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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPlanning April 22 2008WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL Planning and Development Committee April 22, 2008 Committee Chair Seth Fleetwood called the meeting to order at 3:05 p.m. in the Council Chambers, 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham, Washington. Present: Absent: Laurie Caskey- Schreiber None Carl Weimer Also Present: Bob Kelly COMMITTEE DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL 1. RESOLUTION ADOPTING RECOMMENDATIONS FOR OPEN SPACE /OPEN SPACE AND OPEN SPACE TIMBER APPLICATIONS (AB2008 -168) Erin Osborn, Planning and Development Services Department, gave a staff report. Not all recommendations for approval were unanimous. There was a question about raptors for one of the applications. Weimer moved to recommend approval of the resolution to the full Council. Motion carried unanimously. COMMITTEE DISCUSSION 1. DISCUSSION AND REVIEW OF THE INTERLOCAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE CITY OF BELLINGHAM AND WHATCOM COUNTY CONCERNING ANNEXATION AND DEVELOPMENT WITHIN THE CITY OF BELLINGHAM UGA (AB2008 -171) David Stalheim, Planning and Development Services Director, gave a staff report. Discussions between County and City staff have begun. They won't complete discussions by the time the current agreement expires in June, so they will have to consider an extension. Caskey- Schreiber asked if they want to include something in the interlocal agreement that is a legal mechanism for people to lose their development rights when they opt to not hook into sewer lines, specifically in the Silver Beach area. Stalheim stated people are required to connect under Health Department laws. He will look into it. Weimer asked if this interlocal agreement will include a protective overlay on density in the watershed. Stalheim stated the City and County are required to have coordinated planning and consistent standards. That's what they've been talking about. He hopes the agreement will set a framework for cooperative planning at the same time as they deal with annexation issues. They could say that the standards would apply that are the most stringent of the jurisdictions. Development and annexation agreement tools can be considered. Planning and Development Committee, 4/22/2008, Page 1 Weimer stated talk about the way something becomes an urban growth area (UGA) and how long it takes for a UGA to be annexed. He asked if there is a way to tie UGA to some set timeline for annexation. Stalheim stated the purposes of the growth management plan and countywide planning policies are to coordinate consistent development within urban areas. Those are the conversations that happen through the countywide planning policies. The Comprehensive Plan and development regulations implement those policies. He hopes the interlocal agreement talks about that process and how to deal with issues in the interim. In certain areas, services were extended but the areas won't annex. Dick McKinley, City of Bellingham Public Works Director, stated the State law doesn't work that way. Cities don't decide when something annexes. The property owners themselves trigger an annexation. Then the City evaluates whether it can afford to annex an area and provide urban services. Weimer stated they don't want to turn areas into UGA's if they can't annex. They need to communicate that. McKinley stated the City has been analyzing the urban growth areas to figure out which are ready and which aren't. Caskey- Schreiber stated the County changed its zoning as soon as it heard the City can't annex the Yew Street Road area. The County can't afford to service it, either. 2. PRESENTATION BY WHATCOM COUNTY FIRE DISTRICT NO. 21 OF A DRAFT CAPITAL FACILITIES PLAN FOR PROVIDING AN URBAN LEVEL OF SERVICE TO THE BIRCH BAY AREA AND OTHER CAPITAL FACILITY ISSUES (AB2008- 183) Tom Fields, North Whatcom Fire and Rescue District Fire Chief, stated the Council received the district's capital facilities plan. The plan is complete. They will meet with the community. The Board will hold a public hearing on May 8. A consultant developed the plan. Bruce Caldwell, Emergency Services Consulting, Inc. Senior Vice - President, thanked everyone who helped them gather the information they needed for the analysis. Martin Goughnour, Emergency Services Consulting, Inc. Director of Financial Services, submitted and read from a presentation (on We). The plan is a living document, and is continually changing. It's time to replace equipment when the cost of maintenance costs exceed the value of the product. Population was determined based on the effective population, which is the number of people going through the area. Human activity causes emergency responses. The district must determine its level of service. The district needs a fire fighting force of between 13 and 15 people, at a minimum. Now, the district has about ten people on duty district -wide. Caskey- Schreiber stated she didn't think that impact fees can be used to address personnel issues. Goughnour stated that's correct. Their report is more in- depth, but this is just background information in their recommendation on capital facilities. In many cases, the existing facilities are not large enough to house the apparatus needed to serve new areas. Caskey- Schreiber asked how they would cover the cost of staff salaries if the district has these two new facilities. Planning and Development Committee, 4/22/2008, Page 2 Fields staff salaries and the cost of operations come from property taxes. This is a long -term plan, over 20 years. As property develops