The purpose of this chapter is to establish the type of action and procedures for suggesting amendments and encouraging public participation for comprehensive plan, subarea plans, and development regulation amendments.
(Ord. 740 § 1 (part), 1996)
A comprehensive plan, subarea plan, or development regulation amendment is a Type V (legislative) action and shall be considered in accordance with the procedures for such actions as set forth in this chapter.
(Ord. 740 § 1 (part), 1996)
Amendments to the comprehensive plan, a subarea plan, or development regulations may be suggested by any person, including but not limited to applicants, citizens, hearing examiners and staff of other agencies by providing the following written information on a form approved by the director to meet the docketing requirements of this chapter:
A.
Name, address and telephone number of the person, business, agency or other organization suggesting the amendment;
B.
Citation of the specific text, map or other illustration suggested to be amended;
C.
The suggested amendment;
D.
If a suggested amendment is to a plan or to both a plan and a development regulation, a statement of how the amendment (1) promotes the public health, safety and welfare; (2) is consistent with or in conflict with other portions of the comprehensive plan or subarea plan; and (3) complies with Chapter RCW 36.70A, also known as the Growth Management Act, and the Pomeroy County Countywide Planning Policies;
E.
If a suggested amendment is only to the development regulations, a statement as to how the amendment complies with the comprehensive plan.
(Ord. 740 § 1 (part), 1996)
If during the review of any project permit application the city identifies any deficiencies in plans or development regulations, the identified deficiencies shall be docketed on a form as provided in PMC 16.08.030, for possible future plan or development regulation amendments. “Deficiency” as used herein means the absence of required or potentially desirable contents of a comprehensive plan, subarea plan, or development regulation.
(Ord. 740 § 1 (part), 1996)
The director shall compile and maintain for public review a list of suggested amendments and “identified deficiencies” to the comprehensive plan, subarea plans, and the city’s development regulations by appropriate classification and in the order which such suggested amendments were received.
(Ord. 740 § 1 (part), 1996)
A.
Suggested amendments to the comprehensive plan, subarea plan or development regulations shall be considered at least once each calendar year, but the comprehensive plan shall be amended no more often than once each calendar year, except that amendments may be considered more frequently for the initial adoption of a subarea plan, the adoption of a shoreline master program, in cases of emergency, or to resolve an appeal of an adopted comprehensive plan filed with a Growth Management Board or with the court. The city council shall initiate consideration of suggested amendments by motion requesting the planning commission to prepare a recommendation.
B.
Suggested amendments shall generally be considered by the planning commission in the order received, although suggestions which concern the same property, group of properties, subarea, or land use topic may be combined. All the recommendations of the planning commission shall be considered concurrently by the city council. The annual deadlines for submitting suggested plan amendments shall be October 31, and suggested development regulation amendments shall be April 30, unless otherwise stated by the city council.
C.
The planning commission and city council shall endeavor to consider suggested plan amendments between January and June, and suggested development regulations between July and December of each year. Where amendments to both a plan and development regulations are suggested, or where an amendment to the comprehensive plan would be implemented by an amendment to the development regulations, such amendments may be considered concurrently.
(Ord. 740 § 1 (part), 1996)
The public may be made aware of the opportunity to suggest amendments and to comment on suggested amendments through methods including but not limited to direct mailings, newsletter and newspaper articles, legal advertisements, and notices posted in public places.
(Ord. 740 § 1 (part), 1996)
New development regulations or amendments to development regulations may be initiated at any time by a recommendation from the director of public works. Within thirty-five days from the council’s receipt of the department’s recommendation on one or more proposed development regulations or amendments, the city council shall, in a public meeting, consider the department recommendation on the proposed regulation(s) or amendment(s) and decide whether to initiate review of the proposed regulation(s) or amendment(s). If the council decides to initiate review of the proposed regulation(s) or amendment(s), it shall refer the same to the planning commission for review, consistent with the provisions of PMC 16.08.140 through 16.08.170. A decision by the council to initiate the regulation(s) or amendment(s) review process at this stage is procedural only and does not constitute a decision by the council as to whether the regulation or amendment will ultimately be approved.