Commissioners keep hearing open on Hansen property rezone after hours of testimony on fire, water and soils

Walla Walla County commissioners on Oct. 21 left open a public hearing on a proposal to amend the county comprehensive plan and rezone a roughly 41‑acre parcel owned by Stellus Homestead LLC from Primary Agriculture (PA‑40) to Rural Remote (RR‑40). The board voted 3‑0 to accept additional written comments through 4 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23.

County Community Development Director Lauren Prentice told the board the proposal would remove the parcel from the county’s designation as “agricultural land of long‑term commercial significance” under the Washington State Growth Management Act and that the application must meet both comprehensive‑plan and rezoning criteria. Prentice also noted a separate code‑compliance case involving the adjacent 5‑acre parcel (the site of an existing residence) and said any alleged violations on that parcel are being reviewed by the county.

The applicant’s representative, land‑use planner Shane O’Neil of Clover Planning & Zoning, presented aerial photos, a soils analysis and a short video aimed at demonstrating the site’s steep forested slopes. O’Neil said 95.8% of the site’s soils are not classified as prime agricultural soils by the Natural Resources Conservation Service, and that roughly 37 of the 41 acres are steep (he described slopes and tree cover that, in his assessment, make the site more a timber resource than commercial farmland). “These are map amendments only,” O’Neil told the board, arguing the change would not authorize a specific project and that agricultural activity would still be possible on the flatter lower ground.

Supporters who testified in person told the board the request aligns the Hansen parcel with neighboring properties zoned RR‑40, that the flatter portion is small and constrained by aquifer‑recharge buffers, and that county rules governing future uses would still apply. Proponents said rezoning alone does not approve any event or lodging uses and that any such proposals would require separate permits and public hearings.

Opponents, including long‑time neighbors and local farmers, pressed the board on several public‑safety and environmental details. Karen Hansen Yeager, who said she speaks for more than 100 neighbors along South Fork Kapai, told commissioners the site is part of a critical aquifer recharge area with groundwater as shallow as about 3 feet and that the property sits in the South Fork Kapai Creek floodplain. Several residents described narrow, dead‑end road access and limited emergency egress on South Fork Kapai Road. Resident Joe Petrello and Walla Walla County Fire District 8 Chief Bob Clennanio cited past canyon fires and warned that the location is “indefensible” in high fire conditions; Clennanio urged caution about permitting uses that would bring large groups into the canyon.

Cheryl Hansen, the property owner, told the board she seeks rezoning so her parcel matches neighboring lots and to allow options for economic use. “I deserve the same rights and privileges enjoyed by all other dwellings on the South Fork,” she said, describing family history and past limited agricultural uses.

No final decision was taken. Commissioners said they had read prior planning‑commission materials, reviewed written comments already on file and would accept additional written input until the Thursday deadline. A motion to keep the record open for written comments, delivered in person or by email to the commissioners’ office, carried 3‑0.

What happens next: the board will review the full record, including new comments submitted to 314 West Main Street or the commissioners’ email by 4 p.m. Oct. 23, before deliberating and making a formal decision at a later meeting.

Authorities and proceedings cited in the hearing were the Washington State Growth Management Act and related administrative rules; staff also referenced Planning Commission recommendations and the county’s land‑use code. The board’s action on Oct. 21 was limited to extending the public‑comment period and did not approve or deny the map amendment or rezone request.