Thurston County holds public hearing on Thurston 2045 comprehensive plan update; staff to continue edits after comments

Thurston County planning staff and the Planning Commission held a hybrid public hearing April 23 on Thurston 2045, the county’s periodic comprehensive-plan update that aligns the plan with recent state law and sets policy for the next 20 years through 2045. Maya Teepel, senior planner with Thurston County Community Planning, summarized draft changes and asked the commission to continue work after the hearings.

The hearing drew organized comments on several recurring themes: integrating the Thurston Climate Mitigation Plan (TCMP) into the comprehensive plan, limiting rural growth in favor of concentrating development in urban growth areas (UGAs), strengthening water conservation and agricultural-water protections, and changes to housing policy including allowances for accessory dwelling units (ADUs), permanent supportive housing, and new pathways for manufactured housing and mobile-home permitting.

Why it matters: the periodic update — required under Washington’s Growth Management Act (Chapter 36.70A RCW) — is the county’s primary policy document for land use, housing, transportation, natural resources and climate actions. The draft introduces a new climate chapter, updates housing projections and land-capacity analyses, and proposes large changes to development regulations that could affect where and how new housing, energy infrastructure and mineral-resource operations are sited.

Staff overview and next steps Maya Teepel and Anna Rodriguez, associate planner, told the commission the draft reflects the required decennial periodic update under the Growth Management Act and incorporates state law changes affecting housing and climate. Teepel said staff has completed 32 planning commission work sessions to date and will present revised chapter ordering and a crosswalk showing how draft policies map to the TCMP after the hearings. She reminded the public that written comments will be accepted through Sunday, April 27, at 11:59 p.m.

Key draft changes and policy choices - Climate: A new, stand-alone climate chapter (draft chapter 12, to be renumbered) sets mitigation and resilience goals and will be crosswalked to the TCMP. Staff said additional work sessions are scheduled to integrate mitigation strategies into the implementation plan.

- Housing: Chapter 4 is a full repeal-and-replace. The draft includes housing projections by income, land-capacity analyses, an assessment of racially disparate impacts and new policies to support emergency shelters, permanent supportive housing and transitional housing. The draft also proposes countywide allowances for permanent supportive and transitional housing where the use meets applicable zoning and regulations.

- Grand Mound options: The draft offers two options for Grand Mound — (1) increase residential densities within the UGA or (2) require housing within commercial areas without increasing residential-zone densities. Public commenters and businesses offered mixed views about which option best supports both housing and commercial development.

- Development regulations: Staff described a large package of updates (about 100 pages) including a military influence-area overlay with notice and disclosure provisions, updates for electric-vehicle infrastructure, a new solar-energy chapter allowing small- and large-scale solar, a chapter on alternative energy storage (battery systems), and many housing-related code changes (ADUs, manufactured homes, permanent supportive housing, density bonuses for conservation subdivisions).

Public testimony: themes and representative remarks About 30 people had submitted written comments specifically for this hearing as of 4 p.m. on April 23, and staff said the project has received more than 600 comments across the life of the update. Testimony emphasized several recurring requests: - Stronger climate integration and speedier implementation of TCMP actions. Phyllis Farrell of the Sierra Club’s South Thurston group said, “All relevant TCMP action should be fully, included in the plan, and we have an obligation to have those actions, included and fully implemented.” Tom Crawford, a board member of Thurston Climate Action Team, said his organization will provide a detailed crosswalk tying TCMP actions to implementation items.

- Housing and equity: Student speaker Alex Sassoni told commissioners that naming shelters and supportive housing in policy “moves beyond broad statements and concrete zoning commitments that will remove confusing barriers for providers and residents alike.” Testimony urged pairing energy- and density-improving measures with anti-displacement tools.

- Water and rural protections: Several speakers pressed for faster action on water conservation, suggested mandatory well metering on permit‑exempt wells, and asked the county to limit rural residential expansion to protect farmland and water resources. Rita Robinson, a former county planning commissioner and state planner, urged the commission to recommend the SEIS action alternative of less rural growth.

- Grand Mound and industrial compatibility: Business speakers from Lakeside Industries and Conco asked the county to avoid placing dense residential uses adjacent to long‑standing industrial facilities. Russ Siders of Conco said placing high‑density residential next to an industrial rebar facility would “change the future of Grand Mound” and risk incompatibility.

Process items and commission direction Commissioners and staff agreed to extend in-person testimony to five minutes given the number of speakers. Staff said the commission had previously directed chapter reordering and further integration of recent climate work; the commission will hold follow-up work sessions after the public hearings to revise the implementation crosswalk and development-code changes.

Votes at a glance - Agenda approval: The commission approved the meeting agenda by voice vote after a motion and second; no individual roll-call tally was recorded on the transcript.

What did not happen No formal adoption votes on the comprehensive plan or amendments occurred at the April 23 hearing. Staff and the commission said additional hearings and work sessions will follow and that the public hearing record remains open (next hearing scheduled for Saturday). Written comments are accepted through Sunday, April 27 at 11:59 p.m.

Background and context The Thurston 2045 update is the decennial periodic comprehensive-plan update required under the Growth Management Act (Chapter 36.70A RCW). The draft reworks multiple chapters, adds a new climate chapter, updates development regulations across energy and housing topics, and includes a new implementation appendix intended as a living document to track actions and metrics.

For the record: the public-comment deadline for this hearing is Sunday, April 27, 11:59 p.m.; project materials are available at Thurston2045.org. The Planning Commission continued the public hearing to the commission’s scheduled Saturday session and adjourned after closing statements.