Whatcom County Planning Commission

# Whatcom County Planning Commission Meeting — Complex Zoning Decisions Following Blaine's De-annexation ## Meeting Overview On February 26, 2026, the Whatcom County Planning Commission convened at 6:00 p.m. in a hybrid format to address one of the more complex land use decisions of the year: implementing zoning changes necessitated by the City of Blaine's pending de-annexation of 573 acres and related Urban Growth Area (UGA) modifications. Present were Commissioners Daniel Dunne (Chair), Matt Barry (newly appointed), Rud Browne, Scott Hansen, Dominic Moceri, Scott Van Dalen, and Nicholas Greif joining remotely. Staff was represented by Planning Director Mark Personius and Senior Planner Maddie Schacht, with Community Development Director Alex Winganger from Blaine attending to answer questions. The meeting centered on three interrelated rezoning proposals stemming from Blaine voters' approval in November 2025 to de-annex a substantial 573-acre area in the northeastern "panhandle" of the city. This action, combined with Blaine's request to remove other areas from Urban Growth Area designation and rezone part of their eastern UGA for light industrial use, created a complex web of zoning decisions that would ultimately affect hundreds of property owners and thousands of acres of land. What made this meeting particularly significant was the tension between competing policy goals: preserving industrial land capacity in a county with acknowledged shortages, respecting local voter decisions, maintaining housing opportunities during a regional housing crisis, and ensuring adequate public participation in decisions affecting property owners. ## Department Updates and Scheduling Mark Personius opened with updates on the accelerated timeline facing the commission. Starting the following week, county council would begin weekly meetings to review the comprehensive plan element by element, with sessions scheduled for March 3rd, 17th, and 31st, running from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. "We start weekly meetings with the council from now until mid-May," Personius noted, indicating the intensive review process ahead. The commission's upcoming schedule reflected the volume of Growth Management Act compliance work: March 12th would feature an open space application, March 26th another open space review, and April would bring a "big package" of housing code zoning amendments required for state law compliance following the Mercer Island court case. "Because of that Mercer Island case, we now have to have adopted concurrent with the comp plan," Personius explained, referring to recent litigation that changed how development regulations must be synchronized with comprehensive plan updates. Commissioner Browne raised questions about the annual docket process, recalling that the planning commission typically reviewed proposed amendments before they went to council. Personius clarified that while there's already "more than a dozen applications" for the 2026 docket, the process prioritizes state-mandated items. "Our priorities are always going to be state-mandated stuff or legally required stuff," he said, acknowledging the commission's input role while noting resource constraints. A significant portion of the update focused on school impact fees, with both Lynden and Ferndale school districts requesting the county adopt impact fees for unincorporated portions of their districts. Commissioner Hansen noted his personal involvement in encouraging all county school districts to pursue this option. The discussion revealed complex intergovernmental relationships, with Mark explaining that districts must work with both the county and cities to establish these fees, which can vary significantly based on local conditions and infrastructure needs. ## The Pending De-annexation Area: 573 Acres of Complexity Maddie Schacht's presentation outlined the timeline leading to this decision. Blaine City Council passed Resolution 1982-25 in July 2025, placing a de-annexation proposition before voters. Proposition 2025-07 passed with 64.12% approval in November 2025, triggering a boundary review process with the Whatcom Council of Governments Boundary Review Board. Whatcom County Public Works subsequently filed a "Request for Review" in January 2026, though specifically noting they were not seeking to delay or deny the proposal, only to review roadway maintenance responsibilities. "This is the pending de-annexed area being proposed," Schacht explained, pointing to maps showing the 573-acre northeastern area. "The city of Blaine has proposed and we're supporting designation of that as rural 10A. So that's one dwelling unit per 10 acres as the density there." The rationale seemed straightforward on the surface. The area sits at high elevation along H Street Road with no public services, significant engineering challenges for infrastructure extension, and substantial critical areas including aquifer recharge zones vital to Blaine's water supply. Current density reflects these constraints: just 18 single-family residences across 573 acres, equating to roughly one home per 32 acres. But Commissioner Browne viewed this proposal through a different lens entirely. During