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Shoreline Master Program Update  

October 2011

On October 14, 2011, the Department of Ecology approved the City’s Shoreline Master Program. The letter from the Department of Ecology and revised Findings and Conclusions are posted below. The Master Program will become effective fourteen days from the date of Ecology’s letter – Friday, October 28, 2011. Ecology published the required legal notice in the Seattle Times on Monday, October 24, 2011. The 60 day appeal period began with the publication of the legal notice on October 24, 2011 and ends at 5:00 p.m., Thursday, December 22, 2011.

An appeal of the City’s Shoreline Master Program must be filed with the Growth Management Hearings Board. Information on the appeal process can be found at: http://www.gmhb.wa.gov/AppealProcess.aspx. You can also contact the Department of Ecology at 360-407-7291 or http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/sea/shorelines/smp/mycomments/Tukwila.html.

Thanks are due to the many individuals who provided comments on and suggested amendments to the Master Program. The end result is a Shoreline Master Program that will support the efforts to restore shoreline habitat while allowing local businesses and property owners to continue their uses along the City’s highly urbanized shoreline.

The final approval documents will be posted soon on the City’s shoreline web page. The ordinances adopting the Master Program, as amended to reflect Ecology required changes, and implementing regulations can be found below under the August, 2011 posting. If you have questions, please contact Carol Lumb at 206-431-3661 or Carol.Lumb@Tukwilawa.gov.



August 2011

On August 15, 2011, the Tukwila City Council adopted four ordinances incorporating the Ecology required changes to the City’s Shoreline Master Program, some of the recommended changes, revised the shoreline environment designation for two parcels and made certain housekeeping changes that fell within the scope of Ecology’s required or recommended changes. The links to the ordinances are listed below.

The City will submit these revisions to the Department of Ecology for its review and approval. The Shoreline Master Program is not in effect until the Department of Ecology approves the program. If you have questions about the Council’s agenda items, please contact Carol Lumb at 206-431-3661 or carol.lumb@tukwilawa.gov..



July 2011

The Tukwila City Council heard additional testimony on the Ecology required and recommended changes at the continued public hearing on Monday, July 25, 2011 and then closed the public hearing. Staff provided the Council with a list of potential housekeeping items that had been identified to-date – this list is included in the Council materials for the July 25, 2011 meeting.

Council directed staff to work with Department of Ecology staff to determine which of the identified housekeeping items fall within the scope of the Ecology required changes, as Department of Ecology staff indicated that revisions that are minor in nature and relate to an Ecology required change would be reviewed more quickly than new issues that do not relate to an Ecology required change.

The Council will discuss the housekeeping changes at the Committee of the Whole meeting on August 8, 2011 and at that meeting determine whether to move forward with adopting the four new Shoreline Master Program related ordinances.

Materials for the August 8, 2011 Council meeting will be posted on the City’s web site by noon, Friday, August 5, 2011. If you have any questions, please contact Carol Lumb at 206-431-3661 or carol.lumb@tukwilawa.gov.



June 2011

The Tukwila City Council held a public hearing on the Department of Ecology required and recommended changes to the City’s Shoreline Master Program and implementing regulations on June 27, 2011. The public hearing was continued to Monday, July 25, 2011 beginning at 7:00 p.m. in the City Council Chambers, located at 6200 Southcenter Blvd, Tukwila WA, 98188.

The materials for the public hearing are posted on the Council Agenda web page. Any new materials for the Council meeting on July 25, 2011 will be posted on the Council Agenda page by Friday, July 22, 2011.

If you have questions or would like to schedule a meeting with staff, please contact Carol Lumb at 206-431-3661 or carol.lumb@tukwilawa.gov.



May 2011

The City Council will hold a public hearing on Monday, June 27, 2011 at 7:00 p.m. on the Washington State Department of Ecology's required and recommended changes to the City's Shoreline Master Program. The hearing will be held in the Tukwila City Council Chambers, 6200 Southcenter Boulevard, Tukwila, WA 98188. The hearing follows a work session held on May 11, 2011 at which the Council reviewed the Ecology required and recommended changes. The materials discussed at the work session are posted below.

If you have any questions, please contact Carol Lumb at 206-431-3661 or carol.lumb@tukwilawa.gov.

Items available:



April 2011

The Department of Ecology has approved nearly all parts of Tukwila's updated Shoreline Master Program (SMP) and has identified required changes that will result in full approval if accepted by the City. The following materials can be downloaded below: a short summary of the major changes required by Ecology (prepared by City staff); a letter from the Director of the Department of Ecology to the City; findings and conclusions prepared by Ecology staff; Ecology required changes to the SMP in order to receive full Ecology approval; Ecology suggested changes to the SMP; a review of the comments received during the public comment period and analysis by Ecology staff of the responsiveness of the City to these comments.

