Planning commission recommends rezone for Woodland Shores RV Park to neighborhood commercial

The Woodland Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend that the City Council approve a SEPA and rezone request for Woodland Shores RV Park (file WWLD-43-046), changing the site’s zoning from Highway Commercial (C2) to Neighborhood Commercial (C3).

The recommendation came after a staff presentation describing the site and its history. Travis, planning staff, told commissioners the property, identified in the staff presentation as Woodland Shores RV Park near Exit 21 and A Street, was originally permitted in 1993 under a Shoreline Conditional Use/Substantial Development permit (permit W92-three) and was approved for 59 spaces. He said the proposal does not require a comprehensive plan map change because the property already carries a commercial designation.

The commission’s consideration focused on whether the site meets the neighborhood commercial criteria added in recent code updates and on how longer-term RV occupancy interacts with city planning. Travis outlined the relevant local code and recent ordinance changes: WMC 17.72.100(d) initially limited RV occupancy to 30 consecutive days when adopted in 1979; an ordinance referenced in the staff report in July 2019 (identified in the record as ordinance 14 37) increased that period to 90 consecutive days; a later ordinance cited in the presentation (identified as ordinance 15 62, August 2024) revised C3 zone rules to allow 180 days and also allowed year‑round occupancy in the C3 zone. "Staff's recommendation is approval," Travis said during the presentation.

Commissioners asked several operational and planning questions before voting. They pressed staff on whether the 2024 ordinance has been reflected in the online municipal code (Travis said the online code had not yet been updated but the ordinance text was attached to the staff report and available on the city website). Commissioners also discussed how to count year‑round RV occupancy in housing and capital‑facilities planning; Travis explained the city’s current practice that long‑term RV use is treated as transient housing and therefore is not typically counted as residential inventory for growth‑management accounting, though he said the comp plan update will explore whether such units could be treated as emergency housing stock.

After discussion, the commission moved and seconded a recommendation to the City Council asking that the council approve the rezone request. The vote was recorded as follows: Commissioner David Simpson — Aye; Commissioner Sharon Watts — Aye; Commissioner Brian Matson — Aye; Commissioner Robin Zorch — Aye. The motion passed unanimously. The commission chair closed the public hearing and Travis said staff would draft an ordinance and a recommendation letter to send to the chair; the item would appear as an action item at the next available City Council meeting (staff said the next meeting would be May 5 and that the council agenda item would be a public meeting action, not a public hearing).

Clarifying details from staff included the permit history (Shoreline Substantial Development/Conditional Use permit W92-three, approval in 1993 for 59 spaces), the cited municipal code section regulating RV parks (WMC 17.72.100(d)), and the sequence of recent ordinance changes referenced above (the staff packet lists the ordinances as "14 37" and "15 62" in the record). Staff noted no changes to the site’s operation or intensity are proposed with the rezone, and recommended the commission forward a recommendation of approval.

The commission’s recommendation does not itself change the zoning; it forwards a recommendation for the City Council to consider an ordinance. Staff said it would prepare the ordinance and transmit a recommendation letter to the council within days of the commission meeting.