By Janine Unsoeld
Two unrelated local land use cases recently covered
by Little Hollywood have seen schedule changes.
Oak
Tree Preserve
A decision by Thurston County Commissioners about
the proposed Oak Tree Preserve housing development in unincorporated Thurston
County was expected July 8, but that date was changed to July 31, with the permission
of both parties.
The Thurston County Commissioners held a hearing
about the case on June 23. The case before the commissioners is an appeal of a
decision by a hearing examiner who approved the developer’s preliminary plat.
The developer, Oak Tree Preserve, LLC, proposes to subdivide
258.5 acres into 1,037 single family homes in Lacey’s urban growth area. The property
contains Thurston County’s largest intact stand of Oregon white oak, a state-protected
priority habitat.
The county commissioners asked the parties in early July for an
extension until July 31 to issue their written decision on the appeal. In their
request, they cited reasons due to the numerous motions that have been filed by
the parties, the complexity of the issues, and the individual and collective
schedules of the commissioners.
The parties will be notified and the decision will be
posted on the county website as soon as it is received, at www.co.thurston.wa.us/permitting/hearing/hearings/oak-tree-preserve/otp.htm, said county land use clerk Cami Peterson in a voice mail to Little Hollywood this morning.
Grande
Terrace Wedding and Event Venue
In the Olympia case involving a downtown Olympia wedding
and event venue, a hearing scheduled for July 30 has been cancelled.
The Grande Terrace on Capitol Lake venue operator, Bart
Zier, had been operating his business at 915 Deschutes Parkway in an area zoned
residential without a permit. Even when issued temporary use permits, Zier had violated the terms of the permits and multiple city codes on
several occasions.
Zier withdrew his request to the city for a
conditional use permit on July 8 and instead requested a temporary use permit
to conduct six events in August and September. He is also requesting a grading
permit to retroactively approve construction work previously done on the
property, such as the pad on which a large tent structure had been erected.
Concerned community members and neighbors have
written city staff, asking the city deny Zier’s new request, citing numerous city, state, and federal codes and regulations.
In a telephone interview this morning, senior City
of Olympia planner Cari Hornbein said she expects to issue a decision on the
permit by the end of this week. City staff conducted a site visit of the
property last week, said Hornbein.
In May, Little
Hollywood contacted several brides-to-be whose summer weddings were known
to be scheduled at that location, and informed them of recent developments regarding the
venue.
For
more information about these two cases, go to Little Hollywood, www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com and type key words into the search
engine.
