Hearing set for land use changes

SANDPOINT — A suite of land use code amendments are coming back before the Bonner County Commission on Wednesday.

County commissioners are conducting a public hearing on the proposed changes at 1:30 p.m. in the Bonner County Administration Building.

The code changes, which have bounced back and forth between the Planning & Zoning Commission and the county commission this year, include increasing the existing administrative exceptions for setbacks from 1 foot to 10 percent. Administrative exceptions for lot size and subdivision design would increase from 2 percent to 5 percent.

The code amendments would also create an administrative variance up to 30 percent. After noticing requirements are met, the planning director has the discretion to grant the variance or call for a public hearing. Variances greater than 30 percent would follow the established variance request process.

But perhaps the most controversial amendment involves certificates of compliance with local land use regulations. A conditional certificate of compliance moves the date for which a parcel may legally exist to the adoption date of the last major rewrite of the ordinance, which occurred in 2008. It essentially grants amnesty to land divisions which don’t meet code requirements.

The code changes are billed as a way to ease the regulatory burden on landowners, although critics contend the changes erode water quality safeguards and design standards.

The planning commission recommended approval of the changes in May, but the board in June continued the hearing for further consideration.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.