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County amends addressing and land-use procedures; board approves two ordinances
Summary
The Board of County Commissioners approved two procedural ordinances that remove an antiquated mylar requirement, update 9-1-1 addressing rules and enable limited GIS uses of unmanned aircraft for mapping and addressing assignments.
The Board of County Commissioners of Okanagan County voted to adopt two ordinances to update land‑use and addressing procedures, removing paper mylar map requirements and clarifying how physical addresses are assigned. Planning Director Pete Palmer described the package as a set of “procedural amendments” to several code sections and said addresses will now be assigned when building permits are issued.
Palmer told the commissioners the amendments remove the requirement for a standards‑based mylar and update Okanagan County Code (chapter 12.25) to: allow naming private roads with fewer than three structures under clarified procedures; authorize the county department to determine appropriate road or access points when assigning addresses; and permit county GIS to use unmanned aircraft for mapping, land management and addressing support. The package also includes housekeeping corrections under titles that cover short subdivisions, final plats, planned developments, destination resorts and floodplain management.
Why it matters: The changes align county practice with state guidance, reduce an administrative paper requirement that developers and staff must manage, and shift addressing decisions to the permitting stage. Palmer said the change is intended to simplify permitting and to provide GIS staff with modern tools for mapping and address assignment.
The board moved and seconded approval of ordinance 2025‑6 (housekeeping and mylar removal) and ordinance 2025‑7 (amendments to chapter 12.25 on 9‑1‑1 physical addressing). After a brief opportunity for public comment — the amendments were treated as procedural and did not require a public hearing — the board voted “Aye” and adopted both ordinances.
The ordinances will be published in the county packet and added to the Okanagan County Code; Palmer said staff will circulate guidance to developers and permitting staff about when addresses will be assigned and how the new private‑road naming rule will be applied.
