COUNTY COMMISSIONERS Cathy Wolfe District One Diane Oberquell District Two Robert N. Macleod District Three HEARING EXAMINER BEFORE THE HEARING EXAMINER FOR THURSTON COUNTY In the Matter of the Application of ) File No. 2007102145 ) Jon P. Kuzma ) Twodeloo Acres ) ) FINDINGS, CONCLUSIONS, for Preliminary Plat Approval ) AND DECISION SUMMARY OF DECISION A preliminary plat for the subdivision of 5.42 acres into five single-family residential lots on real property located at 9050 50 th Lane, Olympia, in unincorporated Thurston County Washington is APPROVED, subject to conditions. SUMMARY OF RECORD Request Jon P. Kuzma (Applicant) requests approval of a preliminary plat to subdivide 5.42 acres into five single-family residential lots on real property located at 9050 50 th Lane, Olympia, in unincorporated Thurston County Washington. Hearing Date: The held an open record hearing on the application on June 16, 2008. Testimony: At the open record hearing, the following individuals presented testimony under oath: Gayle Zeller, Associate Planner, Development Services Department Kevin Hughes, Roads and Transportation Department John Ward, Environmental Health Department Jon Kuzma Connie Wenz-Kuzma 2000 Lakeridge Drive SW, Olympia, Washington 98502 (360) 786-5490/FAX (360) 754-2939
Exhibits: At the open record hearing the following exhibits were admitted: EXHIBIT 1 Development Services Planning & Environmental Section Report with the following attachments: Attachment a Notice of Public Hearing dated June 16, 2008 Attachment b Site Map Attachment c Zoning Map Attachment d Aerial Map Attachment e Preliminary Plat Map dated March 10, 2008 Attachment f Preliminary Plat Application received June 4, 2007 Attachment g Determination on Nonsignificance issued May 15, 2008 Attachment h Correspondence from North Thurston School District dated April 18, 2007 Attachment i February 25, 2008 Comment Letter from John Ward, Thurston County Public Health and Social Services Department - Environmental Health Attachment j Correspondence from City of Lacey dated May 3, 2007 Attachment k May 28, 2008 Memorandum from Kevin Hughes, Roads & Transportation Services, Development Review Division Attachment l Level 1 Trip Generation and Distribution Study Attachment m March 27, 2008 comment letter from Washington Department of Ecology EXHIBIT 2 EXHIBIT 3 Enlarged Site Plan Photos of Public Hearing Notice Posting EXHIBIT 4 Correspondence from Bill Eppenstein, dated June 10, 2008 EXHIBIT 5 Photos of the site Upon consideration of the testimony and exhibits submitted at the open record hearing, the Hearing Examiner enters the following findings and conclusions: FINDINGS 1. The Applicant requests approval of a preliminary plat to subdivide 5.42 acres into five single-family residential lots on real property located at 9050 50 th Lane, Olympia, in unincorporated Thurston County Washington. 1 Exhibit 1, page 1; Exhibit 1, Attachment f. 1 The legal description of the subject property is a portion of the southwest quarter of the southeast quarter and the northwest quarter of the southeast quarter of Section 25, Township 19 North, Range 1 West, W.M.; also known as Tax Parcel No. 11925420300. Exhibit 1, page 1; Exhibit 2, Plat Map. Twodeloo Acres/PLT 2007102145 page 2 of 8
2. The undeveloped subject property has a gentle slope with grades of up to 7%. It is forested with second growth conifers, maples, and alders. There are no critical areas onsite. The Applicant s single-family residence occupies the northwestern corner of the site. Surrounding uses consist of single-family residential development on one-acre parcels. Exhibit 1, page 2. 3. The subject property has a zoning designation of Residential LAMIRD One Dwelling Unit Per Acre (RL 1/1). Exhibit 1, page 2. The purposes of the RL 1/1 district include: allowing limited areas of more intense rural development at approximately one unit per acre; provide for infill development in areas that were previously established at this higher rural density; and to establish development standards that ensure infill rural development at this density can be accomplished without new urban levels of service. Thurston County Code (TCC) 20.11A.010. 4. Single-family residential development is an allowed use in the RL 1/1 district. TCC 20.11A.020. The RL 1/1 zone requires a minimum standard residential subdivision lot size of three-quarters of an acre. Required minimum yard setbacks include a front yard of 20 feet, a rear yard of ten feet, and six-foot minimum side yards. TCC 20.11A.040(1) and (3). 