Council pauses plan to site Public Works essential public facility on Shaw Island after residents demand safeguards

SH A W ISLAND / SAN JUAN COUNTY, Wash. — The San Juan County Council on Tuesday opened a public hearing on an ordinance to designate county property at 1427 Neck Point Road on Shaw Island as an essential public facility for county Public Works operations, and then continued the hearing to June 3 after residents asked for stronger environmental review, protection of existing residential uses and an explicit community role for stewardship of the county’s Blind Bay site.

The county’s Department of Community Development staff and Public Works Director Colin Huntermer described the process and three parcels under review and said that one northern parcel (the 1427 Neck Point property) is the county’s recommended preferred site. Staff also said the SEPA environmental checklist for the proposal has been processed and that a Mitigated Determination of Non‑Significance (MDNS) has issued; staff noted the designation would allow Public Works to apply for a site‑specific land use redesignation.

Why it matters: Several long‑time Shaw residents said industrial zoning at the north end of the island would conflict with the Shaw Subarea Plan and decades of local planning that seek to preserve the island’s rural, residential character. They urged the council to require additional environmental review, preserve options for residential uses on the parcels the county purchased last summer, and create a clear plan for the county’s currently used Blind Bay facility if operations move.

What residents told the council

- Lynn Barich and others said the existing Blind Bay site has served Public Works for decades and can continue to do so while the county plans a long‑range solution. Barich noted that Public Works had previously told county officials the Blind Bay site could be used for many more years and warned rezoning the Neck Point parcel to rural industrial would prohibit residential uses now present or planned for the county‑owned buildings.

- Kyle Loring, representing the Shaw Island Alliance, asked the council to postpone action until the environmental review process is fully completed and, if necessary, appealed, arguing state law requires simultaneous handling of any SEPA appeals with related land use hearings.

- Ray Glaze and other speakers described the long community effort to adopt and defend the Shaw Subarea Plan and argued an industrial rezone would undercut the plan’s purpose to protect the island’s quiet, rural and environmental character.

Staff and legal counsel response

Public Works and DCD staff said the ordinance under discussion would not itself redesignate land; rather, approval would allow the county to seek a site‑specific redesignation and proceed to the subsequent, multi‑step land‑use process. Prosecuting Attorney John Kane advised the council that staff could return with language directing how Blind Bay would be managed and asking staff to include proposed limitations and community participation measures as part of the redesignation application.

Action taken

Council members asked staff to draft specific, enforceable language that would (1) clarify the future function and stewardship of the Blind Bay property and (2) require the county’s site‑redesignation application to include proposed limits on future uses. The council continued the public hearing to June 3 so staff can prepare a revised ordinance and a companion resolution addressing Blind Bay stewardship and community participation. The motion to continue carried by voice vote.

Ending note: Several speakers urged the council to honor Shaw Island’s subarea plan and to ensure any redesignation process gives the island community a formal, ongoing role in how county property on Shaw Island is used and managed.