County Council approves development ordinances

At its first meeting of the month last week, the Pierce County Council passed a pair of ordinances regarding development regulations and landscaping.
The first ordinance dealt with correctly referencing the International Building Code and eliminating a reference to the “Urban Village” land use designation, which no longer exists in Pierce County.

“These are highly technical amendments, and again they would be incorporated into the Shoreline Master Program following approval and final action by the Washington State Department of Ecology,” senior policy analyst Mike Kruger said.

Pierce County Codes Title 18E and Title 18S together comprise the Pierce County Shoreline Master Program.The council also passed an ordinance amending several sections of the Pierce County Code related to landscape buffering and street tree-planting requirements.

“The proposed amendments before you this afternoon would reduce the landscaping requirements for civic uses adjacent to arterial roads,” Kruger explained. “The proposal would modify the street tree requirement within residential subdivisions, require plantings not interfere with utility infrastructure.”

Development of single-family residential subdivisions at maximum urban densities can create design challenges due to necessary infrastructure requirements and requirements for installation of street trees.

The council passed two proclamations, declaring the month of February 2022 as Black History Month in Pierce County and February 2022 as Career and Technical Education Month in Pierce County.