5. The Applicant proposes to subdivide the 5.42-acre residential parcel into five lots. Proposed Lot 1, 1.42 acres, would retain the existing house. The four new lots would each be one acre. The proposed net density would be slightly less than one unit per acre. The Applicant proposes to provide individual on-site septic facilities and a new well for each of the four new lots. Access to proposed Lots 1 and 2 would be from 50 th Lane NE, while proposed Lots 3, 4, and 5 would access via a private access and utilities easement connected to Center Lane NE. Exhibit 1, Attachments f and i; Exhibit 2, Plat Map. 6. The subject property is within the City of Lacey water service area. While lot 1 would continue to be served by the existing City of Lacey municipal water service, the City does not have the capacity to provide municipal water service to the new lots. There are no existing Group A water systems in the area that could provide domestic water connections to the plat. Because each of the proposed lots is one acre in area, the Thurston County Sanitary Code allows individual wells to provide water. Single-family well sites were identified and preliminarily approved for Lots 2, 3, 4, and 5. Exhibit 1, Attachments i and j. No water rights for the four proposed lots (if any are required) have been applied for because the Applicant does not intend to develop the parcels but rather to sell the land to others for development. Testimony of Ms. Wentz-Kuzma. 7. Test holes on proposed Lots 2, 3, 4, and 5 were evaluated and preliminarily approved as containing adequate depths of permeable, unsaturated soils to accommodate properly designed septic systems. Further soil study, including new or additional test pits, could be required before septic permit approval for each lot. Exhibit 1, Attachment i. Twodeloo Acres/PLT 2007102145 page 3 of 8
8. Thurston County Public Health and Social Services Environmental Health Division (EHD) reviewed the proposed plat for compliance with applicable state and County health codes. EHD determined that ground and surface waters would not be adversely impacted with development of the plat because no off-site water supplies were identified within 200 feet and no sanitary control areas for surrounding domestic water supplies extend onto the site. EHD noted that the well for each proposed lot must satisfy the Thurston County Certificate of Water Availability requirements prior to release of future septic and/or building permits. EHD recommended project approval with conditions. One of the conditions would require the Applicant take the following steps: a) place a note on the face of the final plat notifying future lot owners that well sites have been preliminary reviewed and approved; 2) record protective covenants with the County Auditor s office for each of the proposed well sites; and 3) in case of any change by the Applicant or future lot owners of an approved well site, the new proposed well site must be reviewed and approved by the Health Department and new protective covenants for the relocated well site must be recorded with the County Auditor prior to approval of any septic and/or building permits for the affected lot. Exhibit 1, Attachment i; Testimony of Mr. Ward. 9. The Applicant commissioned a Level I trip generation and distribution study (the study) from a professional traffic engineer. The study estimated that the project would generate four PM peak hour trips. Exhibit 1, Attachment l. 10. Thurston County Roads and Transportation Development Review Section (Roads) was forwarded the application materials for the purpose of reviewing for compliance with County road and drainage requirements. Upon review of the preliminary site plan, the trip generation study, and other file materials, Roads and Transportation Services recommended approval, subject to conditions. A condition of approval recommended by Roads requires all development of the proposed lots to comport with the 1994 Drainage Design and Erosion Control Manual. Exhibit 1, Attachment k; Testimony of Mr. Hughes. 11. The North Thurston School District would serve the proposed plat at Olympia View Elementary, Chinook Middle School, and River Ridge High School. The District submitted comments indicating that all facilities are anticipated to be over-capacity and requesting that the Applicant be required to execute a voluntary mitigation agreement prior to final plat approval to address the anticipated impacts of the new residential lots. Exhibit 1, Attachment h. 12. Pursuant to the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), Thurston County Development Services was designated lead agency for review of environmental impacts caused by the proposal. The Department reviewed: the environmental checklist; preliminary plat application; Roads and Transportation Services correspondence; North Thurston School District correspondence; and Washington State Department of Ecology correspondence, among other documents on file with Development Services. Upon completion of review, the Department issued a Determination of Non-Significance (DNS) on May 15, 2008, which became final on May 29, 2008. No appeals were filed. The DNS contains notes, which identify County Code requirements. Compliance with these requirements is Twodeloo Acres/PLT 2007102145 page 4 of 8
