[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6738044,"mediaKeyId","5899561-93d122413b085bc4dd85ac39f1573737","parentId",5899561,"title","Monroe Planning Commission reviews sweeping critical-areas code update; staff to return with citations","audioSeconds",2854,"startMs",63000,"endMs",2917000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5899561-93d122413b085bc4dd85ac39f1573737&start=63&end=2917","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5899561-93d122413b085bc4dd85ac39f1573737/thumbnail_63000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6738044/Monroe-City/Snohomish-County/Washington/Monroe-Planning-Commission-reviews-sweeping-critical-areas-code-update-staff-to-return-with-citations","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6738044-19dcad0de9de8c5e3368a1a3983f871d/orig.mp4?Expires=1771150744&Signature=hpwBUaAu9n236u65TJjVsOVserurSODZU8~~CVlYtYwIL9~nKjpgVNK~6TeKejHhz0hdrtDia3m0aeAglpCxCfc~mV-mQTUWVJ8O3-QCO525b4Li-zouugTGGR3RfXbE4MACIqEcm9z3HUX9WznidUfKQYDLXEVQGjPtjqy0xl7l3rmzIb8vybYBPgkaoW-Q81eafsnGXo38FZh9xQC7bl9sxlG4H7Q3Q5CY4z~ndKGNbYO3dlJAYc1IZRqSlk2Un-SRq2Ix~gDtjWD6dVKvQushg5jI2gkIhCGQ4u3hKHSMXhhEtORy6U16~ZYtH4sQuyLv1MZqRDvFE1cWx1k3cQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Monroe City, WA","date","2025-09-23T21:46:46Z","article","The Monroe Planning Commission on Sept. 22 received a workshop on proposed updates to the city's critical-areas code intended to align local rules with state guidance and newer scientific mapping.

City planner Kate, who led the presentation, said she is auditing the existing code and will return with revised language and citations. \"I'm still hopeful to get through it by the end of the year,\" Kate said, and pledged to include specific sources when the draft returns.

The updates staff presented focus first on definitions and references to \"best available science\" as defined at the state level, then on more technical sections including maps, inventories, aquifer protections, water/stream typing, wetlands standards, invasive-species controls and mitigation sequencing. Kate said most definitions are drawn from the Washington Administrative Code and the Revised Code of Washington, supplemented with language from other jurisdictions that have successfully secured state approvals.

One concrete change flagged by staff: Department of Health mapping shows two wellhead protection areas within the city limits that were not reflected in the earlier analysis. \"We actually have 2 wellhead protection areas. Mister Bacon has 1 off of Chain Lake Road, and then there's a secondary, kind of south of the Department of Corrections,\" Kate said, adding the city will need to adopt regulations not currently in code.

The commission discussed a transition in stream \"typing\" nomenclature from older numeric categories to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife shorthand (S, F, Np, Ns), and staff said stream regulations tied to the Shoreline Master Program will be cross-referenced. Kate also noted the city's critical-area maps have not been substantially updated since 2005 and that state mapping products (WDFW, Ecology, Department of Health) will be used to supplement the local map.

Commissioners pressed on private-property impacts and the limits of regulatory authority. Members asked whether the draft language would leave property owners with no reasonable economic use; Kate said the code includes a separate reasonable-use variance process that goes to the hearing examiner. \"We actually have a specific section within the code, which I don't think is in tonight's packet, but it is the reasonable use variance,\" she said, describing an example in which an entire parcel is impacted and the hearing examiner must decide the smallest viable envelope.

Questions also addressed practical enforcement and long-term maintenance. Commissioners and staff discussed homeowners associations (HOAs) that are expected to maintain common-area critical-area tracts: Kate said the city's regulatory option is to enforce code requirements but that the city has limited authority to compel HOAs to set dues or manage finances; if an HOA fails, enforcement may fall to individual property owners.

Invasive-species control, particularly knotweed and blackberries, drew repeated attention. Commissioners asked whether the draft should permit limited chemical treatments; Kate said some other jurisdictions include constrained chemical-control language and that she will research defensible, reviewable approaches and may reference county standards.

Wetland development standards, Kate said, will continue to follow the Department of Ecology's Western Washington rating system (2014) and are not being changed in this draft. She also advised applicants that critical-areas reports prepared by qualified specialists are required and that the city uses third-party scientific review during permitting.

Kate closed by outlining next steps: reorganize exemptions to make clear which provisions apply to specific critical-area types; include aquifer recharge regulations in the next packet; and provide citations and a filled-out audit checklist for state reviewers in the environmental review package.

Commissioners did not take formal action on the code at the workshop but directed staff to return with the cited materials and revised text. Kate said she will bring the next set of edits at an upcoming meeting and complete two priority items for the next draft: aquifer recharge regulations and a reorganized exemption section.