As soon as a schedule for review of the required and suggested changes by the City Council has been established, it will be posted on the City's web site. If you have any questions, please contact Carol Lumb, at 206-431-3661 or carol.lumb@tukwilawa.gov.

Items available:



October 2010

The public comment period established by the Department of Ecology closed on October 15, 2010. Nine comments were received by Ecology on the City's Master Program and are posted below. Ecology will compile these comments in the next 15 days and then formally ask the City to provide a response to the issues raised. The shoreline guidelines allow the City 30 days to provide a response. After the City provides a response to the comments received, Ecology will complete its review of the City's Shoreline Master Program and then provide formal comments to the City on any needed corrections before the Program can be approved and adopted by Ecology.

Comments received by the Department of Ecology

(Click to expand/contract comments list in PDF format)



September 2010

The Department of Ecology has set Wednesday, September 29, 2010 to hold an Open House and Public Hearing on the City of Tukwila’s adopted shoreline master program. The Open House will begin at 6:00 p.m. with the public hearing starting at 7:00 p.m. Both meetings will be held in the Tukwila City Council Chambers, 6200 Southcenter Blvd, Tukwila, WA 98188.

The Department of Ecology will formally open the public comment period on the City's adopted shoreline master program on September 15, 2020. The comment period will run from September 15 to October 15, 2010. Send written comments on the City's SMP to:

David Radabaugh, Shoreline Planner
Washington Department of Ecology
3190 160th Avenue SE
Bellevue, WA 98008-5452
email: david.radabaugh@ecy.wa.gov


The adopted shoreline master program and other ordinances related to the shoreline are posted below. If you have any questions about the updated shoreline master program, please contact Carol Lumb at carol.lumb@tukwilawa.gov or 206-431-3661.




June 2010

The Department of Ecology has notified the City that it has all the materials it needs to begin formal review of the City's adopted Shoreline Master Program. The letter from Ecology is posted below. The next step will be setting a public hearing date some time in the future.




April 2010

The City was notified by the Department of Ecology on April 1, 2010 that additional items were needed in order to complete the shoreline master program submittal, which would permit Ecology to begin its formal review of the document and supporting materials. The City submitted the additional items identified in the Ecology letter on April 8, 2010 and we are waiting for confirmation that the submittal is complete. Three of the missing items in the City's submittal are from the Municipal Code: Title 18, Zoning Code; Title 19, Sign Code; and TMC 8.45, the enforcement procedures of the Municipal Code. The letter from the Department of Ecology and the City's response and missing items not related to the Municipal Code are posted below.


Adopted Shoreline Master Program Materials

Ordinances adopting City of Tukwila Shoreline Master Program and implementing regulations are listed below. The City has submitted these materials to the Department of Ecology for its review and approval. Ecology will hold a public hearing to obtain public input on the adopted SMP. If you are not on the City's SMP e-mail list and want to be notified of the public hearing date, please submit your information to carol.lumb@tukwilawa.gov.

Comments after Close of Public Hearing

(Click to expand/contract comments list in PDF format)



Previous Council Meeting Materials



Comments Received at the April 20, 2009 Public Hearing

(Click to expand/contract comments list in PDF format)

Comments Received at the July 13 & 20, 2009 Public Hearings

(Click to expand/contract comments list in PDF format)



On February 5, 2009, the Planning Commission completed its review of the Shoreline Master Program and forwarded a recommended draft to the City Council for its review. The document is posted below in two formats – a strikeout/underline format and a clean copy of the document reflecting the changes made by the Planning Commission.

List of Maps:

Appendices

   

Planning Commission Action:

The Planning Commission met over the course of six months to review the draft Shoreline Master Program, take testimony, both written and verbal, from interested parties, and deliberate on provisions of the draft Shoreline Master Program before taking final action on February 5, 2009.

Below you will find materials from the last several Planning Commission work sessions as they completed their review of the draft Shoreline Master Program:


Comments from the January 15, 2009 Meeting: The Planning Commission heard from nine parties of record on the actions taken by the Planning Commission at its meetings on December 10 and 11, 2008. The written comments received are available below.


