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HomeMy WebLinkAboutM052206 District No. 1 Commissioner: Phil Johnson District No.2 Commissioner: David W. Sullivan District No.3 Commissioner: Patrick M. Rodgers County Administrator: John F. Fischbach Clerk of the Board: Lorna Delaney MINUTES Week of May 22, 2006 Chairman Phil Johnson called the meeting to order in the presence of Commissioner David W. Sullivan and Commissioner Patrick M. Rodgers. PROCLAMATION re: Proclaiming the Month of June, 2006 as Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month: Approximately 15 citizens were present for the reading of the proclamation designating the month of June, 2006 as Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month. Commissioner Sullivan moved to approve the proclamation as presented. Chairman Johnson seconded the motion. Chairman Johnson and Commissioner Sullivan voted for the motion. Commissioner Rodgers voted against the motion. The motion carried. APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Commissioner Sullivan moved to approve the minutes of May 15,2006 as presented. Commissioner Rodgers seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. Recommended Decision Procedures re: Suggested Amendments to Jefferson County Code to Title 17 and 18 per JCC 18.45.090; Port Ludlow Drainage District, MLA06-00211; and Holland/Goldsmith, MLA06-00185: Director of Community Development Al Scalf introduced Barbara Nightingale, the planner for Port Ludlow. He explained that these 2 applications are legislative in nature and deal with the Unified Development Code (UDC) regulations. Holland/Goldsmith: Al Scalf reported that the zoning code for Port Ludlow states, "No further subdivision may be allowed." The Holland/Goldsmith amendment is not a site specific request and could affect future zoning and development of other properties in Port Ludlow. The current building cap for the Master Plan Resort (MPR) in the Comprehensive Plan is 2,250 residences and 350 commercial units. A buildout analysis would be required. If the Board agrees to proceed, the Planning Commission would review the amendment, hold a public hearing, and make a recommendation to the Board. The Board makes the final decision. Page 1 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of May 22,2006 '~'.;.'.'.."~.'.'.' ;............' ~ ~-1"S,;;<;.\...f' Commissioner Rodgers moved to direct staffto forward MLA06-00185, a MPR zoning code amendment requested by Holland/Goldsmith, to the Planning Commission who will conduct a public hearing and formalize a recommendation back to the Board. Commissioner Sullivan seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. Port Ludlow Drainage District: Last month the Drainage District Commissioners came before the Board with a request to revise the stormwater standards in the UDC. Al Scalf stated that the revisions are generic in nature and suggested that they could be addressed through a Memorandum of Understanding. This amendment would also go through the Planning Commission's public process, including a public hearing and a recommendation to the Board. The Board makes the final decision. Commissioner Rodgers moved to direct staff to forward MLA06-00211, a requested amendment by the Port Ludlow Drainage District, to the Planning Commission who will conduct a public hearing and formalize a recommendation back to the Board. Commissioner Sullivan seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. Recommended Decision Procedures re: Suggested Amendment to the Port Ludlow Master Plan Resort Development Agreement; To Allow Timeshare Use for Tract E; Port Ludlow Associates, MLA06-00221: Al Scalf explained that this application is legislative in nature and is subject to the statutory provisions of a development agreement. A public hearing is conducted, findings are developed, and a legislative decision is made. The Trendwest proposal is currently under litigation and staff advises the Board to seek legal counsel immediately. The history to this point is: · In January, 2005, a series of permit applications were submitted: a shoreline permit, a binding site plan, and a zoning conditional use permit granted by the previous Hearing Examiner in 2002. · The Hearing Examiner conducted an open record hearing and granted approval. · The decision went to the Appellate Examiner in a closed record appeal. The Appellate Examiner vacated and remanded a portion of the decision. · The remand has been heard by the Hearing Examiner in an open record hearing and he has entered his findings back to the Appellate Examiner. · The current status on Trendwest is that it is vacated based upon the closed record appeal. · This decision has been challenged in Superior Court and is still pending. · The Hearing Examiner's approval of the shoreline permit was sent to the State Department of Ecology (DOE) as a matter of procedure. The DOE makes the final decision. They did not deny it and an appeal was filed with the Shorelines Hearings Board, a quasi-judicial body. On May 17, the Shorelines Hearings Board issued a decision remanding the permit decision back to Jefferson County. If the suggested amendment is approved and the development agreement is revised, a permit would be issued. Other permits would follow that would be handled administratively. Page 2 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of May 22,2006 ~"''''..'.'