Commissioners grant Eager Beaver Tree Services appeal in part, limit business use at Travis Lane home

The Skagit County Board of County Commissioners on March 11 granted in part a closed-record appeal by Chris Longnecker and Ashlyn Dennis, operators of Eager Beaver Tree Services, modifying an administrative abatement order and imposing conditions on continued use of their property at 20835 Travis Lane.

The modification stems from an administrative enforcement action (Order to Abate CE22-175) and a hearing examiner decision the board reviewed. The commissioners found that although Planning and Development Services and the hearing examiner properly interpreted county code, the board identified equitable considerations and facts that supported a tailored modification rather than outright enforcement as written.

Key findings recorded by the board included: the business and its predecessors have operated at the property since 1991; there was no evidence in the record of a neighbor or third-party complaint opposing the use; the property adjoins land zoned for agriculture; the homeowners association’s covenants are supportive of the appellants’ use; and business activity at the property is “sporadic and variable,” with most work occurring off-site.

On that basis the board’s resolution granted the appeal in part and imposed the following conditions: the appellants shall not intensify business-related activities at the property; they shall not use the property for long-term outdoor storage of nonfunctioning vehicles, logs or similar materials; and any employees’ vehicles must be parked at least 20 feet from the public street easement. The resolution states the decision “has no precedential value” and is limited to the unique facts of this case.

Motion and vote: Commissioner Browning read the proposed resolution and moved approval; a second was recorded. The board voted 2–0 to approve the resolution with one commissioner absent. The resolution records the appeal as PL240362 and references the hearing examiner’s decision on Sept. 14 (year stated in the record), and identifies the abatement order as CE22-175.

Why it matters: the decision resolves a long-running dispute about a home-based tree-service business and clarifies the county’s enforcement approach in this specific fact pattern—balancing strict code interpretation with equitable considerations the board said must be shown before imposing abatement. The resolution does not change county code or set a legal precedent for other properties.

The board’s order will be circulated for signature and becomes the governing administrative action for this property. The appellants and county Planning and Development Services will be subject to the conditions enumerated in the resolution.