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City/County Elected Officials Meeting (Growth Management Coordination)

WHA-CON-SPC-2025-05-21 May 21, 2025 Committee of the Whole Whatcom County
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A special joint meeting of city and county elected officials focused exclusively on reviewing the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for Whatcom County's comprehensive plan update. SCJ Alliance consultant Bill Grimes presented findings from the 2025 comprehensive plan EIS, which analyzed four alternatives ranging from no action to high growth scenarios. The meeting served as a technical briefing for municipal leaders to understand environmental impacts and provide input during the ongoing public comment period, which ends June 1st. The EIS examined growth distribution across urban growth areas (UGAs) and rural lands, evaluating impacts across twelve environmental categories. Only one significant unavoidable adverse impact was identified: traffic congestion on the Lakeway Drive segment that will not meet level of service standards under any alternative. Council Member Michael Lilliquist pressed for comparative analysis between alternatives to guide policy decisions, while consultant Darcy Jones highlighted Alternative Two as appearing to have the least environmental impact due to reduced rural sprawl. The session emphasized that the preferred alternative will likely combine elements from multiple alternatives rather than selecting one wholesale, allowing jurisdictions to cherry-pick the most suitable growth strategies for their communities.

No formal votes were taken during this informational meeting. This was a presentation and discussion session designed to inform elected officials about the draft EIS findings and gather input for t…

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The central policy discussion revolved around understanding differences between the four growth alternatives analyzed in the EIS. Bill Grimes explained that Alternative One uses the Office of Financial Management's medium growth forecast, Alternative Two incorporates more deliberative planning with cities and county, and Alternative Three examines higher population growth scenarios. The no-action alternative maintains current 2016 comprehensive plan policies. Council Member Lilliquist emphasized the need for comparative analysis between alternatives, stating he was "looking for choices" as a policymaker. He wanted to understand not just magnitude differences but whether there were "efficient and least impactful ways to grow in terms of chara…
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**Bill Grimes (SCJ Alliance):** Presented the EIS as a disclosure document to support policy conversations, emphasizing flexibility in combining alternatives for a preferred option. **Council Member Michael Lilliquist (Bellingham):** Advocated for more detailed comparative analysis between alternatives to guide policy decisions, particularly wanting to identify which UGA choices might be most problematic or impactful. **Darcy Jones (Jones Engineers):** Strongly…
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**Bill Grimes, on EIS purpose:** "What we were trying to do with these alternatives is to create an intensity basket, as it were, so that we have a range of potential environmental impact to consider various growth scenarios in Whatcom County." **Michael Lilliquist, on policy guidance:** "Well, if you'll note, there's a theme between a couple of my questions here, which as a policymaker, I'm looking for choices. And if there's no Delta, or if all UGAs are the same, then I have no policy guida…
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- **June 1st:** Public comment period ends for draft EIS - **May 21st evening:** Public hearing held downtown Bellingham (same day as this meeting) - **Late summer:** Final EIS anticipated to be issued after addressing comments and selecting preferred alternatives - **June 3rd or June 10th:** Bellingham City Council expected to consider resolution p…

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After this meeting, elected officials and staff now have a comprehensive understanding of the four EIS alternatives and their comparative environmental impacts. The session established that Alternative Two appears to minimize rural sprawl compared to other action alternatives, providing policy guidance for upcoming decisions. Council Member Lilliquist's pointed questions about comparative imp…
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# Regional Growth Planning Takes Center Stage at Multi-Jurisdictional EIS Review ## Meeting Overview On the afternoon of May 21, 2025, local government officials from across Whatcom County gathered—both in person at Ferndale City Hall Annex and virtually—for a special coordinated meeting focused on the county's comprehensive plan update and its environmental review. The session, part of the region's ongoing Growth Management Act compliance process, brought together mayors, council members, and planning staff from Bellingham, Ferndale, Everson, Lynden, Nooksack, Sumas, and Whatcom County to examine the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the county's 20-year comprehensive plan. The meeting represented a critical juncture in a process that will shape development patterns, housing availability, and environmental protection across the region through 2045. With public comment on the draft EIS closing June 1st and a public hearing scheduled for that evening in downtown Bellingham, local officials used the session to drill down into technical details and policy implications that could guide their formal responses to the county's planning proposals. Bill Grimes of SCJ Alliance, the Spokane-based consulting firm leading the EIS process, delivered the main presentation alongside principal author Cherise Graham, walking officials through a comprehensive environmental review that examined everything from traffic impacts to habitat preservation to environmental justice concerns. ## The Environmental Review Framework Grimes opened by explaining the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) requirements driving the EIS process. "This comprehensive plan is considered a policy or a plan action. It is not a project. We go through what's called the non-project SEPA option," he explained. "For a policy amendment of this size, it's pretty typical to have an EIS." The review builds on Whatcom County's history of environmental analysis for major planning updates, with Grimes noting that the current EIS "has elevated in many extents, the level of environmental review" compared to the county's 2016 comprehensive plan EIS. The scope emerged from a January public hearing and written comments addressing environmental concerns the EIS must analyze. Based on 18 written comments and testimony from three speakers, county planners and consultants framed an environmental review covering a dozen topic areas, from earth and air quality impacts to transportation and public serv…
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### Meeting Overview City and county elected officials and staff met for a Growth Management Coordination meeting focused on the 2025 Whatcom County Comprehensive Plan update. The primary agenda item was a presentation by consultant Bill Grimes from SCJ Alliance on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), with discussion among officials from multiple jurisdictions about growth management alternatives. ### Key Terms and Concepts **SEPA (State Environmental Policy Act):** Washington state law requiring environmental review for government actions that could significantly impact the environment. This comprehensive plan update requires an EIS under SEPA. **EIS (Environmental Impact Statement):** A detailed environmental review document examining potential impacts of proposed policy changes and development alternatives. **UGA (Urban Growth Area):** Areas designated under the Growth Management Act where urban development is encouraged to occur over the next 20 years, outside of existing city limits but planned for future growth. **Growth Management Act:** State law requiring cities and counties to plan for growth by directing development to urban areas and protecting rural and natural resource lands. **OFM (Office of Financial Management):** State agency that provides population forecasts used in comprehensive planning. **Alternative Analysis:** EIS requirement to examine different growth scenarios - from no action to varying levels of population growth and development intensity. **Level of Service:** Standards measuring adequacy of public facilities and services, such as traffic flow or emergency response times. **VMT (Vehicle Miles Traveled):** Transportation planning metric measuring total miles driven, used to assess traffic impacts and transportation demand. ### Key People at This Meeting | Name | Role / Affiliation | |---|---| | Bill Grimes | SCJ Alliance consultant leading comprehensive plan update | | Cherise Graham | Principal author of draft EIS | | Greg Hanson | Mayor of Ferndale | | Michael Lilliquist | Bellingham City Council member | | Kevin Hester | Mayor of Nooksack | | Blake Lyon | Director of Planning a…
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Land Use & Planning Environmental Government Operations Birch Bay Water Sewer District City Of Bellingham City Of Ferndale Scj Alliance Whatcom County Whatcom Transportation Authority Bill Grimes Blake Lyon Cherise Graham Darcy Jones Greg Hanson Michael Lilliquist Sandy Mcmillan Climate Action Comprehensive Plan Environmental Review Growth Management Act Land Use Policy Public Safety Transportation Policy Urban Growth Areas Water Resources