Homeowners urge removal of proposed 10-foot setback in Newcastle critical areas update

Vice Chair Lynn Troutman presiding over the Newcastle Planning Commission on Aug. 27 heard public comment from three residents who said proposed changes to the city’s critical areas ordinance — including an additional 10-foot building setback beyond Ecology-recommended wetland buffers — could make existing homes nonconforming and limit homeowners’ ability to repair or expand.

The comments matter because the draft changes would increase required setbacks around certain wetlands: speakers described a current 40-foot recommended buffer for a Category 4 wetland and said the proposal would add a 10-foot building setback, effectively creating a 50-foot limit that could run through existing houses and block planned additions.

Scott Adams, a resident of the Lake Washington neighborhood, said his house was built in 1993 and “currently complies with the 40-foot buffer,” but that the proposed change “would go straight through our kitchen, making our home nonconforming.” Adams asked the commission to remove the proposed 10-foot building setback, grandfather existing properties and extend…