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Chehalis Planning Commission advances MRC zoning edits; staff to add food‑truck rules and recommend B&B be permitted
Summary
At a public workshop the Chehalis City Planning Commission continued review of the proposed MRC zoning code, directed staff to add food‑truck regulations to next month’s agenda, and signaled support for changing bed‑and‑breakfasts (R161) from a conditional use to a permitted use in the MRC zone.
The Chehalis City Planning Commission continued its public workshop on the new MRC (mixed‑residential commercial) zoning code and gave staff direction to add food‑truck regulations to next month’s agenda while discussing whether to make bed‑and‑breakfasts an outright permitted use rather than a conditional use.
Todd, a city staff member, told commissioners the MRC zoning code is the subject of tonight’s workshop and said food‑truck and food‑cart regulations will be added next month because staff wants the rules in place before the summer season begins. He cautioned commissioners they may see both MRC and the food‑truck/code update in one meeting if MRC review is not finished.
The commission revisited R161, the bed‑and‑breakfast category currently listed as a conditional use in the draft use table. Commissioners and staff discussed the tradeoffs: conditional uses trigger broader public noticing, hearings and a hearings examiner and therefore increase time and cost for applicants; permitted uses avoid hearings and the associated applicant burden. Several commissioners questioned whether a conditional permitting pathway was necessary in a higher intensity MRC zone and suggested converting B&Bs to a permitted use, subject to meeting the code’s parking and other standards.
Staff noted Table 1778 lists parking requirements relevant to B&Bs and said the draft requirement is two parking spaces plus one additional space per guest room, a measure commissioners said could mitigate neighborhood parking concerns if B&Bs are permitted outright.
During the workshop a member of the public who said they work for the school district raised separate neighborhood parking and safety concerns on 13th Street near Penny Playground, describing blocked sight lines when on‑street parking is heavy. Todd explained that on‑street no‑parking zones and ticketed enforcement are implemented by public works and must be designated by council, not set through the zoning code; he invited the commenter to submit a map and summary and offered to add the item to next month’s commission business if the commission wants to recommend action to council.
The commission’s next steps are procedural: staff will schedule public hearing(s) for the MRC code and, if commissioners confirm they are comfortable with the draft at the workshop level, will place the proposal on the hearing calendar for a formal recommendation to city council. Food‑truck regulations are scheduled to return next month for initial review.
