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Record of Proceedings

Olympia City Council Land Use and Environment Committee Meeting - October 26, 2026

City Council & Commissions — Monday, October 26, 2026
BodyOlympia, Washington
SessionCity Council & Commissions
DateMonday, October 26, 2026
StatusNEW · FILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:35:20

Original source
Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

Speaker numbers apply only to this recording.

Speaker 1

0:06

We're online.

0:09

Welcome folks to the meeting of the Olympia City Council, Land Use and Environment Committee.

0:14

Um today is uh Thursday, October 22nd, 2026.

0:18

I'm Robert Vanderbilt your chair.

Unassigned speaker

0:20

Uh

Speaker 1

0:20

if my seatmates want to introduce themselves.

Speaker 2

0:26

Member of the Olympia City Council and committee member.

Speaker 1

0:29

And Clark Gilman.

0:32

Thank you.

0:33

Um all right.

0:34

So can I get approval of tonight's agenda?

Speaker 2

0:38

I move the approval of the agenda for uh the October 22nd uh meeting.

0:44

Second.

Speaker 1

0:45

Alright, all in favor say aye.

0:46

Aye.

0:48

All right.

Unassigned speaker

0:49

And

Speaker 1

0:49

we have no one signed up for public comment.

0:51

It has not changed in the last minute or so.

0:54

Cool.

0:55

All right.

0:56

So I will move on.

0:58

Um can I get approval of the minutes from September 19th?

Speaker 2

1:03

I move that we approve the uh minutes of the land use and environment committee for uh September uh 19th, 2026.

1:13

Second.

Speaker 3

1:14

All

Speaker 2

1:15

favor?

Unassigned speaker

1:15

I first

Speaker 1

1:18

item is critical areas ordinance periodic update recommendation.

Speaker 4

1:25

Well, before we begin, I want I want to introduce Kernan Lean.

1:29

I don't know that you've officially met him.

1:31

He is our new planning manager, uh four months here on the job, and he comes to us from Edmonds, and then more recently from HDR.

1:41

And most importantly, he is an expert on critical areas, which is a favorite topic of mine.

1:48

And so I I was gonna do this project, and he came on and he said, you know, I I think I got this, and he does.

1:55

So I just wanted you to know it's in good hands.

Unassigned speaker

2:03

Is

Speaker 5

2:03

that close enough?

2:09

Trying to share my screen here.

Speaker 4

2:13

Uh share screen.

Unassigned speaker

2:20

Can

Speaker 5

2:21

you throw up the presentation?

Speaker 6

2:23

It is.

Speaker 5

2:23

You

Speaker 6

2:24

did it.

2:24

Okay, there it is.

2:26

Um, so curricular ordinance update.

2:30

No elbows on the table.

2:35

So uh as Nicole said, um I have worked on several critical area ordinances updates.

2:41

Um, we've only been in the city four months and was picking this up to get it to the finish line here.

2:48

Um so for overview tonight, I'll give you a regulatory background of the curricular ordinances update, talk about the general goals of this update, briefly what are critical areas, um, thus available science, and then kind of dive into some of

Unassigned speaker

3:04

the

Speaker 6

3:04

um more involved updates.

Unassigned speaker

3:08

So

Speaker 6

3:08

the regulatory background on critical areas, it comes out of the Growth Management Act.

3:14

Um, critical area ordinances was one of the requirements of the Growth Management Act.

3:18

City had their first CAO in 1992, and major updates in 2005, 2009, 2016.

3:26

I think 2005 is the first one that really required the best available science, deep best villain science review, and the 2016 update uh was a pretty major update that addressed the best available science.

3:41

CEOs are currently on a 10-year review cycle, basically follows the comp plan update.

3:48

This here is gonna be the last step of the 2045 comp plan update for the City of Olympia.

3:55

And um the last bullet on here is just one tricky thing about the Shoreline Management Act and Growth Management Act.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Land Use Planning████████████████████████████████████████40%
Urban Agriculture████████████12%
Tree Management██████████10%
Procedural█████████9%
Environmental Protection██████6%
Public Engagement████4%
Community Engagement████4%
Comprehensive Planning████4%
Short Term Rentals███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Olympia City Council Land Use and Environment Committee Meeting - October 26, 2026

The Olympia City Council Land Use and Environment Committee met on October 26, 2026, chaired by Robert Vanderbilt. The committee discussed and took action on the Critical Areas Ordinance periodic update, received updates on the Urban Forest Management Plan and tree protection measures, and heard staff reports on the annual comprehensive plan amendment process, short-term rental enforcement, and the West Bay Yards project.