The commission will continue the review at future meetings.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","City of Monroe, WA Planning Commission - September 22, 2025 Regular Meeting","oneSentenceSummary","The Monroe Planning Commission on Sept. 22 received a workshop on proposed updates to the city's critical-areas code intended to align local rules with state guidance and newer scientific mapping.","taxTitle","Monroe City, Snohomish County, Washington","taxId",71110,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6738040,"Monroe staff: PUD under contract for former airport would consolidate jobs; city clarifies storage rules ahead of a development agreement",998,4204000,5202000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5899561-93d122413b085bc4dd85ac39f1573737&start=4204&end=5202","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5899561-93d122413b085bc4dd85ac39f1573737/thumbnail_4204000.jpg","/articles/6738040/Monroe-City/Snohomish-County/Washington/Monroe-staff-PUD-under-contract-for-former-airport-would-consolidate-jobs-city-clarifies-storage-rules-ahead-of-a-development-agreement","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6738040-dc1e2c57e277984b007bf164e8bb0590/orig.mp4?Expires=1771150744&Signature=fG1-dmP-kTHmDeO38O5jYr-J2A~2jYKKcKvnXznMhnMIiKsWbj3VK9zVDvx9EPsgXGzQJZlK-B1Fle0cZMsvn6TG1-1ZCKu09KHl0trS6d~fgniV-pLx2m~HppQ3uYCoAmJ5GGh2Ajnd6OCoCTBxsQOvjoZqviMcjMGKv-Fep~WJxoqp5ZCQFPu997tzu1MTVhoMymRfOkLTlhXlN2Y72JdlOLAJIUYEau6GBJ6uPDOuhCDQJ6Yt7zFfaLtEWwXTlC2ArBd-24Aq7-K02-Wer-Z7kPUFTZgQ0naF2BS-CtpEQHYtcXUVr0UHXzuA~8IbUeKPhCN98GF2elrm03ND4A__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","At the Sept. 22 meeting the commission's Community Development staff reported that a public-utility district (PUD) has the former airport property under contract and is preparing a development agreement with the city.

Staff said the PUD estimates the consolidated facility could house roughly 2,200 employees, though not all would be net-new jobs to the region. \"They're not all new jobs, but they are jobs that would, potentially be in, locations other than, Monroe that would be consolidated here,\" a staff presenter said.

Staff also summarized a recent legal-administrative step: the PUD appealed a director's interpretation that outdoor storage is not allowed in the tourist commercial zone. The hearings examiner ruled for the city, and staff said the PUD's plan has been revised to rely on indoor storage \"within a structure that constitutes that that is made up of 3 walls and a roof. So there can be 1 open side,\" staff said.

Staff offered to circulate the PUD's draft site plan to the commission and noted that a development agreement would be an action for city council rather than a matter for the planning commission. Traffic impacts and other project-level environmental and infrastructure reviews will proceed as part of the normal permitting and agreement process.

The commission did not take a formal vote; staff said it would continue to coordinate on the development agreement and circulate project materials for commission awareness.","Community Development staff told the Monroe Planning Commission that a public-utility district has the former airport property under contract and is preparing a development agreement that would consolidate operations and include indoor storage structures.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6738035,"Planning Commission to move meetings to council chambers Oct. 13; dais layout and live microphones discussed",567,3405000,3972000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5899561-93d122413b085bc4dd85ac39f1573737&start=3405&end=3972","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5899561-93d122413b085bc4dd85ac39f1573737/thumbnail_3405000.jpg","/articles/6738035/Monroe-City/Snohomish-County/Washington/Planning-Commission-to-move-meetings-to-council-chambers-Oct-13-dais-layout-and-live-microphones-discussed","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6738035-9bd76aba310feb2abdd56b29b24b1892/orig.mp4?Expires=1771150744&Signature=ZLLnSNk~P4aMZkFsqXULBnvhv4KPvrZ2q0gfwC-D85oXzU7pUzeC8qruMKCywJ0KGRbBghtZTOP1v0je-g2JAIYq-Su3cIMzLdKD2Cs~YVQ-YhyZx8qJN7YUAgu7niokjOvScRMfgNQRERH5jC1l0VIW5xY1AaS4rsx3jllp2X9Jf8XRRPnVyaAVbFeeqyN7SUdAiNlqTQIhbDHeZqHxxiRL~69xujaVY45OWkxu-e60K8GqYwF2uSXDKNOrk51H26zqWLYkZz2HMbnwxgbKcZ87f3DnPubmw35ZxlzsOr1NjLl7UoztNGHJP-vOYNe0-4zG45vV0yxUWeTZeMoSHw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Staff presented a proposed seating chart and logistics for moving Planning Commission meetings into the council chambers. The move is scheduled to begin with the commission's Oct. 13 meeting.

Hannah and Kate explained the dais will include microphones, individual laptop/monitor screens with Zoom feed and a large TV for public displays. The commission discussed chair placement (middle vs. end of dais) and accessibility issues for hearing-impaired members; one commissioner requested to be seated to maximize audibility. Staff said the room's microphones are perpetually live (\"hot\") and that the electronic hand-raise does not consistently control the hardware; for that reason, the flag system for requesting to speak will remain in use.

Commissioners agreed to start with the proposed configuration and reassess after the first meetings in the new space. Kate confirmed the October 13 meeting will be held in the council chambers and that staff will work with commissioners on seat assignments and accommodations ahead of that date.","The commission agreed to move regular meetings to the council chambers beginning Oct. 13. Staff presented a seating chart, audiovisual layout and accessibility considerations; commissioners raised concerns about microphone behavior, chair placement and hearing-impaired access. Staff said microphones are live and flags will remain in use.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Monroe Planning Commission reviews sweeping critical-areas code update; staff to return with citations

Monroe staff: PUD under contract for former airport would consolidate jobs; city clarifies storage rules ahead of a development agreement

Planning Commission to move meetings to council chambers Oct. 13; dais layout and live microphones discussed