mandated by local law. Exhibit 1, page 2; Exhibit 1, Attachment g; Testimony of Ms. Zeller. 13. Notice of the public hearing was mailed to property owners within 500 feet of the site and posted on-site on June 6, 2008. Notice of hearing was also published in The Olympian and The Nisqually Valley News on June 6, 2008, at least ten days prior to hearing. Exhibit 1, page 2; Exhibit 1, Attachment a; Exhibit 3. 14. The County received public comment in support of the proposal. Exhibit 4, Eppenstein correspondence. CONCLUSIONS Jurisdiction The Hearing Examiner is granted jurisdiction to hear and decide applications for Thurston County preliminary plats pursuant to RCW 36.70.970, TCC 2.06.010(A), and TCC 18.12.090. Criteria for Review The following preliminary plat criteria in Thurston County Code 18.12.090 must be satisfied: 1. Appropriate provisions are made for the public health, safety, other public ways, transit stops, potable water supplies, sanitary wastes, parks and recreation, playgrounds, schools and school grounds and all other relevant facts, including sidewalks and other planning features that assure safe walking conditions for students who only walk to and from school; and 2. The public use and interest will be served by the platting of such subdivision and dedication. Conclusions Based on Findings 1. With conditions, appropriate provisions will be made for the public health, safety, public ways, potable water supplies, sanitary wastes, schools and school grounds, and all other relevant facts. As proposed, the plat satisfies density and dimensional criteria of the RL 1/1 zoning district. Each lot would access from a public road directly or by private access easement. The project would provide two points of connection to public roads in the vicinity. Well sites for the new single-family residential lots have been reviewed by the County and have received preliminary approval. Conditions of approval would require the Applicant to record restrictive covenants protecting the four well sites with the County Auditor prior to final plat approval. Future developers would be required to pursuer individual on-site well and septic system approval. Conditions would ensure that school impacts are mitigated prior to final plat approval and that all future site development is consistent with the requirements of the 1994 Drainage Design and Erosion Control Manual. Findings Nos. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, and 11. Twodeloo Acres/PLT 2007102145 page 5 of 8
2. With conditions of approval, the public use and interest will be served by the proposed subdivision. The subdivision would result in four new residential lots consistent with the purposes and development standards of the RL 1/1 zoning district. The proposed plat was reviewed for probable significant adverse environmental impacts and a DNS was issued. Findings Nos. 5 and 12. DECISION Based on the preceding findings and conclusions, the request for preliminary plat approval subdivide 5.42 acres into five single-family residential lots on real property located at 9050 50 th Lane, Olympia, in unincorporated Thurston County Washington is APPROVED, subject to the following conditions: 1. Prior to final plat approval copies of signed, notarized, and recorded (non-public) declaration of covenant forms must be submitted for each of the proposed single-family well sites for lots 2 through 5. Scaled site plans must be included with each covenant form. 2. Permanent survey control must be placed to establish all subdivision boundaries. 3. Prior to final plat submittal, the Applicant shall comply with local Thurston County legal requirements that have been identified as notes in the Determination of Non- Significance dated May 15, 2008. The Applicant shall also satisfy Thurston County legal requirements that are not listed as notes. 4. The final design of this subdivision and future development of lots shall conform to all minimum standards of the Zoning Ordinance (i.e. lot size, lot dimension, setbacks, etc.) and the Platting and Subdivision Ordinance. 5. Approval of the preliminary plat is effective for five years from the date of approval. During this period a final plat must be submitted to the Board of County Commissioners for approval. A one-year extension period may be granted by the Development Services Department. 