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Planning staff pause Critical Areas Ordinance update amid new state buffer guidance; further analysis required
Summary
Staff told council that recent state guidance on stream/riparian buffers (site-potential tree-height approaches vs. standard buffers) could materially expand buffers and exclude urban parcels from development. The city will analyze options and delay adoption beyond the year-end deadline to develop a defensible recommendation.
Planning staff informed council that the city's Critical Areas Ordinance update requires additional time after new state best-available-science guidance changed recommended buffer methods for streams and riparian areas.
Kristen, who presented staff analysis for the project team, said the state now favors classification that includes a 'riparian management zone' and offers two different buffer-derivation approaches: a standard buffer distance or a site-potential-tree-height method. Staff…
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