HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-16-2024 PC Minutes621 Sheridan St. P: 360-379-4450 Port Townsend, WA, 98368 PCommissionDesk@co.jefferson.wa.us
1
MEETING MINUTES
JEFFERSON COUNTY PLANNING COMMISSION Regular Meeting – October 16, 2024
Brinnon Community Center, 306144 Highway 101, Brinnon, Washington 98320 Actual start time 5:38 PM: Welcome Chair and Overview Presentation Call to Order/Roll Call
Kevin Coker Excused Absence Matt Sircely Present Richard Hull Present
Cynthia Koan Excused Absence LD Richert Present Chris Llewellyn Present
Ahren Stroming Excused Absence Michael Shultz Present Andrew Schwartz Present 1) Approval of Agenda: approved by acclimation
2) Approval of Minutes:
a. September 18, 2024 Regular Meeting – 5 approve, 1 abstention
GENERAL UPDATES
3) Planning Commission Updates
a. Commissioner Schwartz: Expressed gratitude to staff, Planning Commissioners, and
attendees for the meeting in Brinnon and everyone’s participation.
4) DCD Staff and Director Updates
a. General updates: Notification of 11/6 Planning Commission meeting in Quilcene. All other
updates and directions for the meeting lie within the video recording of the meeting itself,
which can be found here.
PUBLIC COMMENT – GENERAL
5) Public comment period (general) –
a. Dan Ventura: Believes things in past Comprehensive Plans have been incorporated but not
implemented. Would like Brinnon to be represented individually among the County.
Would like to see a review of sewer ordinances. Is also concerned with drinking and
wastewater as it pertains to Brinnon, specifically coded requirements. Would like to see
the Brinnon LAMIRD designation discussed/considered/reviewed.
REGULAR BUSINESS
Given the unique nature of this meeting as a type of “townhall” gathering and to best
understand the proceedings, the video recording of the meeting, in its entirety, can be
reviewed here.
6) Public Participation and Outreach Implementation
a. Review of Public Participation Plan
b. After general overview of Comprehensive Plan Periodic Update process and timeline,
prompting questions were suggested:
i. Who are our project stakeholders?
ii. Why is participation important and how to increase the scope of community
involvement?
iii. How far in advance do you need details about outreach opportunities and dates?
621 Sheridan St. P: 360-379-4450 Port Townsend, WA, 98368 PCommissionDesk@co.jefferson.wa.us
2
c. Comment Summary:
1) In the future, give more notice time before a community meeting. [The regular Planning
Commission meeting venue was changed and advertised to be in Brinnon about a week in
advance.]
2) Effective public engagement requires on informed community.
3) Brinnon’s history of “engagement” is that Brinnon’s residents have had positions that were
‘inconvenient’ to the County.
4) In-person comments should be weighted higher than web survey input, because web input can
be gerrymandered by flooding response by single individuals or groups.
5) Paper flyers at restaurants, community centers, Post Office, and kiosks are effective. Post
information to local Facebook pages.
6) People in Brinnon get meeting notices from the Brinnon Community Center Facebook page, and
also the Quilcene Community Center Facebook page.
7) Brinnon is relying on social media for information. The favored process is that an agency “shares”
to a Facebook page, which shows up better than individual posts to Facebook. This method is
more accessible for folks in town.
8) Broadband is not yet completed in Brinnon.
9) Use an E-mail list for information blasts—worked well for Fish and Wildlife habitat work in
community.
10) What about Hood Canal with low oxygen levels? Snakes, frogs, bees are conspicuously missing
from yards. That’s your evidence of impacts of a changing climate.
11) There’s insufficient parking for an increasing [projected] population.
12) Use of chimneys [wood burning] causing poor air quality is a concern.
13) How is this feedback used? Will we summarize and analyze the results?
14) How do we measure success of community outreach? Number of people? How do we make
policy? Success is when we come up with Goals and Policies that addresses an important
community issue.
15) We need feedback on our comments. Success is moving from aspirational goals and focus on
what is implemented. Nothing ever happens from Brinnon’s input.
16) There is an active group addressing climate change in relation to sea-level rise (Army Corps of
Engineers?), they’re moving Highway 101 and power poles out of inundation zones. Climate
change is being planned for.
