County planning staff reported on land-use activity, an appeal by the city of Irrigon, and a recent governor’s executive order that may accelerate filings for large renewable-energy projects.

The planning director said one conditional-use permit the board approved was appealed by the city of Irrigon; the city has filed a friend-of-the-court brief and the county record is being prepared for review. “They've got just like a brief saying they're on the side of here again, they're not a party to it, but they're just writing a brief on,” the planning director said. Staff outlined the record-completion process, including a 21-day period to finalize the record and subsequent filing deadlines for legal briefs, and said a hearing could be scheduled in the following months once the record is certified.

The nut graf: Planning staff advised the board that a governor-issued executive order directs the Department of Energy to prioritize and “streamline” the siting and physical-work tests for renewable projects, and staff asked for a policy discussion about county enforcement, conditional-use permits and possible code adjustments.

The planning director summarized the executive-order implications: the order prioritizes projects to meet IRS “physical work” tests that show construction has begun and authorizes the Department of Energy director to use enforcement discretion on civil penalties in some circumstances. Planning staff said the order could lead to an uptick in projects and raised questions about how the county might respond if projects begin physical work without a local land-use permit.

Staff recommended a work session to consider enforcement options and whether to change the county’s code-enforcement ordinance or pursue other tools. The director noted the county’s limited authority to “look the other way” and that code-enforcement remedies (citations to justice court, ordinance changes) could be used but would require policy direction. The board asked staff to consult with other counties and schedule a work session.

Separately, planning staff said the county is moving forward with solar siting standards and other code updates urged by the board. Staff also reminded the board that several large renewable projects are in various stages of site-certificate or transmission planning in Morrow County.

Ending: Planning staff will report back after discussing enforcement options with legal counsel and adjacent counties and will schedule a board work session to consider policy responses.

(Staff discussion; no new permits were approved at this session.)