The San Juan County Council on Sept. 23 approved a request by the planning department which will allow – at least temporarily – the unified development code to be modified more than once a year.

In a 6-0 vote, the council agreed Sept. 23 to set aside a long-standing, self-imposed restriction that allows the UDC to be altered just once-a-year, through the so-called “docket” process, in favor of a two-year “experiment” that provides for more frequent changes. Whether greater flexibility will help county planners successfully tackle a backlog of more than 100 pending changes to the UDC and Comprehensive Plan remains to be seen.

But without it, Senior Planner Shireene Hale said that the department couldn’t come close.

“It’s too big a bite to take,” Hale said of trying to manage so many pending code changes, and with limited resources, all at once.

Council members noted San Juan is one of only a few Washington counties that adheres to a one-year restriction on UDC and Comp Plan changes.

In addition to a two-year sunset clause, the council agreed it would consider such changes no more than three times a year during the duration of the experiment. The clock will begin to tick on the two-year trial beginning this December.

The council also called for a ramped-up effort in making information more readily available regarding any potential regulatory changes that might be in store, including allotting space on the county website, ensuring a file is available at the planning department, and that timely alerts are sent to electronic media sources and to those that request notification.

Two weeks earlier, the request drew strong opposition from several islanders who defended the once-year-restriction. They noted it had been backed by the citizens’ committee that helped craft the Comp Plan and UDC more than a decade ago. The council, in postponing its decision, cited that opposition, as well as confusion over why the Planning Commission rejected the request earlier in the year and a lack of information about the number of times a year such changes are considered in other counties.

San Juan Island’s Chris Clarke said variations in the number of times counties consider UDC amendments should be expected given that most, at some point, developed through a citizen-based decision process called for by the state Growth Management Act.

“Just because our citizens decided on once a year doesn’t mean they’re wrong,” he said.

According to Prosecuting Attorney Randy Gaylord, the once-a-year restriction was put in place in large part to protect the integrity of the Comp Plan and UDC by preventing local lawmakers from having free reign in reshaping local regulations. It forces those with a project that doesn’t fit easily into county code to seek a variance, he said, a process allowed for in local regulations.

Karin Agosta, a veteran member of the planning commission, noted the nine-member panel was divided over the request. It recommended, however, that limits and a sunset clause be added if the council were to approve it. Moreover, she said, the commission was unaware that most counties, and cities, consider UDC changes more frequently.

With limitations in place, Agosta last week said she supports opening up the process and encouraged the council to take “extraordinary steps” to ensure islanders are aware when potential amendments are in the pipeline.