it. He explained that Brent Butler would manage the Comp Plan amendment package and Stacie Hoskins would supervise the preparation of the EIS as the SEPA responsible official. He noted that it was the county's EIS even though we allowed a consultant to prepare it. It must meet the county's standards for the quality' of an EIS. Jack Turner, Skokomish Tribe: • Had heard a number of concerns already about the dissolvedoxygen �3 issue. The.tribe had. been -active in taking actions on that issue. • Still uncomfortable with the stormwater'and wastewater mitigations relating to water quality in Hood Canal. • The tribe would be concerned about anything that would increase dissolved oxygen in the Canal. • Concern about water rights if there was surface water withdrawal. - Concerns about impacts to the rivers and salmon runs. Carl Sheats: • Impacts to the ospreys and eagles that came to Pleasant Harbor. • Said they could shoot the whole thing down over environmental issues but they must find some endangered species that would be adversely impacted. Al Scalf stated that under the county's critical areas regulations, we knew there was an osprey nest in proximity to the WDFW boat ramp. They would be examining those issues. ,8 • L 6(e t'--1 9 (it to� Jasper Hendricks: • Addressed jobs. Said you have to want a job. • He worked for the Quilcene Ranger Corp.- It was a great job but hard' work. • If you offered jobs, people had to want to do the work; you had to love what you were doing. • Their family had a 40 -acre tree farm and that was what he.loved, working in the outdoors, but not on _a golf course or at,a swimming pool. • He wanted to preserve the outdoors. Sam Boling: • There is a little freshwater pond right below the proposed golf course. • A little rare fish - a stickleback - lived in that pond. • The county should look into that little -,freshwater pond right next to a saltwater estuary, which was geese and.duck habitat. Dalila Dowd, Brinnon: • Thanked the county for coming to Brinnon for this meeting so local people could more easily attend, • It was interesting to listen to friends and neighbors." • She tended to favor progress. • Had lived here for twenty years and seen the trend. • If there was a chance that we could bring anything to this community that would benefit the county and the community, she was in favor of it. But it had to be done right. Ryan Kaufman, Brinnon: • He wanted to see the logging permits addressed. Logging that was done went all the way down to the water. • He heard the talk about.the infrastructure of Brinnon, that there would be too many people and the infrastructure would not be able to handle it. He said that if there was a demand, the businesses and the community would find a way to fill that need. • That generally created business and jobs and opportunity for people to do things they liked to do. Examples were a trail service to build - hiking trails or to lead hikes. • Thought we could use the development to turn those needs into jobs that were an offshoot of the resort itself. • Thought we could turn it into a way to expand and grow and keep a part of what you like, but also create a niche that filled a need. • He thought the economic impact of having more people come in would encourage more growth in services, such as medical services. • He said that things had a way of balancing. John Dowd, Brinnon: • It was common knowledge that Brinnon was considered a retirement and tourist oriented community. • He thought a golf course and resort was conducive to that orientation. • He would like to see the tax burden taken off the local residents and shifted to new development. 9 { Jody Weed, Duckabush: • He has lived here for 56 years.. • He did not recall the boom town days. • People seemed to find work. There. *was much more cottage industry. He wanted to hear more about the benefits to the community other than employment. • His main concern was the magnitude and size of this project. • He was not opposed, to development and people moving into Bsinnon. But the size of this project was mind boggling to him with all the environmental concerns expressed. • If we wanted more tourist business, perhaps we could get the Dosewallips. River Road, rebuilt so we could get campers back up into the mountains. Dana Starfire: • Referred to the Dosewallips Road _issue :as well. Agreed with Mr. Weed that the road should -be re -opened. • She kept track of when.the Wildlife came back each year on her calendar. • She lived on an un -maintained gravel road. When it rained three days straight, it flooded across the Forest Service road. • She had rain statistics that she would share: Richard Whitcomb, Triton Cove: • This project's main purpose was to make money.. �2 • If it turned out to be abetter thing, then everybody would be better off. But it may not be if there were increased taxes and traffic. e He asked if the community would share in some of that money, like a profit sharing plan. Josh Peters described the larger Comprehensive Plan amendment process. The Planning Commission would hold its meetings on the MPR proposal in Brinnon, currently scheduled for September. Brent Butler stated that DCD would receive written comments until May 19, Al Scalf and Stacie Hoskins thanked everyone for their thoughtful participation. Bud Schindler stated that the Planning Commission had organized a committee . on the MPR, which would hold regular public meetings on the issue starting in about a month. He stated that the committee.would also have a public advisory team to assist them. The public was invited to attend those committee meetings and participate. The meeting was adjourned at 6:30 p.m.