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Arborwood Development Agreement – Extension – Kitsap Environmental Coalition

Arborwood Development Agreement – Extension

Arborwood Development Agreement Extension

Public Hearing: February 3, 5:30 pm

Poulsbo City Hall, Council Chambers, 200 NE Moe Street, Poulsbo

This meeting is open to the public, in person, via Zoom, or by phone:

Speak up now, before it is too late.

The Public Hearing is scheduled for February 3rd, for the County Commissioners to decide whether to extend the Development Agreement for the Arborwood project in Kingston. The Commissioners need to hear from the community, the residents who will be most impacted by this large-scale 751-unit subdivision.

FACT: All new construction in Washington State and Kitsap County must meet current codes and regulations.

However, the developers of this project want to extend their 15-year-old agreement, which expires in February 2025, under regulations from the 1990s, not current ones.

It is your turn to speak up at this public hearing – to insist that Arborwood must adhere to current regulations. If you prefer to write your comments to the Commissions, please send by email immediately:

Kitsap Environmental Coalition (KEC) works to protect clean air, water, and soil for the health of the entire ecosystem upon which our communities depend. KEC advocates for the use of Best Available Science, the application of current regulations, and supports the January 8, 2025 letter sent by Kingston Community Advisory Council to the Commissioners:

“It has come to our attention that the Commission will be considering a request by the Arborwood developers to extend their 15-year development agreement. This development is an important part of the County’s efforts to comply with growth management goals, but as the development agreement relies on analysis and supporting documentation from the 1990s, we believe the Commission should consider the current community context and the history of community concerns before approving the renewal.

There are three areas we believe should be reviewed:

1) Kingston has grown and changed considerably since the 1990’s, the values and assumptions that underlie the development agreement should be reviewed and updated.

2) The community is much more aware of the impact of development on the environment, the strategies for managing stormwater have significantly improved, and we now have stronger policies supporting the importance of critical areas and our natural open space. In addition, the science revealing the impacts of climate change has become much more sophisticated and should be factored into the development agreement.

3) Transportation needs, volumes, patterns and modes (particularly bicycles and passenger ferry) are much more varied than they were in the 1990’s and we would like the Commission to consider current transportation goals and data when considering an agreement extension.

Thank you for considering this request. Respectively submitted by the Co-Chairs on behalf of the Kingston Community Advisory Council.”

Kitsap Environmental Coalition adds a fourth point:

4) We would like the Commissioners to require that any development under an extension meet current county and state regulations including the recently approved Critical Areas Ordinance.

We urge everyone to express your own concerns to the Commissioners at this crucial time — this is your opportunity to make a real difference in your community.