Commissioners also discuss fate of critical areas ordinance amendments posed by school district
By RYAN LANCASTER
Staff Reporter
After an Oct. 28 public hearing, Medical Lake's Planning Commission voted to hand off six revised chapters of the city's comprehensive plan to city council with a recommendation for adoption.
The commission has been reviewing the comprehensive plan for about a year and has made several changes to the document, which was last reviewed in 2007, in order to bring it up to date and in line with countywide planning policies. As well as updating statistics, maps and county requirements, the plan's goals were reviewed for practicality.
One key amendment reduced the minimum level of service for potable water from 1,000 gallons per day to 750 gpd, which city planner Glen Scholten said is more than adequate for residential needs and will free up building permits for future housing construction.
The city's urban growth area was changed to remove land from inside Fairchild Air Force base's noise contour and allow for better access to land off Brooks and Graham roads. The UGA was expanded by about 50 acres to the west, 79 acres to the east and reduced by approximately 110 acres to the north.
At last Thursday's meeting the planning commission also reviewed the findings of fact from their Oct. 21 public hearing, where they voted 3-2 to recommend a critical areas ordinance amendment as requested by the Medical Lake School District.
That amendment paves the way for additions to Hallett Elementary that would bring the school within feet of a protected wetlands area. The changes would require the school district to have a licensed wetlands biologist prepare a mitigation report that shows how the affected wetland would be maintained or enhanced. They must also establish a monitoring system to evaluate how the mitigation is working.
Before any of that can happen, however, the amendment has to pass muster with the city council and undergo a state review.
Scholten told commissioners that the state is “adamant about no net loss of wetlands” and will therefore scrutinize the district's amendment carefully, but another state law may work in the amendment's favor. The state requires buffer zones to protect wetlands, but the Growth Management Act says local development regulations cannot preclude siting or expansion of essential public facilities, such as schools.
“Everything is contingent on this Essential Public Facilities thing,” Scholten said. “What we're telling the state (by recommending adoption of this amendment) is that the functions and values of this wetland are not going to be degraded…and will remain the same or better.”
Ryan Lancaster can be reached at [email protected].
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