County Council adopts two ordinances related to development and permitting
We hope you are doing well and have stayed healthy. The COVID-19 pandemic has not only impacted the health of our friends and neighbors, but also the Pierce County economy. The Executive, Council and PPW staff are working hard to ensure we can preserve projects that are in the approval pipeline as well as approvals already issued. To that end the Pierce County Council recently passed two ordinances that will help keep building and development projects moving forward considering the project delays from the State’s Stay Home, Stay Healthy order. The ordinances take effect on April 25, 2020.
Land Use Advisory Commission (LUAC) Rules Suspension Ord. 2020-45
This ordinance suspends the requirement that LUACs hold meetings and make recommendations on development proposals. LUAC members are requested to continue to provide proposal comments to the Hearing Examiner if possible. The Council will revisit this temporary relief in June.
Permitting Timeframe Extensions and Continuance of Hearings Ord. 2020-46
Allows the Planning and Public Works department to extend expiration dates associated with permit applications and approvals. The ordinance also allows the Hearing Examiner to continue (postpone) all administrative hearings, including appeals. Time extensions and continuances may not exceed six months from the expiration date of the Pierce County Executive’s State of Emergency Declaration. The Council will revisit this temporary relief in September.
To request an extension please contact the staff member assigned to your project. We can be reached online and by phone at (253) 798-3739. Please contact us if you have any questions or need assistance.
You will receive more information from us as the restrictions from the SHSH order are lifted. There will be changes to our normal business processes moving forward, but we remain committed to providing timely and reliable application processing and inspections. Our Best Public Agency principals remain a priority for the Department. More information about our plans for returning to work will be shared as soon as those plans are final.