Poulsbo City Council could end one of two moratoriums

Published 12:00 pm Saturday, December 2, 2006

POULSBO — One of two citywide moratoriums on new development could come to an end Dec. 6 as the City Council has a public hearing on the city’s proposed Critical Areas Ordinance.

The council has spent the last two months reviewing the proposed ordinance after it enacted a moratorium on development near critical areas on Sept. 13.

At the CAO public hearing — 7:15 p.m., Dec. 6 at city hall — the council could chose to do a number of things including adopting the proposed ordinance, said Planning Director Barry Berezowsky.

“They could continue the public hearing or could direct staff to make some more changes,” Berezowsky said. “They could also choose to deliberate on it longer.”

However, the hope is that the council will complete its review of the ordinance during the Tuesday evening CAO workshop, and council members will be fully prepared to listen to the public’s comments Dec. 6, he said.

If the ordinance is adopted Wednesday night by the council, the citywide moratorium on development in or near critical areas will be lifted, Berezowsky said.

Kitsap County Association of REALTORS governmental affairs director Mike Eliason said the adoption of the new CAO will be a step in the right direction as it will allow for some currently prohibited development to take place, said.

“We need to move forward because in springtime and summer, real estate picks up,” Eliason said.

Since the moratoriums were enacted, Eliason said the city has been extremely proactive in resolving the issues that made them necessary.

“It’s a nice step, and part of the problem is that a lot of cities don’t have the staff resources to keep up with GMA (Growth Management Act),” he said.

Poulsbo Mayor Kathryn Quade said the ordinance’s adoption will be an important achievement for the city on many levels.

“I want to get into compliance with GMA as soon as possible,” Quade said.

Wednesday’s public hearing is one of the final remaining steps in the process. The hope is for the ordinance to be adopted by the end of the year, Quade said.

However, adoption of the CAO will eliminate only one moratorium. The city’s ban on new Planned Unit Developments will remain in effect indefinitely.

That ordinance should be presented to the council’s public works committee in late January or early February, Berezowsky said.

“PUDs still are going to continue to be prohibited in the city,” he said.

Even though no exact time frame has been set for the new PUD ordinance’s adoption, Berezowsky said he anticipates it could come as soon as March 2007.

“That all depends on how much the committee wants to discuss it,” Berezowsky said.