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Bluffton advances first reading of amended wetland and stormwater rules after public pushback
Summary
Town staff presented text amendments to Bluffton's wetland and stormwater rules including a 50-foot buffer, a town-owned wetland mapping tool, clearer waiver documentation and a requirement for accompanying approved jurisdictional determinations for CORE permits; several residents and a planning commissioner urged clearer, quantitative waiver criteria before final adoption.
Town planning staff presented proposed amendments to the Unified Development Ordinance Tuesday that would refine Bluffton's wetland protections by clarifying stormwater language, defining wetland delineation and heavy machinery, and tightening waiver and documentation requirements.
Staff said the revisions include:
- A town wetland mapping tool (to be published on Bluffton Explorer) to replace reliance on the outdated National Wetland Inventory for local review; - A confirmation that the town's 50-foot wetland buffer applies townwide (outside PUDs), and a list of allowed activities including public boardwalks and pervious multiuse pathways where feasible; - A requirement that impacts covered by a CORE permit be accompanied by an approved jurisdictional determination so staff can verify jurisdictional status; and - New written documentation requirements and a draft waiver-policy the UDO administrator will use to reduce ad-hoc decisionmaking.
"We are proposing inclusion of an accompanying approved jurisdictional determination for CORE permits as this is the only jurisdictional determination provided by the corps," planning staff said, explaining why the town needs to know what is jurisdictional so the local ordinance applies correctly.
Public commenters, including a civil engineer who has pursued wetland permits and a planning commissioner, expressed concern that the ordinance as written lacked quantitative, objective criteria for variances and waivers. They asked the town to set clear measurable standards so applicants who have invested in long state permitting processes can rely on predictable local outcomes.
Planning staff responded that the proposed changes add references to a waiver policy and require written findings by the UDO administrator; staff said three waivers and one variance request had been filed since adoption of the interim ordinance and staff would continue to refine guidance documents.
Council voted to approve first reading and directed staff to take comments into account before second and final reading expected next month.
Speakers quoted in the meeting included technical and planning staff and local commissioners; for example, a planning commissioner said the ordinance "lacked quantitative criteria for the waiver process" and urged removal of subjectivity.
Next steps: Staff will post the town wetland map to Bluffton Explorer, finalize the waiver policy draft and return the text to council for second and final reading.
