By Tadas A. Kisielius on Posted in Municipal,Water LawToday, the Washington State Supreme Court issued the long awaited decision in Lummi Indian Nation, et al., v. State of Washington. This landmark water rights decision upholds the Municipal Water Law (“MWL”) against all of the Plaintiffs’ facial constitutional challenges and resolves disputes and uncertainties over the water rights of public water systems in this state … Continue Reading
By Duncan M. Greene on Posted in Land UseThis is Part 3 of a series of blog entries that focuses on conservation easements and fee simple acquisitions. Part 1 provides an overview of the debate over the use of conservation easements vs. fee simple acquisitions. Part 2 takes an in-depth look at conservation easements through the lens of a recent report to the … Continue Reading
By Seth P. Gustafson on Posted in Real EstateA recent Washington Court of Appeals case provides a useful warning about missing some of the formalities required for a valid lease in Washington, but also shows a court willing to step in to save a defective lease, recognizing the potential unfairness in letting a party walk away from what everyone intended to be a binding … Continue Reading
By Katie F. Cote, AICP on Posted in Development,Growth Management Act,Land Use PlanningOn Thursday, Ron Sims was back in Seattle to award HUD’s first Sustainable Communities Planning Grants. The Puget Sound Regional Council was awarded a grant of $5 million and Thurston County Regional Planning Council was awarded a grant of $1.5 million. Congratulations! The Sustainable Communities Planning Grant is part of the Sustainable Communities Initiative, a … Continue Reading
By Ray Liaw on Posted in DevelopmentA recent statutory time extension for both preliminary plats and final plats may not apply to newly approved plats. Recently, the Legislature temporarily extended the statutory expiration date on both preliminary and final plats from five-years to seven-years. But notice the word temporary. The statutory extension to seven-years is scheduled to sunset on December 31, 2014, … Continue Reading
By Tadas A. Kisielius on Posted in MunicipalLast Thursday, October 7, 2010, the Supreme Court issued a decision on the Public Records Act (PRA) that emphasizes the challenges local jurisdictions face when responding to requests for electronic documents under our state’s expansive “sunshine” law. In O’Neill v. City Of Shoreline, the Supreme Court dragged the PRA into the digital age and held … Continue Reading
By Peter J. Smith on Posted in Land UseIn September, King County Superior Court launched a pilot program to explore whether mandatory mediation can help resolve disputes earlier in litigation. Under the program, approximately 1,800 randomly selected cases will receive a modified case schedule that will include two additional deadlines: a deadline for submitting a mediation plan and a deadline for completing mediation … Continue Reading
By Duncan M. Greene on Posted in EnvironmentalThis is Part 2 of a series of blog entries that focuses on conservation easements and fee simple acquisitions. Part 1 provides an overview of the debate over the use of conservation easements vs. fee simple acquisitions. The need to consider particular conservation goals for each property when determining the appropriate conservation tool is underscored … Continue Reading
By Tadas A. Kisielius on Posted in Growth Management ActIn this installment of our ongoing series on the state of the GMA after 20 years, we explore challenges in achieving one of the GMA’s central goals: encouraging urban growth. The Urban Growth goal, concentrating growth in urban growth areas (UGAs), is a cornerstone of the GMA. The goal and associated GMA provisions require counties … Continue Reading
By Denice Trimble on Posted in DevelopmentMany jurisdictions face the challenge of dealing with eyesores—those abandoned properties that never seem to attract redevelopment. Oftentimes, redevelopment is stymied because of contamination issues, including the potential health and safety of nearby residents and depressed property values, and therefore sit idle while communities lose out on overall neighborhood revitalization, tax income, and achieving an … Continue Reading
