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HomeMy WebLinkAboutPlanning July 22 2008WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL Planning and Development Committee July 22, 2008 Committee Chair Seth Fleetwood called the meeting to order at 3:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers, 311 Grand Avenue, Bellingham, Washington. Present: Laurie Caskey- Schreiber Carl Weimer Also Present: Barbara Brenner COMMITTEE DISCUSSION 1. DISCUSSION REGARDING A DRAFT COUNTY ZONING CODE TO ALLOW SYSTEMS (AB2008 -270) Absent: None ORDINANCE AMENDING THE WHATCOM FOR SMALL RESIDENTIAL WIND ENERGY Christina Reeves, Administrative Services Department, submitted a handout (on file). Brenner stated she wanted staff to do this. She also created a draft ordinance, which is similar to this ordinance, except one thing. Do not include language about requiring the windmill be removed if the owner is not using it. Also, remove item nine in section three on Council packet page 186, regarding guy wires. Allow the administrators the ability to decide on the safety issues. Don't restrict someone unnecessarily. Weimer stated he is also introducing this item. He asked if it needs to go through a zoning text amendment. David Stalheim, Planning and Development Services Director, stated they would anticipate putting this in Title 20. It regulates use of land, so that's the appropriate code chapter. The County allows windmills now, but they are subject to a height requirement of 35 feet, which is why they aren't effective. They are also required to have building and electrical permits. Brenner asked if they can approve an interim ordinance regarding a Title 20 change to fast -track this item. Stalheim stated this is scheduled on the list of docketed items. It will go before the Planning Commission on September 11 for a public hearing. They are ready to move forward. It shouldn't take a lot of work. Ms. Reeves has helped move this along. Fleetwood asked if today is just an update and there isn't anything the Council needs to do today. Stalheim stated that's correct. Weimer moved to request that the two draft ordinances are forwarded to the Planning Commission for its review. They are similar. Let the Planning staff figure out which ordinance works. Planning and Development Committee, 7/22/2008, Page 1 Reeves stated the two ordinances can be merged into one ordinance. The differences are minor. They collected input from folks in the wind industry. She will incorporate the drafts with the comments from those industry folks. Fleetwood stated the Council can ask Ms. Reeves to put together the best draft possible, given concerns of the councilmembers and public. Brenner asked if Ms. Reeves would consider her one concern about being unused for 12 consecutive months. Reeves stated she would. The committee concurred. Brenner asked if there are any other docketed items the Council doesn't know about. Stalheim stated there are not. The recreational vehicle (RV) issue may come up, but any associated code amendments are not on the staff work plan and docket. Jack Hardy, Western Solar, Bellingham, stated he brought this issue up two years ago when he had a client on Lummi Island. He's pleased that things are moving forward. William Lee, 2171 Tuttle Lane Lummi Island, stated he thanks the Council for acting on this. The Planning Department and Council should make the draft ordinance available before the public hearing. A number of people in his community want to explore this technology. They must address the issue regarding the guy wires. Also, there is a variety of technology regarding mechanisms, their sizes, and their uses. The code should not eliminate the possibility of using smaller systems that people may use for emergency power.. Dana Brandt, EcoTech Systems, stated he thanks Ms. Reeves and the Council for moving this forward. Many people in the county are interested in wind. The industry would like to be involved throughout the process. He is concerned about the height restriction of 100 feet. That isn't always practical. Wind turbines need to be up where it's windy, which may require a taller tower. Fleetwood asked the approximate minimum height of a windmill. Brandt stated it depends on the area, but it is typically no less than 30 to 50 feet above anything within 300 feet. If there are trees around, the windmill needs to be at least that height above the trees. Brenner stated there is another kind that can be put on buildings. Brandt stated there isn't anything magic about a turbine that spins on a vertical axis instead of a horizontal axis. They can supposedly take some more turbulence. Make the code open to that option. He's not a proponent of that technology in general. It's hyped beyond what it is. The top of a building isn't very windy. The windmill still needs to be up where it's windy. The corner of a building is terribly turbulent. The turbulence is rough on the turbines. Brenner stated the County allows different kinds of experimental septic systems that aren't specifically approved. She asked if they can include language in the ordinance to allow administrative approval for new wind technologies that are used elsewhere. Stalheim stated that they should write code from the perspective of the public's interest, which is with issues such as noise, height, and visual appearance. He doesn't care at all about the technology. Don't write the code so tightly that they preclude technologies. Planning and Development Committee, 7/22/2008, Page 2 COMMITTEE DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS TO COUNCIL 1. REVIEW OF EXISTING ISSUES WITH DOCKETING PROCEDURES IN THE WHATCOM COUNTY PLANNING DEPARTMENT AND SPECIFIC SOLUTIONS (AB2008 -279) David Stalheim, Planning and Development Services Director, stated one thing on the docket is an item to amend docketing procedures. Caskey- Schreiber stated the Comprehensive Plan and zoning change fees are a lot lower than in other