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Planning manager briefs commission on state bills, comp plan timeline and right-of-way permit edits
Summary
Planning Manager Steve Roberge told the Spokane Valley Planning Commission on April 10 that staff are monitoring several state land-use bills, will cancel the next commission meeting due to lack of agenda items, and are finalizing edits to right-of-way permits that will be provided to commissioners and taken to City Council.
Planning Manager Steve Roberge told the Spokane Valley Planning Commission on April 10 that the state legislature was in active session and staff were monitoring several land-use bills that could affect local planning, and he provided updates on the comp plan timeline, a meeting cancellation and right-of-way permit edits that will go to City Council.
"I have a short report for you tonight," Roberge said. He told commissioners the legislature was "in full swing" and identified a few topics staff were watching: a parking bill the commission had discussed at a prior meeting, a bill concerning "unit lot subdivision," and legislation on lot splitting. Roberge said he would withhold detailed analysis until after the Legislature’s next cutoff so staff could report on bills that actually pass and move to the governor.
Roberge also announced that the commission’s next scheduled meeting would be cancelled because there was not sufficient content for the agenda. He said the consultant working on the comprehensive plan was preparing materials and staff wanted to have more to present at the following meeting. On right-of-way matters, Roberge said edits to right-of-way permits — not the same as the city’s CTA item previously discussed — were being finalized and were expected to go to City Council on the 22nd; he said staff would provide the updated permit documents to commissioners even though the permit code edits would not return to the Planning Commission for action.
Commissioners asked clarifying questions; Commissioner Winkler raised the idea of preapproving certain low-value right-of-way vacations to speed future processes. Roberge and another staff member identified as Tony said state law and city code generally require the public-notice and initiation steps, limiting opportunities to bypass the standard process.
These items were informational; no formal policy changes or actions were taken during the April 10 presentation. The procedural votes taken earlier in the meeting — approving the absences of two chairs, approving the agenda and approving minutes from the March 27 meeting — were each recorded as unanimous among the five commissioners present.
Roberge advised staff will report back after legislative cutoffs with a clearer list of bills that will move forward and will circulate final right-of-way permit edits to commissioners when they are complete.
