Drafter
Clerk 11/15/2006
Title
AN ORDINANCE related to growth management and the protection of natural resources; authorizing the King County executive to execute interlocal agreements with the city of Issaquah to transfer rural development rights into the city of Issaquah and provide $200,000 in conservation futures funding for the acquisition of open space inside the city of Issaquah.
Body
STATEMENT OF FACTS:
1. The state of Washington Growth Management Act ("GMA"), chapter 36.70A RCW, directs development to urban areas, discourages inappropriate conversion of undeveloped rural land into sprawling, low-density development, and encourages the conservation of productive forest lands and productive agricultural lands.
2. The GMA identifies transfer of development rights as an innovative technique for land use management. Countywide Planning Policies direct jurisdictions in the county to implement programs and regulations to protect and maintain the rural character of rural, farm and forest lands, and to direct growth to cities and urban centers. King County and the city of Issaquah share a common interest in protecting salmon habitat in the Issaquah Creek Watershed as required by the Endangered Species Act. King County and the city of Issaquah have a long tradition of developing innovative strategies to conserve resource and environmentally sensitive lands that are essential to this region's quality of life.
3. Protecting rural farms and forests, open space lands, and wildlife habitat are goals of both the Countywide Planning Policies and the King County Comprehensive Plan. By city of Issaquah Ordinance 2324, the city of Issaquah has adopted a transfer of development rights program including amendments to its land use code authorizing use of development rights from rural King County inside the city of Issaquah. Two hundred thousand dollars has been appropriated in the 2005 Budget Ordinance, Ordinance 15083, Project 315177, for the suburban city TDR incentive open space acquisition project.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF KING COUNTY:
SECTION 1. The executive is authorized to execute interlocal agreements, substantially in the form attached, with the city of Issaquah to transfer rural development rights into the city of Issaquah and to provide $200,000 in King County conservation futures funding for the acquisition of open space land inside the city of Issaquah as defined in chapter 84.34 RCW and consistent with K.C.C. chapter 26.12.
SECTION 2. The executive is authorized to execute an amendment to the conservation futures interlocal agreement with the city of Issaquah, substantially in the form attached to this ordinance, for the disbursement of $200,000 in conservation futures funds appropriated in Ordinance 15083, Project 315177.
SECTION 3. A copy of the interlocal agreements shall be maintained on file at the department of natural resources and parks.
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