UGA Proposals / Mineral Resource Lands Motion

 zoning and LAMIRD housing discussion 

This was the meeting's longest item, consuming roughly two hours. PDS Planner Matt Aamot presented remaining UGA-area proposals not covered at the prior Council meeting, organized by geographic sub-area.

Birch Bay UGA/UGA Reserve: Aamot explained that no UGA boundary changes are proposed for Birch Bay in the current cycle; the UGA reserve discussion has been deferred to a docketed item in 2026–27. The current proposal focuses on zoning code changes: a countywide text amendment to allow duplex, triplex, and fourplex development in urban residential zones (critically, without increasing net unit density — the same number of total units could be built in alternative configurations); rezoning approximately 13 acres near a go-kart track on Birch Bay Linden Road from urban residential to general commercial; rezoning approximately 187 acres of Birch Bay State Park from URM6 to Recreation and Open Space; and rezoning approximately 100 acres of UGA reserve from Rural 5-acre to Rural 1 dwelling per 10 acres.

Elenbaas asked whether the R5A-to-R10A rezone protects future density capacity; Aamot confirmed yes. Elenbaas asked whether property owners had been notified; Aamot explained this is a countywide change with no individual notification requirement. The Birch Bay Bible Church UGA inclusion, recommended by the Birch Bay Community Advisory Committee, was not included in the county's proposal because land capacity analysis showed sufficient capacity within the existing UGA and Birch Bay Water and Sewer District. Scanlon expressed hope that the county-community partnership on sea level rise planning continues.

Columbia Valley UGA/UGA Reserve: The Columbia Valley proposal maintains its existing UGA boundary and converts a 40-acre UGA reserve to Rural Forestry due to steep slopes, landslide hazard areas, and alluvial fan geography. Rezoning changes are primarily about achieving internally consistent parcel-level zone assignments. Buchanan shared historical context about a previous effort to attract commercial development — including a shopping center developer who encountered obstacles and withdrew. Elenbaas spoke to the importance of zoning that creates genuine commercial opportunity, noting the deficit of grocery stores and businesses in the area and his concern that the changes provide meaningful capacity rather than just technical zone assignments. The land capacity analysis indicates the existing UGA can accommodate projected growth with the proposed rezones.

Rural and Resource Lands — Mineral Resource Lands: Aamot explained that outside the county's ten UGAs, approximately 220,000 acres of designated forest land, 85,000 acres of agricultural land, 5,500 acres of mineral resource lands, and 130,000 acres of rural lands house roughly 71,000 people — about 30% of the county's population. The rural and resource lands proposal involves text amendments to allow multi-family housing in certain rural residential zones when public water is available; rezones in the Custer, Pole & Guide, and Hinote's Corner LAMIRDs; and removal of the Mineral Resource Land special district overlay zone from Lummi Island (which was purchased by Lummi Island Heritage Trust in 2015 and is now a preserve).

Elenbaas moved to add the shores of the Nooksack River to the Mineral Resource Lands Special District, explaining his dual rationale: (1) adding the river to the county's proven mineral resource inventory as a renewable gravel source would reduce future pressure to designate other lands for extraction, and (2) the designation is directly connected to flood management, since gravel bar scalping removes material that contributes to channel constriction and flooding. He described the river corridor as "a renewable gravel mine" given the river's ongoing sediment deposition.

Personius noted that an existing regulatory pathway for gravel bar scalping already exists as a shoreline conditional use permit process, but no one has ever pursued it because of the multi-agency complexity (Department of Ecology, Army Corps of Engineers, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife approval all required). He also noted that a consultant is currently conducting a study of existing and potential MRL expansion areas within half a mile of existing MRL designations. Any change to map designations requires a countywide assessment not currently included in the consultant's scope.

Prosecuting Attorney Thulin asked Elenbaas to refine his motion language to avoid directly directing the Executive, resulting in the final language: "request the Executive to work with Planning staff to explore adding the shores of the Nooksack River to the Mineral Resource Lands Special District at the earliest feasible time." Rienstra asked about stakeholder buy-in; Elenbaas acknowledged the idea emerged from his own reading of the code rather than from a formal stakeholder process. The motion passed 6-0 with Galloway temporarily away.

Rural and Resource Lands — LAMIRD Multi-Family: Aamot presented the land capacity gap created by the Planning Commission's more conservative recommendation. Under House Bill 1220, the county must demonstrate land capacity for housing across all income levels. The Planning Commission recommended limiting duplex/triplex/fourplex development to Custer, Pole & Guide, and Hinote's Corner LAMIRDs only, which would create a moderate-income housing land capacity deficit. Aamot asked the council whether they preferred: duplexes only in broader LAMIRDs, duplexes and triplexes, or the original PDS proposal of all three.

Scanlon moved to support the original PDS proposal, citing workforce housing shortages in Glacier and Maple Falls (where businesses have struggled to find housing for staff and several restaurants have closed) as evidence that the broader application is justified. Stremler expressed concern that allowing fourplexes might discourage single-family development if developers find multi-unit more profitable. Elenbaas countered that market forces will balance the mix organically, framed the choice as expanding options rather than mandating alternatives, and noted that well-designed multi-family — citing a duplex/triplex development behind Bender Field in Lynden — can be visually indistinguishable from single-family neighborhoods. He added a personal observation that his aging parents, for example, would benefit from a duplex or triplex option rather than maintaining a large single-family home. The public water requirement was cited as a natural limiting factor that would prevent over-concentration.

The motion passed 6-0 with Galloway temporarily away.