PORT TOWNSEND — City, county, port and Tri-Area government and business interests will re-form the Joint Growth Management Steering Committee on Thursday night to collaborate on determining future county growth.
The meeting at 7 p.m. in the Jefferson County commissioners’ chambers on the ground floor of Jefferson County Courthouse, 1820 Jefferson St., was prompted two weeks ago when the Port Townsend City Council considered appealing the county commissioners’ recent approval of the Port of Port Townsend’s 24-acre light industrial-essential public facilities rezoning proposal at Jefferson County International Airport.
The council, hearing pleas from county residents not to go through the Land Use Planning Act appeals process, backed away, instead calling for the Joint Growth Management Steering Committee meeting within two weeks of the council’s action.
The intention would be to come up with a joint strategy for growth management countywide, city leaders agreed.
Looking for collaboration, Port Townsend City Councilman David King said as one of the elected city representatives on the committee he would be “going in with an open mind and a willing brain,” looking to collaborate with county and port leaders.
“I think the establishment of the steering committee is a good sign,” he said.
King will join Mayor Michelle Sandoval and Councilwoman Catharine Robinson as the city representatives on the committee.
The Port of Port Townsend commissioners were expected today to designate Commissioner John Collins as their representative on the committee.
Jefferson County Commissioners David Sullivan, Phil Johnson and John Austin will be the county’s elected representatives.
Tri-Area representation
For the Tri-Area, Port Hadlock chamber leader Frances Rawski will join Port Hadlock business representatives Garth McHattie and Joyce Murphy.
“The broad agenda is to facilitate better and ongoing discussion and coordination among all of the governmental entities,” Collins said.
“This particular body will be more charged with growth management policy.”
Economic development could also be discussed, he said.
“I just remain very confident that we do have a broad common ground among us that we could be working toward that,” Collins said.
Sullivan, county commissioners chairman, will conduct the Thursday night meeting, expected to last two hours.
A staff presentation will be given to share the background, roles and responsibilities of the Joint Growth Management Steering Committee.
Its purpose under the state Growth Management Act and the city and county upcoming comprehensive plan updates will also be discussed and the existing countywide planning policy will also be reviewed.
Inactive in 2005
Sullivan said the committee has been active for past comprehensive planning but went inactive in 2005.
Until now, Sullivan said, the committee “hasn’t had pressing issues to meet on.”
“We have wanted to do this in the past, but we’re doing it a little faster because the city requested that,” Sullivan said.
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Port Townsend/Jefferson County Editor Jeff Chew can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at jeff.chew@ peninsuladailynews.com.
