Vancouver City Council on Aug. 4 approved second amendments to pre-annexation development agreements (PETAs) for two properties in Section 30 — Greyrock properties and Pit LLC — to extend vesting and shift the sites onto an alternative path aligned with recent code updates.

Chad Eichen, Community Development Director, said Section 30 is a roughly 1-square-mile area in the city’s northeast with several pre-annexation agreements that had vested land-use rights inherited from the pre-annexation period. Those original vested rights were nearing expiration and, without change, could encourage property owners to pursue uses the city no longer considers appropriate for Section 30.

Under the approved second amendments, property owners who opt into the alternative path waive specific vested land uses that the city asked them to give up and receive a five-year extension on their amended PETA rights. Staff said the extension is intended to give property owners certainty while they plan larger, multi-year developments and to give market conditions time to evolve so higher-density development remains possible.

The amendments also confirm that previously negotiated traffic-impact-fee credits continue for eligible road improvements and reaffirm trip reservations in the original PETAs while clarifying which road extensions are credit-eligible. Staff said some narrow exemptions remain to allow site work that assists mine reclamation and fill operations for development safety.

Councilors had no public testimony on either amendment; the council approved both amendments by motion during the public hearing segment.

Staff said the changes implement the Section 30 code updates the council adopted earlier in the year and are intended to steer development outcomes toward the city’s updated land-use objectives.