Kitsap County continues public hearings on 2025 budget amendment, Division Avenue vacation and building‑code changes to May 12

The Kitsap County Board of Commissioners opened public hearings on three items at its April 28 meeting, heard staff presentations and public comment, and continued all three hearings to the board’s May 12 meeting for decision only.

Budget amendment: Christopher Carlson, county budget manager, presented the first‑quarter amendment to the 2025 budget. Carlson said the county uses quarterly amendments to capture one‑time adjustments and carryover spending. The proposed changes would increase general‑fund expenditures by nearly $1.3 million (about $903,000 described as one‑time/community‑development related and roughly $107,000 in items with ongoing impacts), and raise the county’s total appropriated budget across funds by a little over $3 million for the quarter. Carlson listed examples of items covered in the amendment: rollover funding for the comprehensive plan work, vehicle purchases for the medical examiner, firearm replacement and training costs for the sheriff’s office, project funding for website redevelopment, a District Court case‑management upgrade, and human‑resources classification software integration. Carlson told the board he and staff had briefed commissioners in advance and were continuing routine budget housekeeping. The public‑hearing item was continued to May 12 for decision only.

Vacation of Division Avenue (Chief Seattle Park plat): Perry Robertson of Real Estate Services presented a petition to vacate an undeveloped right of way recorded with the 1946 Chief Seattle Park plat (Division Avenue, in Commissioner District 1). Robertson said the vacation process was publicly advertised and that three nearby property owners contacted Real Estate Services and expressed support. He said the vacation will not cause land‑locking and that the right‑of‑way would revert to the original owner unless other interests remain. The county’s sewer utility requested that a utility easement be reserved over the area for future sewer expansion; staff added an additional easement last week for possible future road projects. Carl Cajono, a property owner who has participated in the petition work since 2017, testified in support and asked the board to move the petition forward. The hearing was continued to May 12 for decision only.

Building‑code ordinance (title 14 technical codes): David (fire marshal and building official) presented a proposed ordinance to adopt the 2021 editions of the International Code Council (ICC) code family and the Uniform Plumbing Code as adopted by Washington state (RCW 19.27 referenced in the presentation). He said most local amendments are organizational or numeric updates to match the state adoption, but that the ordinance includes two substantive fire‑safety provisions introduced via an appendix: 1) for buildings over 30 feet tall where aerial apparatus is used, the ordinance would require at least one access road parallel to a building side that is at least 26 feet wide and 15–30 feet from the building to allow safe deployment of aerial apparatus; 2) it sets a clear threshold for when a second fire‑apparatus access is required in subdivisions — the proposed threshold is 250 dwelling units regardless of whether sprinklers are installed.

David said staff had met repeatedly with the Kitsap County Fire Chiefs Association, the Kitsap County Fire Commissioners Association and Kitsap Builders Association and had posted the draft for public comment. He acknowledged written input from builders and said the county would work on more comprehensive updates over the next 18 months before proposing adoption of the 2024 codes; he also noted a few editorial fixes needed in the draft ordinance. South Kitsap Fire and Rescue Fire Chief Jeff Fawcett, speaking for the Kitsap County Fire Chiefs Association, urged the county to adopt the aerial‑access and second‑access provisions now, saying the current standard does not consistently allow safe deployment of ladder trucks in denser developments. After public comment, the board closed the hearing and continued it to May 12 for decision only; the board stated it would not accept additional comments before the May 12 decision.

Why it matters: The budget amendment includes funding adjustments and one‑time appropriations that affect public services and capital purchases. The Division Avenue vacation could change property‑control and easement arrangements near the Suquamish/Chief Seattle Park area; staff added reservations for utility and possible future road easements. The building‑code ordinance proposes technical changes that would affect new construction and subdivision design, particularly fire‑service access and water‑supply/fire‑flow considerations that county fire officials flagged as impacting response capability.

Next steps: All three items are docketed for a decision only on May 12; staff indicated additional outreach and a wider countywide code review will continue on the building‑code work.