6. Prior to final plat submittal, the Applicant shall submit written notice to the Development Services Department that adequate capacity exists in North Thurston School District to accommodate the students generated by this project or that a signed agreement has been entered between the Applicant and the School District to mitigate the impacts that the plat will have on the district schools. 7. The preliminary plat approval does not relieve the Applicant of compliance with all other local, state and/or federal approvals, permits, and/or laws necessary to conduct the development activity for which this permit is issued. All additional permits and/or approvals shall be the responsibility of the Applicant. Twodeloo Acres/PLT 2007102145 page 6 of 8
8. All development on the site shall be in substantial compliance with the approved preliminary plat. Any alteration of the plat site plan (submitted as an exhibit at the public hearing) will require approval of a new or amended plat. The Thurston County Department of Planning and Environmental Section will determine if a proposed amendment is substantial to require Hearing Examiner approval. 9. The following notes and features shall be shown on, or deleted from, the final plat map: Notes: a. This subdivision was reviewed and approved based on standards and allowances of the Residential LAMIRD-One Dwelling Unit Per One Acre (RL 1/1)(TCC 20.11A). b. In accordance with the Thurston County Comprehensive Plan policy related to schools and the Washington State Growth Management Act, the Applicant shall mitigate the impact of additional students on schools serving the preliminary plat. Mitigation for these impacts must be negotiated with the North Thurston School District. Evidence of payment of school mitigation fees shall be provided to the Development Services Department prior to building permit issuance. c. Proper erosion and sediment control practices shall be used on the construction site and adjacent areas to prevent upland sediments from entering the drainage ditch. All areas disturbed or newly created by construction activities shall be seeded, vegetated, or given some other equivalent type of protection against erosion. Construction debris shall be properly disposed of; no construction debris shall be allowed to enter the wetland or cause water quality degradation of State waters. d. Trees to be saved must be protected during construction by fencing located at the edge of the critical root zone. Construction activities are prohibited within the critical root zone. e. Well sites have been identified for Lots 2 through 5 and the locations are on file with the Thurston County Health Department. Protective covenants are on file with the Auditor s Office for each of the proposed well sites. Any change in the proposed well site locations must be reviewed and approved by the Health Department and new covenants must be recorded prior to approval and release of sewage system and/or building permits. f. ATTENTION: Thurston County has no responsibility to build, improve, maintain or otherwise service the private road or driveway within or providing access to property described in this plat. The building, maintenance, repair, improvement, operation, and servicing of the stormwater facilities outside the county rights-of-way are the responsibility of the property owner(s). g. If seasonal drainage crosses subject property, no filling or disruption of the natural flow shall be permitted. Twodeloo Acres/PLT 2007102145 page 7 of 8
Features: h. Private roads are required to remain open at all times for emergency and public service vehicle use. Any future improvements (gates, fencing, etc.) that would interfere with open access will need to be approved by all applicable departments of Thurston County. i. Storage requirements for runoff from buildings and parking surfaces shall be shown on individual building lots, including drywell sizing or storm drain connection points. j. Street addresses, lot size, and dimensions for each lot shall be shown on the final map. k. No single family well sites for lots 2 through 5 are allowed as part of the development of the preliminary plat. The proposed single-family well sites for lots 2 through 5 and their 100-foot sanitary control radii must be deleted from the final plat map. l. All public and private roads shall be clearly delineated and labeled. m. The existing single-family residence and any associated outbuildings shall be shown on the face of the map. DECIDED this 1 st day of July, 2008. Twodeloo Acres/PLT 2007102145 page 8 of 8