.'' t ' ,."'I;:'~ ~1.1'lll~~.""''' The Board discussed the timeline on the sequence of events. They are concerned about the workload for staff. Commissioner Rodgers asked the County Administrator his opinion about going down the legal track and the public hearing track at the same time? The County Administrator replied that he thought it would be most expeditious. The Board agreed that they could learn from both public and legal input. Al Scalf stated that there is a strong split in the community about whether a timeshare compliments the MPR. Commissioner Rodgers moved to direct staff to establish a public hearing date and prepare a hearing notice for the Jefferson County Commissioners to take testimony on an amendment to the existing Port Ludlow Development Agreement that would allow the Trendwest timeshare proposal. Commissioner Sullivan seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD: The following comments were made: several citizens commented that the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Pride Month proclamation that was approved was inappropriate; the Board needs to address the County's financial situation immediately instead of raising property taxes by forming special purpose taxing districts; a petition was submitted with 187 signatures requesting that the City Council and the County have a public forum on the expansion of Indian Island; a person commented that he requested an FBI investigation of the Sheriffs Office 3 years ago and since then he has been harassed by Deputies; the Qui1cene water system project has been approved but fire flow is not included in the current cost estimate; the County needs to invest in an economist to evaluate the various options of how to meet the DOE's instream flow rules so that economic development in the County won't be shut down; the County needs to get involved in the proposal from the State to move the Sequim Elk to the Snow Creek area in Jefferson County; thank you to the Fire Departments that responded to the Quilcene Hotel fire; and concern was expressed about dependence of communities on volunteer fire departments and the need for added revenue for full time staff. APPROVAL AND ADOPTION OF THE CONSENT AGENDA: Commissioner Rodgers moved to approve the Consent Agenda as presented. Commissioner Sullivan seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. 1. RESOLUTION NO. 25-06 re: HEARING NOTICE re: Proposed Supplemental Budget Appropriations/Extensions for Various County Funds; Hearing Scheduled for Monday, June 5, 2006 at 11 :00 a.m. in the Commissioners' Chambers 2. RESOLUTION NO. 26-06 re: Vacation of the Alley in Block 135, Irondale No.6; Richard & Sharon Beal, Petitioners 3. RESOLUTION NO. 27-06 re: Support for the Promotion of Flexible-Fuel Plug-In Vehicles 4. MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING and MEMBERSHIP AGREEMENT re: Washington Counties Select Retrospective Rating Program; Washington State Association of Counties Page 3 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of May 22,2006 " G~, ~ ", ,- ". 5. AGREEMENT re: Engineering Services for Contractor's Creek, Project No. CR1696; Jefferson County Public Works; CES, Inc. 6. AGREEMENT re: Advanced Fire Service Dispatch Training; JeffCom; PowerPhone, Inc. 7. AGREEMENT, Amendment No.1 re: Infrastructure Study; JeffCom; Hatfield and Dawson Conservation Futures Advisory Board Annual Funding Recommendation for 2006 Application Period: Dennis Schultz, Chair ofthe Citizen's Oversight Committee for the Conservation Futures Fund, stated that the Board recently passed an ordinance that allows up to 15% of the previous year's funding to go for operations and maintenance of properties acquired. The Committee voted to have a 10 year sunset clause on the O&M funds. Following standard procedures, the Committee received one application this year from the Jefferson County Land Trust for the Winona Buffer Project, a piece of property in the Quimper Wildlife Corridor located adjacent to a wetland. The proponents made a presentation, the committee did a site visit of the property, and then met to discuss the application and rated it using the rating system. It was rated very high and they voted unanimously to approve the application. The funding is for 10 lots of Block 19 ofthe Fowlers Park Plat and the match is 8 lots in Block 11 and cash to make up 50% of the total cost ofthe acquisition. The Land Trust is asking for $86,950. This fits within the City of Port Townsend's Comprehensive Plan and their plans for the wildlife corridor. They also asked for $9,450 for operations and maintenance funding that would be used for clean up and removal of an abandoned car. Commissioner Rodgers questioned how the requested amount for operations and maintenance was calculated? Sarah Spaeth, Land Trust, stated that they have not had a bid on the clean up yet, and they don't anticipate utilizing the entire amount they have requested. Commissioner Rodgers said that he has concerns about the criteria for O&M funding and thinks that it needs to be marked for a specific use. Sarah Spaeth explained that it is their understanding that the funding has to be used for hard costs. The land is in public ownership and there may be future O&M costs. She noted that the Land Trust has stewardship funds set aside in perpetuity. HEARING re: Conservation Futures Advisory Board Annual Funding 2006 Application Period: The Chair opened the public hearing. Owen Fairbank, Port Townsend, Land Trust Board member, stated that this is an exciting example of cooperation. The County is providing the