Hearing Examiner Gary McLean on Tuesday presided over an open‑record public hearing on the Villages at Clearwater Creek, a proposed 63‑lot subdivision on roughly 10.4 acres at 2725 Steptoe Street. City planning staff told the examiner the plat otherwise meets the city’s R2S zoning and infrastructure standards but recommended denying a requested rear‑yard setback deviation for 38 lots.

Mike Stevens, the city’s planning manager, said the application proposes lots ranging from about 4,000 to just over 10,000 square feet and that public works and fire had raised no substantive concerns about utilities or access. “The analysis and criteria for granting approval all seem to be met for the preliminary plat itself,” Stevens said, but he added the staff recommendation is denial of the setback deviation because on “bare ground” it is difficult to justify a 5‑foot reduction without specific house plans or alternate layouts.

Hayden Homes representatives said the deviation is needed to reach 6 dwelling units per acre while offering smaller, lower‑priced housing types. Megan Norris, forward planning manager for Hayden Homes, said the site’s topography and geometry constrain layout options and cited Richland Municipal Code 24.10.380 as the standard under which the developer seeks the variance. “By reducing these setbacks, we are able to offer more housing types to the homeowner,” Norris said, and she added the change would allow “a smaller home option at a lower price point.”

Applicant Brian Thorson, the listed applicant, described the property as constrained on all sides by existing infrastructure and rights of way and said a 5‑foot setback difference “isn’t much but it makes a world of difference” in the number of house‑plan options the developer can offer. Thorson told the examiner the developer can achieve 63 lots without the deviation but that redesigning plans and layouts would add time and cost that ultimately affect buyers.

Daniel Dasell, engineering manager for the Kennewick Irrigation District (KID), told the hearing KID and the applicant negotiated fees and off‑site requirements and that the KID board approved an agreement on Oct. 21; the agreement had not yet been fully signed at the time of the hearing. Dasell asked that the district’s conditions be included in the city’s decision and said KID would submit the fully executed agreement after its next board meeting.

McLean left the record open to receive supplemental materials supporting the deviation request and the finalized, fully executed irrigation agreement. He requested the applicant provide example house‑plan lot fits and asked KID to submit the signed agreement; he set a deadline described in the hearing as “close of business on the 20 first,” which he also identified verbally as the Friday before Thanksgiving week, and said he would consider written requests for more time if needed.

The hearing was otherwise procedural: no formal vote was taken. The examiner said he would take any additional evidence under advisement and issue a written decision after reviewing the submitted materials.

What happens next: The record remains open for the supplemental materials the examiner specified; once the examiner receives those documents he will issue a written decision on the preliminary plat and the deviation request.