A standing-room-only crowd helped the Greater Maple Valley Unincorporated Area Council ring in the new year at its Jan. 3 regular monthly meeting. Several major topics were on a busy agenda: area council officer elections; unincorporated area council funding, Black Diamond master planned developments, King County comprehensive plan update and King County code recommendations.

Speakers were District No. 9 King County Councilman Reagan Dunn, unincorporated area relations manager Lauren Smith from King County Executive Dow Constantine’s office and Paul Reitenbach and Harry Reinert, both from King County’s Department of Development and Environmental Services. Members of the Four Creeks Unincorporated Area Council, from the May Valley area, also were in attendance.

Public comments

Rich Ostrowski from the rural area east of Black Diamond provided comments on the proposed Black Diamond-Enumclaw School District-Yarrow Bay Tri-Party School Agreement recently approved by the district. Three schools are proposed in the rural area outside the Black Diamond urban growth area. Mr. Ostrowski expressed concern that all parties of this agreement tacitly assume King County will permit the three rural area schools.

Judy Carrier from the rural area south of Black Diamond along Green Valley Road provided comments about formation of a new unincorporated area council in her area and the alarm long time residents have over the proposed Black Diamond master planned developments. Ms. Carrier expressed particular concern with the proposed two rural area schools immediately adjacent to Green Valley Road.

Area council officer elections

At its first monthly meeting of the year the area council conducts internal elections for its officers. For 2011 the council re-elected Steve Hiester as chair, Dave Fields as vice chair, Les Dawson as recording secretary, Peter Rimbos as corresponding secretary and Susan Dawson as treasurer. All officers immediately assumed their duties for the new year.

Unincorporated Area Council Funding

As part of its 2011 budget the King County Council proposed eliminating local unincorporated area councils in favor of one countywide commission. Lauren Smith, unincorporated area relations manager from King County Executive Dow Constantine’s Office, and King County Councilman Reagan Dunn both provided perspective on the next steps and alternatives being explored.

Dunn discussed the impacts of the 2011 King County budget, especially on law enforcement in unincorporated areas. He voted against the budget proviso that included the proposal to eliminate the six unincorporated area councils and form one unincorporated area commission. Although all unincorporated area council members are citizen volunteers, King County does provide both support to the unincorporated area councils through community services and funds to pay for liability insurance and hold member elections.

Smith discussed concerns with eliminating the unincorporated area councils. Constantine is looking at options including using available funds through the end of June. The executive must provide options to the King County Council for consideration by April 15.

Area council members described the benefits unincorporated area councils provide to King County: representation of unincorporated area citizens; comprehensive reviews of the King County comprehensive plan and King County code; and direct interaction with King County departments. There were many concerns expressed with a single commission to cover so many people and their particular issues.

The Area Council strongly supports the ability of local citizens to enumerate local issues of importance to them to those who represent them in King County government. The area council will seek a solution that maintains this ability. Both Dunn and Smith expressed their support with this goal.

Black Diamond master planned developments (MPDs)

Yarrow Bay, a well-known major land developer has proposed two major MPDs comprising over 6,000 homes and over 1.1 million square feet of commercial/business space in the city of Black Diamond. This would quintuple the current population of 4,000 and are the largest MPDs in King County history.

The area council has been following these MPDs for over a year and several members have testified in hearings conducted in 2010. The council’s primary concerns remain, (1) the addition of 10,000 vehicles on two-lane roads throughout southeast King County, (2) major impacts on the rural area outside the urban growth boundary such as schools, sewer storage facilities, and a large detention lake and (3) exploitation of the rural area to enable urban development.

I provided an update on the process so far and going forward. Following formal hearings Sept. 20, 2010 the Black Diamond City Council approved the MPD applications with over 150 conditions. On Sept. 21 Yarrow Bay submitted to the city draft development agreements that provide the plan over the next 15 – 20 years for MPD design, development and build out. Black Diamond city staff currently are negotiating with Yarrow Bay to finalize these development agreements.

Sometime in early February the development agreements will be presented at a public information meeting. They also will be submitted to the city’s hearing examiner to conduct public hearings targeted to start in mid-February. Members of the public can orally testify (or submit written comments) at the upcoming hearings. Information on the upcoming hearings will be posted later this month on the city of Black Diamond MPD page at www.ci.blackdiamond.wa.us/Depts/CommDev/mpd_page.html.

Agreements already are posted there.

King County comprehensive plan (KCCP) update

The KCCP is the guiding policy document for all land-use and development in unincorporated King County. It is updated each year and the current plan was last updated on October 27, 2010. Every fourth year major revisions are proposed for adoption. This was last done in 2008. The process for the next major update in 2012 is now underway.

Paul Reitenbach, King County Department of Development & Environmental Services (DDES) senior policy planner, summarized the process for the 2012 update. Mr. Reitenbach provided a list of topical areas that have been identified to help scope the update and requested comments from the council by Feb. 9. Some of the major categories being addressed are: rural area and natural resource lands; environment; parks, open space and cultural resources; transportation; economic development and area zoning and land use. A public review draft will be released by Oct. 1. The council’s Growth Management and Transportation Committees will again develop detailed comments and provide them to King County for consideration.

Constantine will submit the recommended 2012 KCCP update for review to the King County Council on March 1. The process, now underway, culminates in final approval by the King County Council late next year. Citizens can review information on the KCCP, the update process at: www.kingcounty.gov/property/permits/codes/growth/CompPlan.aspx

King County Code (KCC) Recommendations

In the fall of 2010 the council completed a comprehensive review of applicable KCC chapters and provided a set of recommendations to King County for consideration. The following KCC titles were addressed: 7-Parks & Recreation; 9-Surface Water Management; 10-Solid Waste; 14-Roads & Bridges and 26-Agriculture & Open Space Lands. That committee distributed the council recommendations to various King County departments. The council already has received a positive response from the King County Department of Transportation.

Harry Reinert of the Department of Development and Environmental Services, who chairs its Code Review Committee, provided an update on these recommendations. A long discussion ensued on the suitability of building schools in the rural area specifically to serve adjacent urban development, as is being proposed with the Black Diamond MPDs. Reinert encouraged the council to propose such issues to the county as part of the KCCP update.

Reinert will follow-up with each of the King County departments involved to ensure the council receives timely responses to its recommendations. This will aid the council’s review of the KCCP.

The next monthly meeting is 7-9:30 p.m. Feb 7 at the King County Sheriff’s Precinct No. 3

Area Council Information

The council meets on the first Monday of each month (except on legal holidays). Each meeting begins with a public comment period to provide local citizens with the opportunity to voice issues of concern to council members and King County or state officials in attendance.

Comments on Area Council business may be submitted to gmvac_chair@hotmail.com or GMVAC, P.O. Box 101, Maple Valley, WA 98038.

Peter Rimbos

Corresponding Secretary