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Easton Subarea Plan—Public Comment PUBLIC COMMENT ON THE EASTON SUBAREA PLAN What the Law Allows and Prohibits on Type 3 LAMIRD Land Under the Growth Management Act and Kittitas County Code To: Kittitas County Planning Department, Community Development Services and consultants, As you update the Easton Subarea Plan, I am submitting this comment to request that the plan include clear, enforceable language defining what can and cannot be built on Type 3 LAMIRD land. The Growth Management Act, Kittitas County's Comprehensive Plan, and the County Code already set these standards. They just need to be stated plainly in the subarea plan so there is no ambiguity going forward. This comment draws on the legal framework established by RCW 36.70A.070(5), RCW 36.70A.030(35), Kittitas County Code Chapter 17.15, the Critical Areas Ordinance (KCC Title 17A), the Kittitas County Comprehensive Plan, and relevant Growth Management Hearings Board decisions. 1. WHAT STATE LAW SAYS ABOUT TYPE 3 LAMIRDs The Growth Management Act created Type 3 LAMIRDs under RCW 36.70A.070(5) as a narrow exception to general rural land use restrictions. The Legislature authorized counties to allow limited new commercial development in rural areas, but only when all three of the following conditions are met: 1. Isolated small-scale business. The development must be an isolated, small-scale business. This is not aspirational language—it is a ceiling on what can be built. 2. Site previously occupied by an existing business. Under RCW 36.70A.070(5)(d), the new development must utilize a site that was previously occupied by a business. LAMIRD designations are tied to areas or uses in existence prior to 1991. This is a threshold eligibility requirement, not a preference. 3. Conforms to rural character. The new business must conform to the rural character of the area as defined by the county government. These are conjunctive requirements. A proposal that fails any one of them is ineligible for Type 3 LAMIRD development. The Growth Management Hearings Board confirmed in People fora Liveable Community v. Jefferson County(No. 03-2-0009c, 2003) that LAMIRDs are "intended to be a one-time recognition of existing areas and uses and are not intended to be used continuously to meet needs (real or perceived) for additional commercial and industrial lands." 2. THE HARD LIMITS: WHAT KITTITAS COUNTY CODE ALLOWS Kittitas County implemented the GMA's Type 3 LAMIRD standards through KCC 17.15.070, which governs the rural General Commercial zoning district. These are the binding dimensional and intensity limits for any development on Type 3 LAMIRD land: These limits exist to implement the GMA's "isolated small-scale business" standard. They are not starting points for negotiation. They are the maximum development intensity the Legislature intended for rural commercial land. Any proposal that exceeds these thresholds is, by definition, not a small-scale business and cannot be approved under Type 3 LAMIRD authority. Page 1