funding, the land owner is getting the amount they want for the property, and the Land Trust can provide the bridge between the seller's schedule and the County's schedule. This transaction benefits the human and the non-human residents of the area. It is an example of all of us working to do something that we couldn't do alone. Page 4 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of May 22,2006 ~,."'" ...' ,.",r :: . . . '~::" ~ ~f.I"'I'~(""'~ Hearing no further comments, Chairman Johnson closed the public testimony portion ofthe hearing. Commissioner Rodgers reiterated that he is still concerned about the O&M portion ofthe request and would like to see a policy clarifYing the use ofthese funds in the future before it is awarded. Commissioner Sullivan stated that he thinks it is prudent to set money aside to maintain these lands. Commissioner Rodgers said that the idea of the Conservation Futures Fund is to acquire land for the public interest and setting money aside for operations and maintenance for 10 years will consume the capital which means that there won't be as much money to buy property. The Board agreed that operations and maintenance funds need to be for hard costs. Commissioner Rodgers moved to approve the recommendation ofthe Citizen's Oversight Committee for the Conservation Futures Fund and award funding to the Land Trust for the land purchase of the Winona Buffer Project and to table the O&M portion of the request until language is crafted that addresses criteria for operations and maintenance funding. Commissioner Sullivan seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. HEARING re: Supplemental Budget Appropriations: Public Works: The Chair opened the public hearing. The County Administrator noted that the Public Works Department is seeking to increase the 2006 Quilcene Flood Control Budget to pursue property acquisitions that have recently come on the market. These properties were identified in the Big Quilcene River Linger Longer Reach Feasibility Study and Action Plan. Hearing no comments for or against the proposed supplemental budget appropriation, the Chair closed the public hearing. Commissioner Sullivan moved to approve RESOLUTION NO. 28-06, the supplemental budget appropriation for Public Works. Commissioner Rodgers seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. HEARING re: Establishing the Final Docket for the 2006 Comprehensive Plan Amendment Cycle: Chairman Johnson opened the public hearing. Josh Peters, Senior Planner, explained that there are 5 site specific amendments and 2 suggested amendments on the final docket for the 2006 Comprehensive Plan amendment cycle. The Planning Commission held a public hearing on the suggested amendments and made a recommendation to the Board that they be placed on the docket. Staff agreed with the recommendation. When the recommendation to docket the 2 suggested amendments was presented to the Board, they chose to hold their own public hearing. Page 5 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of May 22,2006 e"""" ~" . "".:..'....."-- ; ..."':'~ +. .\ ~ ~llr >.;.:.'" A Planning Commission member proposed suggested amendment MLA06-00078. Currently the County has a landuse/zoning map in the Comprehensive Plan. The request is to have separate landuse and zoning maps. The landuse map would remain in the Comprehensive Plan and the zoning map would be part of the Unified Development Code. The Department of Community Development proposed suggested amendment MLA06- 00086 to insert additional language about a Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) program in the Comprehensive Plan. Specific language for proposed rural residential upzones is also part of the amendment. The Chair opened the public testimony portion of the hearing. Dennis Schultz, Planning Commission member, explained that he proposed the Comprehensive Plan amendment regarding the landuse map. He thinks the same map data base could be used for both the landuse map and the zoning map. He doesn't see it as a big mapping problem. By profession, he is an engineer and he has done a lot of work on computerized mapping programs. The reason for this request is because the current system can take up to 3 years for a property owner to get an answer on a residential zoning density change. These applications would go through the UDC process rather than during the Comprehensive Plan amendment cycle. The same process at the Department level would apply: staff analysis, Planning Commission review, public hearings and Commissioner's review and decision. Commissioner Sullivan asked what would cause the 3 year delay? Dennis Schultz replied that if a person submitted an application for a zoning density change on March 1, after the deadline for the Comprehensive Plan Amendment cycle, it would go into the following year's cycle. The decision would be made in December, however there have been years when the County has decided not to accept site specific amendments because of staff workload. Jim Hagan, Planning Commission member, explained that there have been 8 amendment cycles. The County has not accepted site specific amendments for 2 cycles because of workload. He agrees that people don't always structure their lives around the Comprehensive Plan Amendment cycle. The same regulations and process would still apply to rezones, including the cumulative impact analysis. Commissioner Sullivan noted that in addition to workload, the other concern that he has is that