COURT FINDS IN FAVOR OF KITSAP CRITICAL AREAS ORDINANCE
Kitsap County Shoreline Buffers Supported by Superior Court Decision
(Port Orchard)-In a decision dated June 26, 2008, Judge Craddock D.
Verser of Jefferson County Superior Court upheld all aspects of the Kitsap
County Critical Areas Ordinance that had been appealed by Kitsap Alliance of
Property Owners.
The Superior Court decision ruled that the County’s designation of its
shorelines as critical areas was appropriate and the scientific process the
County used to revise and expand its shoreline buffer widths was based on
“best available science.” KAPO had also claimed that the County’s CAO
was an unconstitutional taking of property rights which the Court disagreed
with, again pointing to the scientific information that supported protective
buffer widths.
“We are pleased to have this issue finally resolved,” noted Steve Bauer,
chair of the Board of County Commissioners. “This decision removes a great
deal of uncertainty in the way we conduct our environmental reviews. This
helps us provide better service to our permit applicants.”
The CAO was first updated in 2005 and then revised in 2007 as a result of an
appeal by environmental organizations regarding protection of wetlands and
shoreline areas. The County revised the CAO to expand wetland regulations
and increase shoreline buffer widths which the Central Puget Sound Growth
Management Hearings Board then approved. In the fall of 2007, KAPO appealed
that decision to Superior Court.
The Superior Court decision noted that “land use must be regulated to
preserve the environment” and that no party had disputed that. In
recognizing the debate surrounding environmental regulation of land use,
Judge Verser pointed to the court’s role as insuring that agencies follow
proper procedures in designating and protecting critical areas. The court
concluded that the County followed a “reasoned process to address the
necessity of protecting the identified functions and values” of critical
areas.
For more information on Critical Areas Ordinance, contact Patty Charnas at
360.337.4558.
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Last Updated: July 02, 2008
County Public
Information Staff:
Public Communications Manager Doug Bear
360-337-4598