December 10 and December 11, 2008: Work session to review and take action on the comment matrix and attachments prepared by staff. The Planning Commission made revisions to the draft Shoreline Master Program as identified in Attachments A-N

   

Background

Tukwila is updating its Shoreline Master Program in 2008, the land use plan that governs the area within 200 feet of the river's edge on either side of the Green/Duwamish River. Cities and counties in Washington State with lakes and rivers that have been identified as a Shoreline of the State are required to prepare and adopt these plans. The City's original Master Program was adopted in 1974 and has only received minor modifications since then.

Over the past 34 years, a great deal of residential, commercial and industrial development has taken place in Tukwila along the river. In the larger Green River watershed, human impacts on the river system, through logging, farming, residential, commercial and industrial development, has led to flooding and drainage problems, and has hurt the habitat for fish and wildlife, especially salmon. Levees have been constructed to prevent flooding, but these in turn have affected the habitat of the river and restricted the ability of the river to carry storm water to Puget Sound during large storm events. As the impacts of human development have been recognized, State and Federal regulations have emerged to require local jurisdictions to better protect what habitat remains, to better accommodate the collected storm water, which ends up in the river and to identify areas where habitat restoration can occur and to follow through with restoring these sites.

Shoreline stabilization and restoring important habitat are just two of the many issues that the City's new Draft Shoreline Master Program Update addresses. Other important aspects of the update recommend increasing buffers along the river, increasing public access opportunities, preserving native vegetation, and removal of invasive plants.

This draft document has been posted on the web site and we welcome your review and comments. Several background documents have also been prepared that assisted in the preparation of the draft Master Program: The Shoreline Inventory and Characterization Report and the Restoration Plan that identifies potential habitat restoration sites along the Green/Duwamish River has also been prepared.


Shoreline Image Slideshow

View images of the Duwamish/Green River shoreline.

   

Contact:

If you have questions about the shoreline program update or would like to be placed on the mailing list to be notified of meetings on the plan, please contact Carol Lumb, Department of Community Development, 6300 Southcenter Blvd., Suite 100, Tukwila, WA 98188, 206-431-3661 or e-mail her at carol.lumb@tukwilawa.gov.

   

Documents Available for Review and Comment:

 


Public Comments

Comments Received at the August 28, 2008 Hearing

(Click to expand/contract comments list in PDF format)


Comments Received at the Hearings on October 9 & 16, 2008

(Click to expand/contract comments list in PDF format)




Environmental Review

Notice of Decision, Determination of Non-significance and State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Checklist for Shoreline Master Program Update. Cumulative Impacts Analysis, which was attached to the Checklist may also be downloaded below:




Department of Ecology Guidelines for Shoreline Master Program Updates

State Shoreline Master Program (SMP) Guidelines are standards which local government must follow in drafting their master program. The Guidelines translate the broad policies of RCW 90.58.020 into standards for regulation of shoreline uses. For the full text of these guidelines and additional background information see the following link:

http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/sea/sma/guidelines/index.html



   

•  Draft Tukwila Shoreline Master Program (7/24/08)

This Shoreline Master Program presents background information on the Shoreline Management Act, describes shoreline jurisdiction in Tukwila, summarizes the amendment process carried out to date, presents a summary of the Shoreline Inventory and Characterization, presents a summary of the Shoreline Restoration Plan, proposes shoreline environments, and establishes goals, policies and regulations, which apply to all activities on all affected lands and waters within the shoreline jurisdiction. In addition, there is a chapter that establishes design guidelines. Maps are provided to illustrate shoreline jurisdiction and environments.

List of Maps:

 

Appendices

Appendix A:  Shoreline Inventory and Characterization Report - Final

Prepared by ESA Adolfson, Associates in December 2006: the information in this report is required as part of the update of the City's shoreline master program and will help shape draft policies and regulations that will be part of the overall shoreline program. The report describes the natural and built conditions at the larger Green River watershed level as well as at the local Green/Duwamish River level. The report also discusses how well the shoreline is working as an area for fish and wildlife to live and makes recommendations that could be carried forward to provide policy guidance for the Master Program. The report includes the two Appendices noted below.

Appendix A: Map Folio:

Appendix B:  Shoreline Restoration Plan (Final) - May 2007

Appendix C:  Draft Cumulative Impacts Analysis

Appendix D:  Tukwila SMP Net Loss Analysis

   

Inventory of Shoreline Habitat and Riparian Conditions

Prepared by Pentec Environmental in 2003. This inventory was prepared for an earlier effort to update the City's shoreline master program. Some of the information in this inventory was used in the current inventory.

 

Contact Information:

Department of Community Development
6300 Southcenter Blvd., #100
Tukwila, WA 98188

Phone: 206 431-3670
Fax: 206 431-3665

Email Planning Division

Email Building Division