Orderly Development

These policies have been prepared under authority of RCW 36.70A.210(3) which states that, "A countywide planning policy shall at a minimum, address the following...Policies for promotion of contiguous and orderly development and provisions of urban services to such development..."

DP-33Jurisdictions should minimize the adverse impacts on resource lands and critical areas from new developments through the use of environmentally sensitive development and land use practices.

DP-34Jurisdictions should design public buildings and spaces, transportation facilities, and infrastructure so they contribute to livability, a desirable sense of place and community identity.

DP-35Jurisdictions should identify and plan for the development of parks, civic places, and public spaces, especially in or adjacent to centers.

DP-36Jurisdictions should develop high quality, compact urban communities that impart a sense of place, preserve local character, provide for mixed uses and choices in housing types, and encourage walking, bicycling, and transit use.

DP-37The County and cities are encouraged to protect and preserve historical, cultural and archaeological resources in a manner consistent with state law and local policies and in collaboration with state agencies and tribes. The County and cities should consider the potential impacts of development to culturally significant sites and tribal treaty fishing, hunting, and gathering grounds and should work with tribes to protect Tribal Reservation lands from encroachment by incompatible land uses and development both within reservation boundaries and on adjacent land.

DP-38The County and cities should reduce disparities in access to opportunity for all residents through inclusive community planning and making investments that meet the needs of current and future residents and businesses.

DP-39The County and cities should include measures in comprehensive plans, subarea plans, and development regulations that are intended to reduce and mitigate the impacts of displacement on marginalized residents and businesses as a result of development and redevelopment, particularly in regional, countywide, and other urban centers.

Urban design has a profound effect on quality of life. This subsection of the Development Patterns chapter ties together how we build the urban environment and livability, health, and safety. It responds to the legislative findings in the GMA where the state connects land use planning to health and public safety.¹⁴ The GMA considers provisions for health and safety to be a part of the goal of Public Services.¹⁵ VISION 2050 articulates the regional response to this state requirement and sets the stage for the CPPs to guide local plans. The policies here are the local response to state and regional initiatives that seek to connect land use planning with public health and safety.

14RCW 36.70A.010

15RCW 36.70A.020(12) and 36.70A.030(13)

DP-40The County and cities should address the safety, health, and well-being of residents and employees in countywide and local planning through:

a. Adoption of development standards that encourage design and construction of healthy buildings and facilities;

b. Provision of infrastructure that promotes physical activity; and

c. Incorporating a focus on health and well-being, including the reduction of existing disparities between population groups, into countywide and local decision-making processes.

DP-41The County and cities should adopt policies that create opportunities for:

a. Supporting urban food production practices, distribution, and marketing such as community gardens and farmers markets; and

b. Increasing the local agricultural economy’s capacity to produce, market, and distribute fresh and minimally processed foods.

DP-42The County and cities should conserve designated industrial land for future industries and related jobs by:

a. Protecting industrial land from encroachment by incompatible uses and development on adjacent land;

b. Discouraging non-industrial uses on industrial land unless such uses support and enhance existing industrial land uses; and

c. Discouraging conversion of industrial land to other land use designations unless it can be demonstrated that a specific site is not suitable for industrial uses.

DP-43Adjacent to military lands, the County and cities should encourage land uses that are compatible with military uses and discourage land uses that are incompatible.

DP-44The County and cities shall protect the continued operation of general aviation airports from encroachment by incompatible uses and development on adjacent land.