### Meeting Overview The Whatcom County Council Planning and Development Committee met on September 23, 2025, to consider a resolution approving boundary changes for the City of Lynden. The 10-minute meeting focused solely on addressing a "stranded" piece of Flynn Road right-of-way that was accidentally left out of previous annexations. ### Key Terms and Concepts **Annexation:** The process by which a city expands its boundaries by incorporating adjacent unincorporated land, bringing that area under city jurisdiction and services. **Right-of-way:** A strip of land designated for public use, typically for roads, where the government has legal authority to use the land for transportation infrastructure. **Boundary Revision:** A legal process to correct or adjust municipal boundaries, often used to fix errors or omissions from previous annexations. **Stranded Parcel:** A piece of land that gets isolated from its intended jurisdiction due to annexation errors, creating administrative and service delivery problems. **UGA (Urban Growth Area):** Areas designated for future urban development and eventual annexation by cities, as required by Washington State's Growth Management Act. **RCW 35A.21.210:** The Washington State law that governs how cities and counties can address boundary revision issues through collaborative agreements. ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Ben Elenbaas | Committee Chair, Whatcom County Council | | Todd Donovan | Council Member, Whatcom County Council | | Jon Scanlon | Council Member, Whatcom County Council | | Lucas Clark | Staff, Planning and Development Services | | Bridget Bryck | Attorney for City of Lynden (Carmichael and Clark) | ### Background Context This issue stems from a series of annexations in Lynden where portions of Flynn Road were inadvertently left out of the city boundaries. In October 2024, Lynden approved the Southwest Lynden annexation, but when they submitted the paperwork to the state in March 2025, officials discovered that a section of Flynn Road near Bay Lyn Road had been missed in a 2018 annexation. This creates administrative complications because the road segment would remain under county jurisdiction while being surrounded by city territory. Similar boundary correction issues have occurred before—just in August 2025, another "stranded" portion of Flynn Road had to be addressed. These oversights create practical problems for road maintenance, emergency services, and municipal service delivery when jurisdictional boundaries don't align with actual development patterns. ### What Happened — The Short Version Lucas Clark from county planning staff presented Resolution AB2025-579, explaining that a piece of Flynn Road right-of-way near Bay Lyn Road was accidentally omitted from Lynden's 2018 annexation. The state flagged this issue when reviewing Lynden's recent Southwest annexation paperwork. Council members asked clarifying questions about the location and size of the road segment, with some confusion about map symbols and jurisdictional labels. After Clark confirmed that county public works had no objections and that Lynden would take over maintenance responsibilities, the committee unanimously voted 3-0 to recommend approval to the full council. ### What to Watch Next - The full Whatcom County Council will vote on Resolution AB2025-579 at an upcoming council meeting - This boundary revision will transfer maintenance responsibility for this Flynn Road segment from the county to the City of Lynden - Similar boundary cleanup issues may arise as Lynden continues to annex areas in its Urban Growth Area ---

**Q:** What was the resolution number discussed at this meeting? **A:** AB2025-579, which approves a revision to Lynden's corporate boundaries to include a portion of Flynn Road right-of-way. **Q:** When did the City of Lynden originally approve the Southwest Lynden annexation? **A:** October 2024, according to Lucas Clark's presentation. **Q:** What state law allows cities and counties to address boundary revision issues? **A:** RCW 35A.21.210, which permits collaborative boundary revision processes. **Q:** Who presented the resolution to the committee? **A:** Lucas Clark from Planning and Development Services Department. **Q:** What was the final vote on the resolution recommendation? **A:** 3-0 in favor, with Donovan, Elenbaas, and Scanlon all voting yes to recommend approval. **Q:** When was the problematic Flynn Road section supposed to be annexed originally? **A:** 2018, during what was referred to as the "Suit annexation" or "Stewart annexation." **Q:** Who will be responsible for maintaining the Flynn Road section if this passes? **A:** The City of Lynden will take over maintenance responsibility from Whatcom County. **Q:** What committee members were present at this meeting? **A:** Todd Donovan, Ben Elenbaas (chair), and Jon Scanlon. **Q:** When did Lynden send their annexation paperwork to the state? **A:** Early March 2025, according to the staff presentation. **Q:** Who represented the City of Lynden at this meeting? **A:** Bridget Bryck, an attorney from Carmichael and Clark law firm, participated online. **Q:** What similar issue occurred in August 2025? **A:** Another "stranded" portion of Flynn Road had to be addressed through boundary revision. **Q:** What time did the meeting start and end? **A:** Started at 10:15 a.m. and adjourned at 10:25 a.m. **Q:** What does "PU" stand for on the zoning map discussed? **A:** Public utility or public use, according to Lucas Clark's interpretation. **Q:** Which council members were also present but not on the committee? **A:** Barry Buchanan, Tyler Byrd, Kaylee Galloway, and Mark Stremler. **Q:** What was the main concern about leaving this road section unannexed? **A:** It would create a "stranded" county road segment surrounded by city territory, complicating administration and services. ---