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Port of Everett and city staff outline marine port element changes, compatibility overlay compromise
Summary
Port officials and city staff presented an updated marine port element and described a near-term compromise to change the port compatibility overlay from a mapped designation to a text-based 800-foot reference and to require notice to the port for new construction or expansions that result in 10,000 square feet of building area.
The Everett Planning Commission discussed updates to the marine port element Feb. 18, including proposed code and policy changes to the port compatibility overlay and the addition of freight-corridor notices for developments near port truck routes.
Laura Gurley, Planning Director for the Port of Everett, described the port’s economic footprint and why a port chapter matters in a local comprehensive plan. “We generate, about $433,000,000 a year in tax revenue for both local, region, and state,” Gurley said, and she described the Port of Everett as a major center for Boeing cargo operations and ship repair work.
Staff told the commission the marine port element must “define and protect the core areas of port and port-related industrial uses,” provide efficient freight access and “identify and resolve key land use conflicts along the edge of the core area,” citing state law (RCW 36.78.085). The staff presentation defined the port core area as port-owned heavy-industrial properties south of Naval Station Everett and the Kimberly-Clark clarifiers, including the Mount Baker Terminal.
Compatibility overlay compromise: staff described a negotiated compromise between neighbors and the port that would replace the current mapped port compatibility overlay with a text-based reference—an 800-foot buffer measured from Port of Everett marine terminal property lines—so that the legal effect is similar but the map would not appear on property records. Staff also described clarifications that notice and port comment are limited to new construction or building expansions that “result in 10,000 square feet of building gross floor area.” Planning staff emphasized that the notice process is advisory: the port may submit comments and suggest mitigation, but the city cannot compel developers to accept measures beyond the city’s authority in Title 19 and the municipal code.
Freight corridors and developer notice: the port asked the city to extend a similar notice framework to parcels that abut identified freight corridors (Marine View Drive, Rucker, 40th, First, Pacific) so the port can advise on oversized or over-dimensional moves and nighttime freight operations. Staff described the proposed approach as a nonbinding “heads up” for developers—recommendations on construction techniques such as thicker wall assemblies or upgraded windows rather than enforceable requirements.
Triangle zoning dispute: commissioners discussed a discrete area west of Hewitt where zoning changes in past cycles allowed residential uses near active port operations. The port has requested rolling back residential allowances in that wedge. Staff said property owners and the port continue negotiations; commissioners asked staff to obtain a legal opinion on the city’s obligations under RCW 36.78.085(c) to “identify and resolve key land use conflicts” and whether unresolved zoning could create future legal liability for the city.
Ending: commissioners generally indicated support for the port-element policies as drafted and for the compatibility-overlay compromise, with requests that staff finish outreach to affected neighbors and return with refined code language and a legal opinion about the triangle area.
