Port of Friday Harbor storage building recommended with conditions, including 15‑person occupancy cap

San Juan County contract planner Colin Cooper summarized a conditional‑use permit for the Port of Friday Harbor to lease about 20,747 square feet for construction of a 2,400‑square‑foot warehouse and associated parking and maneuvering area. Staff told the Hearing Examiner the site is previously developed, flat, and that a SEPA determination was issued in December with no public comments to date.

Staff found two primary conditions needed before building permit issuance: an approved stormwater report and a grading permit to address about 5,800 cubic yards of cut and roughly 6,000 cubic yards of fill indicated in project materials. The applicant sought an exemption from extension of public water and sanitary sewer for the storage building; county building staff supported a limited exemption with conditions. The recommended condition limits occupancy to no more than 15 employees at any time, requires a portable restroom on site, and binds the occupancy limit to the land so that exceeding it would require extension of public water and sewer under current county rules.

Applicant representative John Gressett, an architect, said the building’s primary purpose is secure storage of roofing materials for a roofing contractor who works intermittently on the island and that the applicant intends to provide a porta‑potty on site. County staff said restroom exemptions of this type are uncommon but have been used for comparable storage/rental facilities; the Hearing Examiner confirmed the exact condition language (condition 3) spelling out the 15‑person limit and the portable‑restroom requirement and then closed the hearing record.

No final decision was announced on the record at the hearing; staff asked the applicant to address the listed conditions during later permit review.