17) We need to get policy in the Comprehensive Plan so that it shows that we’re ready to
implement—preparedness for grant funding.
18) Benefit of this meeting is to get priorities in Comprehensive Plan, to change or update the Plan to
remove old policy barriers to future needs.
19) Repetition is needed for people to begin seeing [County] communications and where they’re
posted.
20) Mailers would be effective.
621 Sheridan St. P: 360-379-4450 Port Townsend, WA, 98368 PCommissionDesk@co.jefferson.wa.us
3
21) Planning for long-range: things change, so need to have a way to modify and update the Plan.
Due to age structure of Jefferson County, 40% of the current population will reach end-of-life in
the 20-year planning timeframe. A projected 20-year population increase of 5,900 doesn’t sound
feasible. Circumstances change.
22) Brinnon lives off of grants. This is not self-sustainable. Can local Brinnon generate taxes to pay
for local needs?
23) State-mandated projects that are accompanied by grant funds can include Brinnon-specific items
in the agreements. Feedback will be skewed to meet State requirements anyway.
24) Ironically, the increased treatment thresholds requiring pressurized septic systems, put into place
septic systems that use more energy (electricity for pumps). More energy use negatively impacts
climate change.
25) Include in survey forms a write-in section for open dialogue without any other prompting
guidance.
26) Put on website the current State requirements that we have to meet—know where the laws are.
27) Climate Survey should show priority (low or high) instead of whether people are concerned or
not. Leave a write-in space after each category to allow further responses.
28) South County trend: people getting together on a chunk of land and installing multiple sites for
RVs and the like as a way of sharing the land and accommodating more housing. The County
needs to accept creative ideas to provide housing for persons with low income.
29) Preserve housing stock by repairing and refurbishing houses.
30) County needs to have more flexibility to do things like outhouses that out-perform septic
systems.
31) Need to reduce cars, the source of greenhouse gasses, then provide bicycle lanes. Get creative.
Can we use the same creativity to do things cheaper?
32) Transportation in South County is limited. Highway 101 can be blocked by snowstorms and fires.
This can cause isolation. Should we widen some forest service roads for contingency access?
33) Brinnon needs to be understood and cared about. During the last Comprehensive Plan update
cycle (2018), goals and policies were incorporated but not implemented.
34) Want to seek ways ordinances/regulations can be modified in relation to shallow soils for septic
systems requiring pressurized systems, and modifications for well water permits.
35) Zoning requirements at density of RR5 (Rural Residential 1 dwelling per 5 acres) does not
accommodate generational properties (multiple households).
36) Need accommodation for Short Term Rentals (SRTs) for income.
37) The Housing Action Plan & 2005 E.D. Hovee Economic Report identifies there are many cost-
burdened households (spending more than 30% of income on housing expenses). House Bill
1570 established fees for housing—where are these funds? Point-in-Time Homeless Counts are
undercounting the actual number of homeless.
38) I’m interested in a Brinnon “Rural/Urban Growth Area”.
39) Brinnon Sub-Area Plan (BSAP) says the Master Planned Resort (MPR) must fit with the rural
character of the area. They want to install an ice rink!? That does not fit our rural character.
621 Sheridan St. P: 360-379-4450 Port Townsend, WA, 98368 PCommissionDesk@co.jefferson.wa.us
4
40) The time for discussion on the MPR was 20 years ago. The County needs to come forward with a
strong stance supporting the MPR and to stop mis-information.
41) The Comprehensive Plan update should incorporate a “town hall meeting” style of community
outreach instead of the formalities of a Planning Commission meeting.
42) Young people in the area need property & affordable transportation. We don’t have many
options. Traffic needs to be reduced on 101 by using rural transportation options. Residents need
transportation to get to work and we need to have a roof over our head.
43) There needs to be [County] accountability for how comments are handled. How do our
comments flow into the update process?
44) The Planning Commission (PC) works with Staff and consultants to transmit what the PC is
hearing from their constituents.
7) Adjourn
7:37 pm ADJOURNMENT
The next Planning Commission meeting is scheduled for 2024-11-06 at 5:30 at the Quilcene Masonic
Lodge.
These meeting minutes were approved this ____________ day of_____, 2024.
Richard Hull, Chair Secretary