deliberation, he passionately argued against supporting the R-10A designation: "That area has had $6 million invested into trying to turn it into a thousand units of housing which the community desperately needs. The money was made available to the city of Blaine through the EDI fund. It was offered to the city of Blaine to assist its conversion into housing and the city rejected that." His opposition stemmed from concerns about precedent and equity. "If we take the $14 million number that is being proposed as what it would cost to provide the infrastructure, that is the equivalent of roughly 30 acres of wetlands mitigation. It is much cheaper to build that infrastructure than find wetlands mitigation," Browne contended. He characterized the de-annexation as converting potential housing for 1,000 units into "a private estate," arguing that the downzoning would reduce property values and taxes for the landowner. Commissioner Hansen countered with democratic principles: "It was put to a vote of the people as well and the people passed it. I tend to have a lot of... it's tough for me to go against what the people vote for." He acknowledged the complexity while respecting voter decisions. Maddie Schacht clarified the commission's limited role: "This proposal is not about de-annexation. It's already been approved by the voters. Whatcom County does not have the authority to deny the de-annexation under this particular RCW. So this is just about the designation of that area after it is returned to the county land base." The motion to approve R-10A zoning for the de-annexed area passed 5-1, with Browne casting the lone dissenting vote, maintaining his position that the county was enabling the loss of critically needed housing capacity. ## Dakota Creek UGA: Developed but Disconnected The second proposal addressed the 37-acre Dakota Creek UGA, physically separated from Blaine by the creek and bridge. This area presents a different complexity: it's already developed with 68 homes at 2.06 units per acre, hardly the urban density typical of UGAs. The Harbor Shores subdivision has public sewer through a pump station under Dakota Creek, but the remainder lacks sewer service. "Really what that does is prompt a public hearing by the boundary review board so that they're going to review and take into consideration what Whatcom County public works department is requesting," Schacht explained about the infrastructure review process. Alex Winganger explained Blaine's perspective: "It's incredibly costly to put in more infrastructure to do that. The piping and the pump system that was put in was just enough for the developer to put in his project. He didn't oversize it to accommodate a bunch more development to tie into that." The area faces additional challenges from sea level rise impacts and proximity to Dakota Creek's salmon runs. "This is a highly sensitive area. That's Dakota Creek right there. It's got a great salmon run," Winganger noted, adding that collaborative climate impact studies show significant vulnerability. Commissioner Dunne questioned the logic of removing developed urban areas from UGA designation, while Commissioner Van Dalen observed that despite separation by the bridge, "this looks like an urban kind of neighborhood to me." Commissioner Hansen agreed, noting that similar geographic separation exists with Sumas across the Nooksack River. Mark Personius provided crucial context about the regulatory framework: areas can have sewer service outside UGA boundaries if installed when they were within UGAs, but new extensions generally cannot occur outside UGA boundaries except under limited health and safety circumstances. The discussion revealed deeper questions about Growth Management Act implementation. If utilities can't be extended outside UGAs, but the area already has partial utilities and urban-level development, what's the appropriate zoning response? Commissioner Moceri ultimately moved to recommend county council either keep the area in the UGA or, if removed, "adopt the highest density possible under our rural designations." This motion passed 6-1 after significant debate, with Commissioner Hansen dissenting, preferring to keep things simpler. ## East Blaine UGA: Industrial Dreams Meet Wetland Reality The third and most contentious proposal involved rezoning 263 acres of existing UGA from Urban Residential-4 to Light Impact Industrial. This request crystallized tensions between industrial land shortage, housing needs, environmental constraints, and public participation requirements. Alex Winganger made Blaine's case passionately: "This is our collective Whatcom County and the city of Blaine's future industrial land supply. And when Whatcom County allows single family homes to be permitted in this area, we're using up that land supply. We have an opportunity to protect our industrial land supply here and promote jobs in Whatcom County." The city's comprehensive plan has designated this area for manufacturing since 2016, adjacent to existing industrial uses along Odell Road and Boblett Street. Winganger emphasized the economic development potential: "We're planning to accommodate approximately 600 jobs in the next 20 years in this UG. So, that'd be a big