Washington City Council approves industrial rezones and hillside removal amid resident outcry over truck dust and safety

Washington City Council voted Jan. 28 to reclassify a parcel at Smelter Drive and Foundry Drive for industrial use and to remove roughly 31.17 acres from the city's Hillside Overlay, approving the measures over extensive public comment about truck traffic, fugitive dust and safety on nearby Countryway.

The council approved the general-plan amendment (G-25-08) by roll call, 5'to'0, and a separate zone change for a 0.65'acre parcel at 225 South Smelter Drive (Z-25-25) also passed 5'to'0. The council then approved the larger zone change to remove the hillside designation (Z-25-26) by a 4'to'1 vote; the ordinance carries the condition that final construction grading documents and details of the easterly cut be returned to and signed off by the Hillside Review Board before work proceeds.

Why it matters: The applications are three interlocked land-use proposals that the applicant said would stitch disturbed slopes into a tiered industrial development, reduce the amount of material exported from the valley and create developable industrial lots. Neighbors said the approvals, if advanced without parallel traffic, enforcement and air-quality measures, risk worsening a persistent dust problem and creating safety hazards for residents and children who use neighborhood parks.

What proponents told the…