counties. She asked if they've given that any thought. Stalheim stated he has. The budget proposal includes significant fee changes. Kate Cook, Planning and Development Services Department, read from the packet beginning on page 177 regarding the Comprehensive Plan procedure, the zoning text amendment procedure, and citizen - initiated site - specific rezones. Brenner asked if citizens can initiate zoning text amendments. Cook stated they can. The staff will make a recommendation on the citizen - initiated text amendment to the Planning Commission. The County- initiated amendments also go through the same process. Caskey- Schreiber asked if the Council approves whether or not any docket item will go through the process. Stalheim stated the Council only approves the Comprehensive Plan docket amendments before they go through the process. He read from the issues and conceptual solutions beginning on Council packet page 180 regarding issue one, workload assessment. Cook read from the issues and conceptual solutions beginning on Council packet page 181 regarding issue two, timing. Brenner stated the Public Works Committee reviews road vacation applications to see if the Council wants staff to consider accepting them. She asked if they can use a similar process, before people pay for the process. Stalheim stated it is possible. One option they've discussed is charging a very minimal fee to do the first staff review, then bring it to the Council for acceptance on the docket. If accepted, the County could then charge the full fee for the services. Cook read the issues and conceptual solutions beginning on Council packet page 181 regarding issue three, concurrent review of amendments. Caskey- Schreiber stated that during the first three years the Council had this process, they were able to get through the docket each year. However, when the urban growth area (UGA) came up, the process stalled. The Planning Commission and City of Bellingham took a very long time on the UGA process. Everything else collapsed after that. When they tackle larger issues that involve other jurisdictions is when they begin to have problems. A solution may be to create time parameters for the Planning Commission from the beginning, and it will go to the Council automatically if the Planning Commission can't make a decision within the timeframe. Give other jurisdictions timeline requirements as well. Staff should work with the Planning Committee chair to make sure it also stays on task. Planning and Development Committee, 7/22/2008, Page 3 Stalheim stated the next step is to write code language and take it before the Planning Commission on September 11. Caskey- Schreiber stated she questions the prioritization of private Comprehensive Plan requests over something the Council has prioritized. Staff time and resources should first be spent on Council priorities and the existing backlog. Weimer asked the date for when the timing coordination would be. Stalheim stated they are thinking about April right now. That would allow staff a month to go through the list, do an assessment, and bring it to Council. The first year will be intense, but following years won't be. It would get done before the budget process. Fleetwood stated he approves of this going before the Planning Commission. Weimer stated he agrees with sending this to the Planning Commission. He asked if they will try to do this every two years, since they have a biennial budget process. Stalheim stated this is an annual work plan. Rebecca Craven, Council Policy Analyst, asked if the entire department work plan would be on the docket or just the zoning amendments. There are core functions and other things. Stalheim stated that is correct. The annual work plan would include the docketed items within the context of all the other requirements. Craven referenced the June 17, 2008 memo regarding the proposed annual zoning docket and its attached list of amendments. She asked if this is just about the annual docket, and if there is a separate regular docket. (Clerk's Note: End of tape one, side A.) Craven asked for a copy of the docket with everything, including the numbers. Stalheim stated the June 17 memo included only code amendments. The Comprehensive Plan docket happened earlier this year. They propose to put those processes together and create one master list. This year there are two lists. He hopes there will be only one list next year. Craven asked if there is a regular docket in addition to the annual docket right now, before procedural changes are made. Stalheim stated the regular docket is the private citizen amendments. Site - specific rezones don't generally happen because they require a Comprehensive Plan amendment, which comes to Council. Craven stated she would like to see a list with the numbers. Caskey - Schreiber stated the Council has received such lists in the past, so they all know what is happening and all can plan their workloads. Stalheim stated the June list is extensive. They also have the Comprehensive Plan list. In March, he submitted the work program, which includes everything. The Council now has three different list. The work program, submitted in April, ties them all together. He can combine and update that work program. The Planning Commission agenda is set for the rest of the year. All those things on the list they can get done this year have a placeholder on the Commission's schedule. Planning and Development Committee, 7/22/2008, Page 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 Small code amendments and major policy issues will come forward this year. They will all be very busy. OTHER BUSINESS There was no other business. ADJOURN T e eeti g a urned at 3:55 P.M. Jill Nixon, Minutes Transcription ATTEST: 111111111111; , �•0 fa er hVis, Cbun($ Clerk • • sir0i Of %� • •:�SHiNGN•• . WHATCOM COUNTY COUNCIL WHATCOM COUNTY, WASHINGTON r eth Flee ood, Committee Chair Planning and Development Committee, 7/22/2008, Page 5