Title
2021 Annual Comprehensive Plan Amendment Applications Screening
Recommended Action
Committee Recommendation:
Not referred to a committee.
City Manager Recommendation:
Move to advance two of the Preliminary Comprehensive Plan Amendment applications to the final docket for 2021 and set the Final Comprehensive Plan Amendment application deadline as April 16, 2021. Move to not advance the proposed amendment regarding the extension of Log Cabin Road to the final docket for 2021 and instead direct the City to consider it during the Periodic Update of the Comprehensive Plan.
Report
Issue:
Whether to advance the Preliminary Comprehensive Plan Amendment applications proposed for consideration in 2021 to the Planning Commission for the final docket and set the Final Comprehensive Plan Amendment application deadline as April 16, 2021.
Staff Contact:
Joyce Phillips, Senior Planner, Community Planning and Development, 360.570.3722
Presenter(s):
Joyce Phillips, Senior Planner, Community Planning and Development
Background and Analysis:
The Washington State Growth Management Act provides that Olympia generally can amend its Comprehensive Plan only once each calendar year. Chapter 18.59 of the Olympia Municipal Code establishes a specific process for such annual amendments. It provides that:
• Preliminary proposals may be submitted by anyone at any time without charge.
• City Council sets the deadline for proposals to be considered in a given year.
• City staff is to review and present all preliminary proposals to the Council to determine which should move forward for formal consideration. The staff’s review and recommendation at this preliminary stage is based on specific criteria set forth in code section 18.59.020.
In brief, these criteria are:
• Whether the proposal is consistent with state and federal law.
• Whether the proposal might lead to adverse environmental impacts, and if so whether there is time to analyze the impacts.
• Whether additional capital improvements and maintenance revenue would be needed, and if so whether there is time to analyze such.
• Whether the proposal conflicts with other provisions of the Comprehensive Plan.
• Whether other significant amendments would be needed and, if so, whether there is time for such.
• If the proposal has previously been reviewed and, if so, whether the applicant has identified a reason to review it again.
A copy with full text of the preliminary criteria is attached, included staff comments regarding each of the three preliminary proposals in regard to each criterion.
The City Council’s role at this stage is to “review all such proposals, determine which are appropriate and worthy of further review and consideration, and move those to the Planning Commission for review and public hearing” (OMC 18.59.030). Note that at this stage the Council’s role is not to decide whether or not a proposal should be approved. Instead, the Council is to decide - without otherwise pre-judging the issue - which proposals should move to the next stage for review. The City Council has discretion as to whether or not to consider a proposed Comprehensive Plan amendment - there is no requirement that the City consider any amendments in a given calendar year.
Amendments forwarded by the City Council to the Planning Commission are deemed the ‘final docket’. Prior to further consideration, private proponents of forwarded proposals are required to submit a detailed amendment application including appropriate fees. All forwarded amendment proposals will be subject to environmental review by City staff and appropriate public processes, including review and recommendations by the Planning Commission following a public hearing. Final decisions are scheduled to be made by the City Council later in 2021.
Preliminary proposals that are not advanced to the final docket may be denied further consideration or can be directed to be incorporated into a different review process.
Proposals
Three proposals were received for consideration this year. The applications are attached to this report. In summary, the proposals are:
1. An application submitted by the Public Works Department, Transportation Division, to amend text in order to address multimodal transportation and concurrency issues. Transportation concurrency currently focuses on capacity of motor vehicles. Proposed amendments would also consider capacity of pedestrians, bicyclists, and public transportation.
2. An application submitted by Larry Dzieza and Karen Messmer to remove the extension of Log Cabin Road and any other future streets from LBA Park property from the Transportation 2030 Maps. The purpose of the proposal is to preserve the value of park purposes and address climate change.
3. An application submitted by the City Council requesting text amendments to:
a. Replace the word “citizen” with “resident” or “community member” throughout the plan.
b. Ensure language in the plan is gender neutral by using they or them pronouns.
c. Remove reference to or better define language about neighborhood character.
d. Add equity language to the values and vision section of the plan.
Staff Recommendation
As part of the review, the proposals are routed to city departments, adjacent local and regional government entities including schools and transit, state agencies, and Tribes. These entities are asked for comments on the proposals in regard to the City’s review and evaluation criteria for preliminary plan amendments.
City staff has evaluated the proposal pursuant to the OMC criteria (see Attachment 2) and recommends the Council conclude:
The proposals submitted by the City Public Works Transportation Division and the City Council are consistent with the six criteria and should be placed on the final docket for 2021.
The proposal submitted by Larry Dzieza and Karen Messmer to remove the Log Cabin Road extension from the Transportation 2030 maps will require more technical analysis than is possible to complete within the time allocated for annual amendments. Staff is recommending the request be integrated into the Periodic Update of the Comprehensive Plan, which is to be completed by June of 2025.
Neighborhood/Community Interests (if known):
Each of the preliminary proposals is of interest to people within the community as these proposals cover a broad array of issues. Specific interests will become even more apparent in the subsequent review of these proposals, regardless of the review process each moves through for further consideration.
Options:
1. Advance one or more of the preliminary Comprehensive Plan Amendment applications to the final docket and direct the Planning Commission to review the proposal(s), hold a public hearing, and make a recommendation to the Council consistent with the 2021 Comprehensive Plan amendment schedule; and set the Final Comprehensive Plan Amendment application deadline as April 16, 2021.
2. Decline to consider one or more of the proposed amendments in 2021. If any preliminary applications are advanced, direct that the Planning Commission review the proposal(s), hold a public hearing, and make a recommendation to the Council consistent with the 2021 Comprehensive Plan amendment schedule; and set the Final Comprehensive Plan Amendment application deadline as April 16, 2021.
3. Direct consideration of one or more of the proposed preliminary amendments as part of a different process, instead of as part of the 2021 Comprehensive Plan amendments. If any applications are advanced, direct that the Planning Commission review the proposal(s), hold a public hearing, and make a recommendation to the Council consistent with the 2021 Comprehensive Plan amendment schedule; and set the Final Comprehensive Plan Amendment application deadline as April 16, 2021.
Financial Impact:
Consideration of proposed preliminary annual Comprehensive Plan Amendment applications is within the Department’s base budget.
Attachments:
Applications
Review Criteria and Evaluation
Review Comments