PRCAC submits code clarifications to county planning

By Meg Olson

Code changes for the Point being proposed by the Point Roberts Community Advisory Committee (PRCAC) are one step closer to formal consideration by the county.

At a January 27 special meeting, PRCAC finalized changes to their recommendations in response to another batch of clarification questions from Whatcom County Planning and Development staff.

“This is nothing new,” said committee member Steve Wolff, but a refinement of the code changes forwarded to county planners for review following dozens of special meetings, work sessions and community meetings in 2018 and 2019.

In August 2019 the committee voted to forward 15 specific changes to chapter 20.72 of Whatcom County Code, rules specific to Point Roberts, to the county for consideration. Changes range from allowing two outbuildings per lot in all zones to more flexible rules about parking requirements. A new provision would allow businesses to have up to two trailers or moveable storage units, provided they are screened. The only recommendation that did not receive full committee support was to recommend uses now prohibited in the Small Town Commercial zone – which includes dog kennels, additional RV parks and motor vehicle repair, washing sales and storage – be changed to conditional uses which would be permissible following a review by the county hearing examiner.

County planner Cliff Strong said that if the revisions pass legal muster they will be introduced to the planning commission in coming months as the first stage of formal consideration by the county. “Any proposed changes to plans and regulations goes through a planning commission review,” he said. “They make their recommendation, then we will take it to county council.” There will be a public hearing by both the planning commission and county council.

Pamala Sheppard, the top vote-getter of the two applicants to fill the upcoming vacancy on the board, suggested more needed to be done to educate the public about the specific nature of proposed changes to 20.72. Wolff said PRCAC would make the final version of their recommendations available and would also prepare a simplified version for release.

At the regular January 23 PRCAC meeting, the committee came under fire by members of the Point Roberts Independent Business Council (PRIBC) for a letter co-authors Wolff and PRCAC member Stephen Falk described as a “cover letter” to introduce their recommendations to county council.

The letter outlines the public process by which the committee came up with the revisions, which they believe is a balanced representation of at times divergent community input. “We believe the changes overall will be beneficial to businesses and individuals while preserving what residents enjoy about their community,” it states.

The letter closes by requesting the county not consider a PRIBC proposal to repeal 20.72 entirely, which would eliminate special development regulations for the Point.

PRIBC president Brian Calder said by making the request PRCAC “was ignoring our 51 members,” and secretary/treasurer Tom O’Brien went further, declaring that by asking the county to not consider the PRIBC proposal without taking a public vote on the position, PRCAC had violated the state open meetings act. He also said PRCAC should have included the PRIBC position in their recommendation to the county.

“We didn’t mention hundreds of suggestions made over the past six years,” outgoing PRCAC chair Linda Hughes said. “What we did was, we met, we conversed, we heard from the public and found compromises based on what we were hearing from the community.” Wolff added that PRCAC’s work of improving regulations for Point Roberts was not compatible with PRIBC application to eliminate them altogether.

Strong said county council would consider whether to add the PRIBC proposal to their 2020 docket in coming months. If they elect to proceed, the proposal would be added to the planning department work program.

“We will vet it and send it to planning commission and then to council,” he said. Ironically, part of that vetting process will be to have PRCAC review the proposal. County council can also vote not to consider the PRIBC.