Consent Calendar

  • The committee unanimously approved the agenda and the minutes from September 19, 2026.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • No members of the public signed up to provide comment.

Critical Areas Ordinance Periodic Update

  • Planning Manager Kernan Lean presented the proposed updates, which include clarifications, wetland buffer modifications based on best available science, stream buffer adjustments, a new provision for functionally disconnected buffers, consolidation of geologically hazardous area review to administrative review, and updates to underground injection control requirements. The committee discussed the public impact, alignment with comprehensive plan values, and technical details. The committee moved to forward the recommendation to the city council (motion by Councilmember Gilman, seconded by Councilmember Vanderpool; all in favor). The item will be a consent item on the November 17 Planning Commission agenda.

Urban Forest Management Plan

  • Environmental Planner Kim Foley updated the committee on the project timeline and public participation plan. The plan is on track for completion by March 2028. Key components include an interactive tree canopy story map and focus groups starting in January 2027. The committee discussed the need to balance tree preservation with development goals and to coordinate with upcoming code amendments. Councilmembers expressed support for the process and emphasized prioritizing mature trees.

Tree Protection Measure

  • Community Development Director Tim Smith presented a director interpretation that provides guidance to staff to prioritize preservation of trees with a diameter of 36 inches or greater during early project design. The interpretation also mandates an urban forestry scoping meeting for certain projects. The committee discussed the rationale for the 36-inch threshold and the importance of early collaboration with applicants. The committee expressed support for the approach.

Staff Reports and Updates

  • Annual Comprehensive Plan Amendment Process: Director Smith announced plans to bring a consent item to the city council to set a submittal deadline for 2028 amendments and to consider codifying an annual date. A committee member requested that the staff report include the committee's request to set the date into code moving forward.
  • Short-Term Rental Enforcement: Staff completed an audit of short-term rental enforcement. Challenges include difficulty tracking unpermitted rentals, confidentiality of tax data, and limited code enforcement resources (two officers for the city). Staff recommend continuing complaint-driven enforcement and outreach to listing platforms, rather than proactive enforcement. A committee member raised concerns about fairness and suggested exploring third-party services to monitor listings.
  • West Bay Yards Project: The hearing examiner approved the 488-unit apartment project, but the decision was appealed to the Shoreline Hearings Board. A prehearing conference was held in the current week, and a hearing is set for February 2027.
  • Meeting Schedule: The next committee meeting will be a special session on November 19, 2026, at 5 p.m. The December 17 meeting may be canceled. A work plan discussion will be held in November.

Key Outcomes

  • Critical Areas Ordinance: Forwarded to full city council for consideration.
  • Tree Protection: Director interpretation to be implemented immediately by staff.
  • Short-Term Rentals: No change to enforcement strategy; continued education and outreach.
  • Comprehensive Plan Amendments: Staff to bring date-setting item to council in November.
  • Urban Forest Plan: Process moving forward; code amendments expected after plan completion in 2028.
  • West Bay Yards: Subject to Shoreline Hearings Board appeal.

Meeting Transcript

We're online. Welcome folks to the meeting of the Olympia City Council, Land Use and Environment Committee. Um today is uh Thursday, October 22nd, 2026. I'm Robert Vanderbilt your chair. Uh if my seatmates want to introduce themselves. Member of the Olympia City Council and committee member. And Clark Gilman. Thank you. Um all right. So can I get approval of tonight's agenda? I move the approval of the agenda for uh the October 22nd uh meeting. Second. Alright, all in favor say aye. Aye. All right. And we have no one signed up for public comment. It has not changed in the last minute or so. Cool. All right. So I will move on. Um can I get approval of the minutes from September 19th? I move that we approve the uh minutes of the land use and environment committee for uh September uh 19th, 2026. Second. All favor? I first item is critical areas ordinance periodic update recommendation. Well, before we begin, I want I want to introduce Kernan Lean. I don't know that you've officially met him. He is our new planning manager, uh four months here on the job, and he comes to us from Edmonds, and then more recently from HDR. And most importantly, he is an expert on critical areas, which is a favorite topic of mine. And so I I was gonna do this project, and he came on and he said, you know, I I think I got this, and he does. So I just wanted you to know it's in good hands. Is that close enough? Trying to share my screen here. Uh share screen. Can you throw up the presentation? It is. You did it. Okay, there it is. Um, so curricular ordinance update. No elbows on the table. So uh as Nicole said, um I have worked on several critical area ordinances updates. Um, we've only been in the city four months and was picking this up to get it to the finish line here. Um so for overview tonight, I'll give you a regulatory background of the curricular ordinances update, talk about the general goals of this update, briefly what are critical areas, um, thus available science, and then kind of dive into some of

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