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| GROWTH MANAGEMENT ACT STORY |
Related PagesList of stories about Growth Management Act in San Juan County |
Moratorium may end in Septemberposted 08/22/00
The BOCC is expected to adopt the ordinances at their September 18 meeting according to Gaylord.The moratorium on subdivision exemptions and simple land divisions went into effect in July of 1999 after parts of the county's comp plan were ruled non-compliant and/or invalid by the Western Washington Hearings Board. At first the moratorium only affected areas of land affected by the hearing board's order. In September 1999, the BOCC extended the moratorium to include all land in the county. It was to last six months. The BOCC extended the moratorium for another six months in April 2000. The changes to the comp plan are in four areas -- density, affordable housing, guest houses and areas of more intense rural development (AMIRDs). See an earlier story for more details. Gaylord expressed concern in an interview Monday, August 21 about some of the revisions. I'm concerned abou the areas of the plan where densities exceed those set by GMA," he said. Three areas -- Agricultural Resource Land and Forest Resource Land in Open Space overlay areas and land involving tenants in common -- have higher density than is allowed under GMA. "They use density already ruled invalid by the Growth Board," Gaylord said. I have no confidence (those parts) will be accepted by the Growth Board." He said he cautioned the BOCC against higher density in those areas. Barring acceptance of that advice, he suggested the county commissioners set a minimum parcel size requirement. After the BOCC conducts the public hearings and adopts the ordinances, the next step will be sending the county's response to the hearings board by October 16, 2000. Copies of the revisions to the comp plan and the UDC and maps are available on the county's Web site. Copies are also available at the libraries, and the Planning Department. |
End of moratorium in sight -- for some property ownersBy Sharon Kivisto posted 09/14/00Property owners wanting to divide their land in San Juan County have to wait a week, eight weeks or six months depending on where their property is located. County Commissioners are expected to pass an ordinance lifting some of the county-wide moratorium on land division next week. After the Western Washington Hearings board ruled parts of the county's comp plan invalid in July 1999, a moratorium was imposed on land division in the affected areas. The ban was extended in September 1999 to cover all land in the county. An ordinance under consideration would lift the county-wide moratorium but leave in place the ban on land division in the areas affected by the hearings board ruling. According to County Prosecutor Randy Gaylord, in order to lift that ban, the BOCC would have to ask the hearings board to issue an order ending the moratorium. The hearings board would then have 45 days to rule. If the hearings board decides the county's revised comp plan does not correct the invalidity or non-compliance the moratorium would continue. Shoreline property owners have to wait 180 days for the Department of Ecology to review the county's shoreline provisions in the revised comprehensive plan before a moratorium on their property could be lifted. The BOCC begins final deliberations today at 10:30 a.m. in the county Courthouse on changes to the county's comprehensive plan. Two resolutions and four ordinances will be considered. The six measures respond to the July 2000 Western Washington Hearings Board decision which ruled parts of the 1998 comp plan invalid. The commissioners finished up three evenings of public hearings on Lopez, Orcas and San Juan Islands Wednesday. |
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