it may complicate the UGA sewer issues. Commissioner Rodgers stated that this amendment is technical and straightforward and doesn't change policy. It serves the constituents by improving the system. Commissioner Sullivan asked how easy it would be for staff? Josh Peters replied that DCD would need to develop a new system, amend the UDC, and create a new application process that may, or may not, have a deadline for submission of applications. He isn't sure about the GIS work. Jim Hagan added that there have been 15 applications for rezoning over the past 8 years, which averages out to 2 a year. He thinks that this is manageable. Page 6 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of May 22,2006 E""". ....... \0' ~.' .::. .,:( +" 1""1 f!,('''O:-''"' Sarah Spaeth, asked the County to continue to consider the Transfer of Development Rights Program because it has been a useful tool in other counties. It is a tool that shouldn't be set aside until it is fully explored. Commissioner Rodgers stated that he has never heard a really good argument for TDRs. It is a tool that has promise, but he doesn't see the benefits to the public in general. Proper zoning and the process that is in place works well. Commissioner Sullivan said that the hope is that people will limit what they do on some properties and that will benefit other people. Commissioner Rodgers said that he has concerns about TDRs taking lands off the development rolls because it binds the future. Commissioner Sullivan stated that his main concern on both of these amendments is whether this is the right time to bring them forward and are they the priorities for this year? The site specific amendments are the first priority. Chairman Johnson stated that the 2 suggested amendments can be docketed if staff feels they have the time to do them. Commissioner Sullivan said that he sees both of the issues getting mixed in with the UGA, and he thinks it would be better to wait until after that process is completed. Commissioner Rodgers moved not to docket MLA06-00078 and MLA06-00086. Commissioner Sullivan seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. Charlie Courtelyou and Al Vaughn, Washington State Department of Natural Resources re: County Income Report and Presentation on Forest Funds: Charlie Courte1you reported that in 2005 Jefferson County received $3,200,000 in revenue from Forest Board Lands. For January and February of 2006, they brought in $744,000 from removals. The County's average over the last 9 years is $1.5 million per year. DNR plans to offer the Little Quil sale in June which is appraised at $1 million. The market is still very strong and is being carried by construction grade lumber. Al Vaughn, reviewed the 2006 action plan which ends June 30. They had planned 3 sales for the County, but lost 2 of them due to the lawsuit because they were located in the older owl circles. Those sales will be reworked as habitat improvement sales and offered in 2008. Charlie Courte1you stated that they met with the Legislators about several DNR issues. DNR had proposed a recreation plan for Burnt Hill in Clallam County. When the SEP A process was over, they received a lawsuit. They found that there were 3 areas where they could do a better job with the plan which included: managing noise, elk issues, and what projects related to this project would be going through SEPA in the future. Last week a group of policy level decision makers met to discuss managing the elk. One suggestion is to relocate the herd to Snow Creek in Jefferson County. Another suggestion is to move the elk further back up Burnt Hill and build an 8 mile fence along the powerlines. This proposal will go back to the Page 7 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of May 22,2006 ~".""...'..r" ;' ... ....-::G~-~ +-4'11;'",....,,..- working team, a public forum will be held and action may be implemented next year. Public access on DNR lands is becoming more of a problem because people are breaking locks on the gates and dumping their garbage and abandoned vehicles. This is very costly for DNR to clean up. Al Vaughn reviewed the action plan for the next 3 years. Their goal is 110,000-115,000 board feet in average annual production, but it isn't easy to find resources and people to produce that volume. Fifty percent of the volume would come from commercial thinning or habitat improvement cuts in the Clearwater area. They are also researching bio-fuels. Smaller, young trees from thinning would be used in this type of operation. They are also working with the City of Port Townsend this year to exchange DNR land at the city limits with City property at Snow Creek. They are working to bring the values of those 2 parcels into balance. Charlie Courtelyou stated that DNR is one of the State agencies that can facilitate federal grant funding coming into the State to purchase land on the Hoh River for the Hoh River Trust. The Trust was created by the Western Rivers Conservancy. The Hoh community residents are very frustrated because much of the property on the river is being bought up by the Trust. Their goal is to purchase 8,000 acres. The local residents aren't involved in these transactions and he feels it is important to keep them updated. The Adventure Trail is a portion of the Olympic Discovery Trail in Clallam County for mountain bikers, hikers, and horses. It goes across DNR Trust Lands from Port Angeles to the back end of Lake Crescent. They are developing a trail use license