Shelton council approves annexation and zoning update; forwards pedestrian design, landfill monitoring and towing contract to April agendas

Shelton City Council on March 18 approved an annexation resolution and adopted an amendment to the city's permitted-uses table while moving several project and contract items to April for further action.

The council voted unanimously to accept a proposed annexation in the H & M area and adopted Ordinance 2025-0924, which streamlines and updates chapter 20.06 of the Shelton Municipal Code on permitted uses. Council members placed a design-only resolution for a mid-block pedestrian crossing by Olympic (near the junior high) on the April 1 action agenda, and moved resolutions committing ongoing post-construction monitoring at the C Street landfill and authorizing a towing-services contract to the April consent agenda.

Why this matters: the annexation adds a 2.5-acre parcel designated for residential use into Shelton's formal annexation process; the code amendment is intended to make the city's land-use table more user-friendly for businesses; pedestrian-crossing design work is meant to address a visually obstructed mid-block crossing near a junior high; and the landfill and towing items carry multi-year budget or contract implications for city operations.

What the council acted on

- Annexation (Resolution 1360-0825): The council approved a resolution accepting an application to begin annexation of a roughly 2.5-acre vacant parcel in the city's urban growth area (the H & M annexation area), citing the process laid out in the recorded RCW reference read into the record. The resolution was approved by voice vote with all members present saying "aye." The clerk read the resolution number on the record.

- Ordinance 2025-0924 (amend permitted uses, Shelton Municipal Code chapter 20.06): Staff said the change reduces the number of narrow, outdated use categories, aligns permitted uses with the building code occupancy framework, and retains specific restrictions where state law or local impacts require them (for example, mineral extraction). The ordinance received a positive motion and a unanimous voice vote and was adopted at the meeting. Staff noted the state Commerce Department completed its 60-day review with no comments.

- Mid-block pedestrian crossing design (Resolution 1350-0924): Public Works described a design-only budget of $40,000 to prepare drawings, a refuge island, flashing beacons and replacement of an overhead sign at a curved mid-block crossing near the junior high. Council placed the resolution on the April 1 action agenda (design only; no construction funds were included). Staff said final design could be ready by August and construction funding would be sought later via grants.

- C Street landfill post-construction monitoring (Resolution 1369-0225): Staff said the city completed closure of the C Street landfill under an agreed order with the Department of Ecology and must budget for ongoing monitoring (topographic surveys, groundwater sampling, cap maintenance). The finance presentation noted about $282,000 remained in the solid-waste fund at the end of 2024 and that the city may receive one more reimbursement from Ecology before remaining obligations would be paid from city funds. The council voted to place the resolution on the April 1 consent agenda for formal budgeting.

- Towing-services contract (Resolution 1372-0225): The police chief recommended replacing the prior provider arrangement and establishing a contract with Summit Towing for police-ordered tows. The chief said officers had recently encountered towing fees in the $300'$500 range and asked for a contract that would keep costs to a lower agreed rate for police-directed tows. The council moved the resolution to the April 1 consent agenda.

Other procedural actions

- The council approved the consent agenda at the start of the meeting by a unanimous voice vote.

Votes and role of participants

- The meeting roll call shows Mayor Anisco, Council Members Blush, Stearns, Gilmore, Deputy Mayor Sherman, Council Member Sapp and Council Member Gutierrez present. Where the record shows only a voice vote ("all in favor, say aye"), the clerk recorded the motion as carrying and no roll-call breakdown was given in the transcript.

Authorities and references cited during the meeting

- Resolution text read into the record referenced state statute language for the annexation (read in the record as "RCW 35 a 0.14 0.12" by the clerk). - Ordinance 2025-0924: amends chapter 20.06 of the Shelton Municipal Code (per the ordinance reading at the meeting). - The C Street landfill monitoring requirement was described as arising from the city's agreed order with the Washington State Department of Ecology.

What's next: The council placed the pedestrian-crossing design resolution on the April 1 action agenda and the landfill monitoring and towing-contract resolutions on the April 1 consent agenda. The code change was adopted at the March 18 meeting. The annexation application will continue through required application verification and public hearing steps as set out in state law.

Ending: The council adjourned at 6:49 p.m.