Thurston County commissioners finalize 2026–27 planning docket priorities, earmark climate, watershed and conservation work

Chair Ty Menser opened the Thurston County Board of County Commissioners work session on April 22 and said staff were seeking final direction on the 2026–27 docket for Community Planning and Economic Development (CPED).

CPED Director Ashley Ryan told the board the docket is the department’s two-year work plan and includes both state-mandated items and applicant proposals. Ryan said staff received 363 total comments during the public comment period, most via an online survey, and presented a map showing that responses were concentrated in ZIP code 98501. “This is our final work session. Ideally we are looking for the board to chart out what this work plan’s going to look like so that we can bring it back to you on May 5th or the latest May 19th to get an official adoption of it,” Ryan said.

The board agreed to include several major, staff‑recommended items on the docket. The commissioners gave preliminary or unanimous support to expanding the Reimagined Nisqually effort into a watershed plan (staff said grant funds will cover modeling), and to advancing climate program policies and related code updates — with staff noting higher priority designations help secure staffing or grant funding. The board also supported exploring updates to transfer- and purchase-of-development-rights (TDR/PDR) tools to strengthen farmland and habitat conservation and directed staff to fold the Martin Way Corridor zoning study into the Lacey joint planning process to avoid duplicative work.

Not all applicant proposals advanced. CPED said the Bar Holdings UGA swap application was formally withdrawn by the applicant and does not require docketing. After discussion the board removed the Scott site‑specific land‑use amendment from the docket to avoid indefinitely holding the applicant’s request without a clear path forward. Staff also advised that items falling outside the Growth Management Act (GMA) — such as fireworks and no‑shooting zone proposals — are better addressed through other county offices (for example, the sheriff’s office) rather than the CPED docket; the board concurred and removed those items from the CPED list.

On code‑amendment grouping, the board supported packaging applicant‑initiated cannabis code changes into the Title 20 rural code update so the planning commission can scope any substantive changes based on the public record. Commissioners emphasized that folding an applicant item into Title 20 means CPED and the planning commission — not the applicant — will determine the scope under the county’s public process.

Staff told the board that CPED currently has 12 full‑time equivalent staff available to work on docketed projects but estimates that completing the proposed slate in two years would require about 15 FTEs, leaving an approximate three‑FTE shortfall unless the county secures grants or hires consultants. The staffing gap informed the board’s direction to prioritize state‑mandated and grant‑funded work while keeping other items on a preliminary list that could be deferred if capacity is constrained.

The meeting also produced specific docket instructions: add the Nisqually watershed plan and climate program updates; fold Martin Way into the Lacey joint plan; keep TDR/PDR exploration on the preliminary docket; withdraw Bar Holdings; and remove fireworks and no‑shooting items from the CPED docket because they fall under other authorities. Staff said they will return with a final docket for adoption in May.

The board paused the work session for an executive session on real‑estate acquisition before resuming and closing the meeting with brief external‑committee reports.