4.28.070 Application standards.
(1) Applicants for open space-general classification or timberland classification, or any reclassification, shall submit the following to the assessor’s office:
(a) A completed application form.
(b) A legal description of the subject property.
(c) A detailed site plan of the subject property at sufficient scale to show any existing or proposed development, roads, easements and trails. Critical areas described in chapter 30.62A SCC, including streams, wetlands, lakes marine waters, and their associated buffers must also be shown together with any proposed buffers and any other salient features which may be appropriate to include depending on which criteria have been claimed by the applicant. If open space or timberland classification is being sought on a portion of the property, the site plan must clearly delineate (with specific dimensions) the portion of the property for which the classification is requested. (Developed portions of the property are generally not eligible for timberland classification; exceptions to this include roads and trails.)
(d) A vicinity map.
(e) A non-refundable fee of $500.00.
(2) In addition to the requirements of subsection (1), applicants for open space-general classification shall also submit an "open space checklist" in which the applicant discloses the designation criteria he/she wishes to claim as being met on the subject property. Applicants must provide materials justifying how their property meets the criteria selected.
(3) Pursuant to RCW 84.34.041, all applications for timberland classification shall be made upon forms prepared by the Department of Revenue and supplied by the granting authority and shall be accompanied by a Timber Management Plan. Pursuant to Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 458-30-232(2) and (5)(b), a Timber Management Plan must include the following elements:
(a) A legal description of or the parcel number(s) of all land the applicant desires to be classified as timber land;
(b) The date or dates the land was acquired;
(c) A statement that the timber land is held in contiguous ownership of at least five acres and is primarily devoted to and used to grow and harvest timber;
(d) A brief description of the timber on the land or, if the land has been recently harvested or supports a growth of brush and noncommercial type timber, a description of the owner’s plan to restock the timber land within three years;
(e) If the timber or forest management plan for the land has existed for more than one year, the application must indicate the nature and extent to which the plan has been implemented or changed;
(f) A statement about whether the timber land is also used to graze livestock;
(g) A statement about whether the land has been subdivided or a plat has been filed with respect for the land;
(h) A statement about whether the land and the applicant have complied with the restocking, forest management, fire protection, insect and disease control, weed control, and forest debris provisions of title 76 RCW or applicable rules under title 76 RCW;
(i) A statement about whether the land is subject to forest fire protection assessments under RCW 76.04.610;
(j) A statement about whether the land is subject to a lease, option, or other right that permits the land to be used for a purpose other than growing and harvesting timber;
(k) A summary of the applicant’s past experience and activities in growing and harvesting timber;
(l) A summary of the applicant’s current and continuing activities in growing and harvesting of timber; and
(m) A statement that the applicant is aware of the potential tax liability involved if the land ceases to be classified as timber land. (Added by Ord. 92-080, July 23, 1992; Amended by Amended Ord. 06-061, Aug. 1, 2007, Eff date Oct. 1, 2007; Amended by Ord. 09-132, Nov. 23, 2009, Eff date Jan. 1, 2010; Amended by Amended Ord. 14-054, Aug. 20, 2014, Eff date Sept. 4, 2014).