Olympia council approves first reading of ordinance to update permit timelines to match state law

Olympia — The Olympia City Council on Tuesday approved on first reading an ordinance to amend Olympia Municipal Code Chapter 18.70, changing how the city measures and targets project permitting timelines to reflect recent updates in state law.

Nicole Floyd, the city’s principal planner, told the council the amendments establish discrete permit categories and clarify counting of calendar days. “What we have before us today are some proposed amendments. There have been recent updates to State law that require us to make updates to our own Code, and they relate to the permit processing chapter,” Floyd said.

The ordinance formalizes three permit “types” (state-recommended targets the city is setting in its code): 65 days for Type 1 permits (staff-level actions), 120 days for Type 2 permits (land-use applications that…