agreement with the County. They want to incorporate the opening of this trail segment with Joyce Days in August. Community Development Project Briefing and Possible Approval re: Proposed Agreement: Shoreline Master Program Update; Washington State Department of Ecology and Proposed Contract Amendment; Battelle Marine Sciences Laboratory: Josh Peters introduced Michelle McConnell, the contract planner working on the Shoreline Master Program (SMP) Update. Michelle McConnell reported that the County adopted a Shoreline Master Program in 1989 and it is being updated to meet the 2003 guidelines. The goal is to have the document to the Board by June, 2007. The Shoreline Management Act, passed in 1971, coordinates development by encouraging water dependent uses, protecting shoreline ecology and resources and promoting public access. There are almost 600 miles of shoreline in Jefferson County covered by the Shoreline Master Program. This includes fresh and marine water, rivers with a certain flow rate, lakes, shore1ands, estuaries, floodplains, and wetlands. Shoreline uses and development are regulated by the SMP. In 1998-99 County staff drafted an updated Shoreline Master Program that went through much of the public process. However, in November 2000, the DOE changed the guidelines and they weren't finalized until 2003. The draft will be a good starting point for the update. In the last few years, staffhas been working on a shoreline inventory project. The County has been awarded $365,000 from the State for the update. They have consultants hired and on task and have formed 2 advisory committees. The Shoreline Technical Advisory Committee (STAC) will do the general science review and the Shoreline Policy Page 8 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of May 22,2006 tE""".f: J,. ...;. ",1.'.\.....- I/JIoU Advisory Committee (SP AC) will be given the science components and create the SMP document. Both committees have diverse representation and the meetings ofthe SP AC will be open to the public. Josh Peters noted that one Planning Commission member will be on the SP AC, and there is also a Planning Commission Shoreline Committee composed of 3 Planning Commissioners including the SP AC liaison. There will be a Marine Resource Committee member on each committee also. A "Shoreline Charrette" is scheduled in October to present information and receive public input. The 2005 shoreline inventory will be used to do a "landscape analysis," a 5 step process that characterizes how a watershed is functioning. Protection and restoration planning are also part ofthe SMP process. The final work product is an integration strategy on how the SMP will merge with the Comprehensive Plan and the Unified Development Code. The preliminary draft of the SMP will go to the Planning Commission for recommendation to the County Commissioners. After the Board takes action to approve the SMP, it will be sent to the Department of Ecology for their review. The State will need to sign off on it, and then it will come back to the Board for final adoption. Josh Peters explained that the Board needs to take action on 2 agreements for this project. The original amount for the 2 year grant from the State Department of Ecology was $285,000 and was renegotiated to $365,000 to include the funding for Battelle Memorial Institute. In addition, Battelle's contract needs to be amended to change the timeline. The effective date ofthe grant is July 1, 2005 to June 30, 2007. Commissioner Sullivan moved to approve Agreement No. 50398, Modification 1 with Battelle Memorial Institute Pacific Northwest Division as presented. Commissioner Rodgers seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. Commissioner Sullivan moved to approve SMA Grant Agreement No. G0600343 with the State Department of Ecology for the Shoreline Master Program Update project. Commissioner Rodgers seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. Continued Discussion and Possible Approval re: Hearing Notice Unified Development Code Omnibus Code Amendment Package: Josh Peters stated that a few years ago staff and the Planning Commission began a review and update of the UDC. Earlier this year, the County Commissioners received a recommendation from the Planning Commission on the suggested changes. The Board held a public hearing and adopted a few aspects of the package. At that point, they asked staff and the Planning Commission to give them an itemized history of the suggested changes and to go into detail about the origin and the reason for the amendments. Rachel McHugh, Associate f1amier, took over the project. Staff and the Planning Commission have completed their review and revisdd a few of the recommendations. The Board has several options regarding this information: to sign a hearing notice setting a public hearing, to have more discussion with staff on the revisions, or to remove any suggested revisions. Page 9 Commissioners Meeting Minutes: Week of May 22,2006 ~."".'."'.' ......, , ';,t +';',I-';;I~('\"''' The motion made by the Board in January asked for a more indepth review and explanation. It also directed that the hearing notice list all the suggested changes. Josh Peters noted that this was done. Commissioner Sullivan moved to table the action on the public hearing notice until June 5, 2006. Commissioner Rodgers seconded the motion which carried by a unanimous vote. D ..1/ (:) ~. . .... ~ :v '/1 :.. ) )" ~ .... " i::1a::::: efrL( Deputy Clerk of the Board Page 10