boost for the economy for Whatcom County and the city of Blaine." But staff recommended against approval, citing insufficient public outreach and unresolved critical area impacts. "Neither the City nor County have engaged in significant outreach with property owners within the subject area regarding potential rezoning," Schacht noted. If rezoned, existing residences would become "grandfathered uses" since residential development is prohibited in Light Impact Industrial zones. Commissioner Browne introduced a detailed wetlands analysis that dominated much of the debate. Sharing a map based on current state and federal data, he argued the area faces far more extensive wetlands and buffer constraints than previously acknowledged. "The blue section on this map is the wetlands and streams that are fish-bearing streams," he explained, walking through buffer requirements of 150, 225, and 300 feet depending on habitat scores. "My point is that the current regulations for the county would put most of this stuff at the 225-foot and if it's a high habitat score in the 300-foot which renders most of this land unbuildable unless it's mitigated," Browne contended. His key question: "Where would the mitigation come from? Because the only way to mitigate the wetlands and the buffers is the conversion of farmland in the same subbasin." Winganger pushed back firmly: "This is a hypothetical map based off of possibilities out there, prediction models. We're talking about zoning. Every development application that comes in, we will review it for wetlands. The land capacity analysis done by Whatcom County already removed all of the wetlands and their buffers from the buildable land supply." Commissioner Barry, drawing on his appraiser background, offered ground-level perspective: "I do know there's some streams they call salmon bearing on the north side of pipeline road but they're essentially ditches... However, on the south side of pipeline road in high school, I worked at the hatchery. So I know that area, but I do happen to know a lot of the folks who live on the east side of Odell and north side of Pipeline. Those are like generational farms. I don't think they have any intention of selling." This observation highlighted a practical challenge: even if zoning changes occur, willing sellers determine actual development potential. Commissioner Hansen supported the industrial zoning from an economic perspective: "Just in general having read the ports industrial lands capacity report and knowing the need for jobs associated with public populations, I tend to support the light industrial zoning here." He argued that wetlands mitigation requirements would apply equally to residential or industrial development. The debate revealed fundamental disagreements about Growth Management Act implementation. Browne argued that comprehensive plan employment projections shouldn't rely on land that can't realistically be developed due to environmental constraints. "Your comprehensive plan forecast for employment growth requires this land as part of your employment growth numbers and I do not believe it is buildable because I do not believe you've factored in the wetlands impacts." Commissioner Barry ultimately moved to support staff's recommendation to maintain current UR-4 zoning pending "a high level study of the critical areas and public outreach." The motion passed 5-2, with Commissioners Hansen and Moceri dissenting, preferring to support the city's request for immediate industrial zoning. ## Closing and What's Ahead The meeting concluded at approximately 8:30 p.m. after nearly 2.5 hours of detailed deliberation. The commission had navigated three complex zoning decisions, each reflecting different aspects of Growth Management Act implementation challenges: The de-annexation zoning approval (R-10A) represented acceptance of voter decisions and practical constraints, despite Commissioner Browne's housing advocacy concerns. The Dakota Creek recommendation to maintain higher density reflected skepticism about removing already-developed areas from urban designations. The East Blaine industrial zoning deferral emphasized the importance of environmental analysis and public participation before major zoning changes. These recommendations would proceed to county council for final decision, as part of the comprehensive plan adoption process extending through May 2026. The decisions reflect ongoing regional tensions between housing needs, industrial development requirements, environmental protection, and community participation in land use planning. Commissioner Barry's closing comments captured the meeting's complexity: "I want to see industrial land capacity out there. We have a desperate shortage for industrial land capacity. I just don't believe that the work has been done to actually work out if that is viable." The meeting demonstrated how Growth Management Act implementation requires balancing competing policy goals while navigating complex intergovernmental relationships, environmental constraints, and community values. These decisions would ultimately affect not just the immediate properties involved, but regional patterns of growth, economic development, and environmental protection for decades to come.