and density increases, taxes will increase. They assume that the increased taxes will pay the cost of staffing, but not both capital facilities and staffing. At some point over the 20 year plan, the North Whatcom District elected officials will have to develop a long -term financial plan to fund all of it. Caskey- Schreiber asked if the district is bound by the State law that requires impact fees be spent within six years. Jon Sitkin, Chmelik, Sitkin, and Davis General Counsel, stated fire districts do not have impact fee authority under the State statute. It can execute voluntary agreements with developers. The County can use its State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) authority to condition a development to drive this issue. The district can't do it alone, and hopes to partner with the County. The six -year limitation is written into the impact fee statute. Goughnour stated it's important that cities and counties include emergency services and public safety in their comprehensive plans. The district wishes to collaborate. Weimer asked if it's as easy to come up with this money through SEPA as it is through impact fees. Sitkin stated it would be a lot easier if the State legislature amended language to allow impact fees for emergency services. He has been lobbying the legislature for the change. It had broad support, but one group is against the legislation. Impact fees are statutorily easier. The district to the political risk of trying to resolve these issues in advance, by proposing a voluntary mitigation agreement two years ago. Some developers made the agreement, and the district executed those agreements. A number of developers decided to not honor the agreements. The district decided to challenge those developers. As a result, the district pulled out of executing any more agreements until they can complete this process. Weimer asked why the legislature left fire districts out of the impact fee legislation. Sitkin stated he believes the parties at the table were primarily the cities and counties. The special purpose districts have not fully appreciated the long -term implications of the issue. Counties have responded to the balancing of densities by creating non - municipal urban growth areas, which pressures special districts to provide an urban level of service, which is a change of the historic service level. Weimer asked the difference between rural and urban levels of service for fire districts. Sitkin stated there are different political and legal levels. Some people in denser rural areas expect an urban level of service. National standards guide the different levels of service. Fields stated the North Whatcom Fire District Board categorized four areas within its jurisdiction. Those areas are urban, suburban, rural, and remote. The Board has adopted a level of service of a minimum effective fighting force of 15 people, which is why they have a cooperative agreement with Fire District 7. They can share resources and meet that level. Their goal for level of service for urban areas is eight minutes 90 percent of the time, ten minutes for suburban areas 90 percent of the time, 12 minutes for rural areas 90 percent of the time, and 14 minutes for remote areas 90 percent of the time. Sitkin stated that standard of cover is a State requirement for districts of this size, so they can provide a performance measurement to the State Auditor. Planning and Development Committee, 4/22/2008, Page 3 1 2 Kelly asked how well the proposal to change State legislation will do during a long 3 session. Sitkin stated he is hopeful it will do well. He has been working on this issue for 4 many years. 5 6 Patrick Alesse, 1485 Alderson Road, stated Birch Bay pays about the equivalent for 7 what Lynden and Ferndale pay, and they have an urban level of service. He questions the 8 legality of the "gentlemen's agreements" between the district and developers, in lieu of 9 impact fees. Birch Bay residents are already paying a lot. He doesn't know if it would cover 10 the City of Blaine. 11 12 (Clerk's Note: End of tape one, side A.) 13 14 Alesse continued to state it will cost more to service areas on five- to 20 -acre lots. 15 This is a taxing district. He asked if they can tax, and give people different levels of service. 16 He has a lot of questions. 17 18 Sitkin stated this is an issue that includes the City of Blaine. Strategies analyzed on 19 a per living unit basis was not just in the Birch Bay area. It was done district -wide. The 20 district has to work with all the jurisdictions it covers, primarily the County and the City of 21 Blaine. 22 23 24 OTHER BUSINESS 25 26 David Stalheim, Planning and Development Services Director, stated the Council 27 added an item to its Agenda in the evening. It is an Introduction Item for extension of 28 preliminary plat approval. He would like to work out a way for these kinds of items go 29 through Planning Department review process. In this case, the Code has changed and the 30 department wants to make sure it can review the case and make recommendations before 31 the Council takes any action. 32 33 Caskey- Schreiber stated the Council can introduce this item, and then send it to the 34 Planning Department. Stalheim stated that is fine. Establish a protocol for the future. 35 36 37 ADJOURN 38 39 T4 e,meeting adjourned at 3:55 p.m. 4 41 42 43 Jill Nixon,` h Transcription 44 000 fit.,* 45 ��� C Q zf 46 AT��•!�{p►TCvy����'.� WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL 47 V;4 p+ : '� WHATCOM COUN WAE HINGTON 48 0. p CAS s 49 * ' 50 51 52 Dar's Bro1. uncClerk h Fleetw d, Committee Chair Planning and Development Committee, 4/22/2008, Page 4