Above: Liz Lyman, center, looks at the maps of the proposed Oak Tree Preserve development before the hearing held at the Thurston County fairgrounds on March 23, 2015.
By Janine Unsoeld
The proposed development called the Oak Tree
Preserve was approved on April 24 by Thurston County Hearing Examiner Sharon
Rice, and that decision was appealed by concerned citizens by
the deadline, May 8.
Several citizens living near the property stepped up
to appeal the decision, including Liz Lyman, who is now acting as the official
spokesperson for the appeal.
Contacted this weekend by Little Hollywood, Lyman says she appreciates all the efforts of
concerned neighbors and community members to save a 258.5 acre wooded area in
Lacey’s urban growth area of Thurston County.
Other appellants are Liz Kohlenberg, Robert Self, Bonnie Self, the Black Hills Audubon
Society, William Koopman and Felicia “Lisa” Carroll.
Oak Tree Preserve, LLC is seeking to develop the
property into 1,037 small, single family residential units. The project is
proposed to be developed in Thurston County’s largest stand of Oregon White
Oaks - just over 79 acres. It is also home to a wide range of birds, animals
and plants.
The Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife designates the Oregon White Oak as priority habitat. If this development is ultimately approved as it is currently proposed, 36 acres of that priority habitat - 45 percent - will be destroyed to build houses and infrastructure.
The remaining oak stand will be fragmented. The developer proposes to build one of the two main connector roads through the remaining oak stand. That road will be the only road from the site to Marvin Road for the first two phases of the development, significantly impacting the habitat.
The area in the unincorporated area of Lacey on
Marvin Road is bordered by the Burlington Northern Railroad and the McAllister
Park
and
Evergreen Estates subdivisions.
Few neighbors were notified of the
proposed development. Those who were took to the streets, informed others, and created an online petition against the development
that garnered nearly 300 supporters in about four days.
Carroll and Koopman have also created a Facebook
page, Facebook.com/pages/Save
The Thurston Oaks. Both are fresh
Thurston County environmental activist voices, and learning the process as they
go along.
After the hearing examiner’s decision but before she
decided to become an appellant, Carroll said she and the neighbors of her Evergreen Estates subdivision were saddened, but then felt empowered
to do more.
“The fact is, Evergreen Estates will bear the brunt of it - we only have 27th Avenue as our main road and there are going to be 300 homes added at the end of 27th....The size of this project makes it all that more
unfortunate that 20th century standards were applied to a 21st century
world. We must do better. And it looks like it’s up to us citizens of
Thurston County to make that change.”
Koopman agreed, lamenting a wide range of environmental
concerns:
“…The effects
of the new development on the communities and homes bordering Marvin…cannot be
underestimated….The entire area drains into the Nisqually Watershed, by way of
McAllister Springs, McAllister Creek and thus the Puget Sound. The additional
pollutants - herbicides, pesticides, plastics, storm water runoffs - will undoubtedly
further impact the health of the watershed, Puget Sound, the shellfish, and of
course, the salmon.
“There is also the issue of oil train-traffic, which
is growing exponentially in this area. This new development is bordered by the
railroad. All of the homes located therein are in an area considered by the
U.S. Department of Transportation as a potential evacuation or impact zone in
case of an oil train derailment and/or explosion. If coal trains start their
travels through the county as well, what of our air-quality, especially of
those developments bordering the tracks?
“There are indeed a host of further items of
interest….Amazingly, all of this has been approved without an Environmental
Impact Statement (EIS) having been performed. Through a series of Mitigated
Determination of Non-Significance (MDNS) the EIS has been out-maneuvered and
rendered mute. The EIS is the people’s voice of safe, responsible and
sustainable environmental practices that assure all Thurston County residents
of an accountable, transparent mode of responsible stewardship of our County’s
land use and the safety of our population through enforcements concerning
proposed land use developments, clean water and clean air. I believe our county
residents require more from the Thurston County Resource Stewardship Department
than a rubberstamp of approval on such a highly contentious development project,” said Koopman.
Liz Lyman, who lives in The Seasons subdivision, served on the Thurston County Planning Commission from 1999 to 2007, including two years as chair and two years as vice chair. She also has experience with land use planning for protecting wildlife habitats and nearshore water quality in Puget Sound's urbanized areas.
“I've only met Lisa and Bill once, but they seem deeply and genuinely committed to protecting habitat for wildlife -- birds in particular. I applaud them for all of their efforts. It's truly heartening to meet people like them,” said Lyman.
Appeal Claims
The funds contributed for the appeal filing were
from homeowners in Evergreen Estates, The Seasons, and the Black Hills Audubon Society.
In the appeal, appellant’s claim that the hearing
examiner’s decision erred by not requiring avoidance of removing oak trees as
the primary method of protecting the oak woodlands as required by Thurston
County regulations.
They also say she erred by not using “best available
science” to evaluate the Oregon White Oak woodland, determine if any of the acreage can be removed without causing irreparable harm to the habitat, and
determine the mitigation strategy for the oak that must be removed.
Petitioners are requesting the collection
of a more robust record on avoidance and best available science, and a new
hearing examiner review after that record is created.
They also request that the new record include testimony
from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the state agency charged
with protecting priority habitat including oak woodlands, and several
other topics.
Next Steps
Lyman says she continues to turn
away people who want to
contribute to the nearly $900 it took to appeal the land use decision in Thurston
County.
“I have spoken with homeowners in The Seasons and
Eagle Crest, which is a neighboring subdivision….Many homeowners are simply
incredulous about the hearing examiner's decision on the Oak Tree Preserve
preliminary plat. The issues they're concerned about may vary, but the common
thread is that they're very unhappy….and are feeling let down by the county.
The board of The Seasons considered appealing, but decided against it because
the odds of prevailing are not in its favor and it's entrusted with the
homeowners' funds. The Seasons' board was wonderful, though, in getting the
word out to our homeowners through the association's own website,” she said. There are 215 homes in The Seasons.
“We have many avid birders who are keenly interested
in the outcome of this appeal. Many of us have worked hard to create a
bird-friendly environment, something that will be impacted rather dramatically
and negatively if the Oak Tree Preserve development proceeds….The destruction
of the Oregon White Oak habitat will be devastating to the bird population,”
said Lyman.
As for the appeal, the next step is to wait for the
county to post the documents filed on May 8 on its website, which should occur
early next week. Then, the developer has 14 days to file their response to the
appeal as well as to others that may have been filed. Then, the appellants have
seven days to file their responses or rebuttals.
The County Commissioners have 60 days to make their
decision from the date an appeal is posted. A decision on the case could be made before
mid-July.
For
three previous articles on the Oak Tree Preserve case, go to Little Hollywood, www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com and use the search button using
key words.
Thurston
County’s Hearing Examiner Decision: http://www.co.thurston.wa.us/permitting/hearing/hearings/oak-tree-preserve/otp.html
Washington
Department of Fish and Wildlife Comments: http://www.co.thurston.wa.us/permitting/hearing/hearings/oak-tree-preserve/C26-WDFW-OTP-Plat-Hearing-comments-3_21_15.pdf
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