Snohomish County shouldn’t ban mini-cities in its rural areas, county planning commissioners decided Tuesday night.
The commission voted 5-3 against a proposed moratorium on major developments in rural areas called fully-contained communities.
The commission is a sounding board for policy changes for the County Council, which has the final say.
County Council chairman Dave Somers is pushing for a halt on applications for these mini-cities. The county has allowed such projects since 2005, but no one has applied.
The most likely candidate is a project called Falcon Ridge west of Lake Roesiger. The project is under preliminary review by the county and conceptually includes 6,000 houses on 3,000 acres and includes a golf course and offices. The project is proposed by developer Dave Barnett, who owns the land.
Somers is trying to head off the project by proposing a ban on accepting applications through Dec. 31, 2009. By then, he hopes to completely rescind the county regulations.
Planning commissioners are upset at Somers’ move after the commission and council had reviewed and approved the regulations in 2005, commissioner Gene Miller said.
“We passed a good ordinance,” Miller said. “We worked arduously to perfect the regulations. We probably have the best fully-contained- community regulations in the state. So far, they’ve never been put to the test.”
Fears of water contamination and traffic would be resolved through heavy scrutiny in the county rules, Miller said.
The planning commission requires six votes to make a formal recommendation to the county council. The vote Tuesday fell short by one vote. Two members were absent and the commission has one vacancy.
The preference of the majority will be forwarded in a memo, Miller said.
The support from the planning commission was heartening, said George Kresovich, Barnett’s land-use attorney.
“It’s a victory for good planning and common sense,” Kresovich said. As a master planned development that sets aside 1,500 acres of open space, Falcon Ridge has the potential to be superior to sprawling subdivisions, he argues.
The soonest Barnett might apply for a county permit is 2009, Kresovich said. People will be given an opportunity to offer their views at public hearings.
Opponents of fully-contained communities plan to lobby the County Council until there’s a ban on such projects, said Kristin Kelly, a spokeswoman for Futurewise and Pilchuck Audubon Society who lives in Snohomish.
“We’re very disappointed the majority of the commission believe that fully-contained communities are good for Snohomish County,” Kelly said. “I don’t believe that they are. Hopefully we can convince our council to approve this moratorium.”
Reporter Jeff Switzer: 425-339-3452 or jswitzer@heraldnet.com.
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