Started by Kevin Sterling
Sep 16, 2025

There is a Planning Commission hearing on September 19th. At this meeting the committee will hear public testimony and make recommendations to County Council on updates to the Comprehensive Plan. Please check out the Draft Comprehensive Plan Update Ordinance and contact the Planning Commission and the County Council if you have any questions or concerns. Don’t wait too long to review the document because it’s 952 pages!

One proposed change to the Utility element is to make OPALCO an Essential Public Facility. The implications of this change could be rather large.

I posted this as a town hall due to the size and and weight of this document and that perhaps not everyone will have the time to fully review it. Please comment and share any insights you may have with the community so that we can all be better informed. Thanks

Comment by Kevin Sterling
Oct 21, 2025

Here is what Friends of the San Juans said at the September 19th Planning Commission hearing. I agree with their statement and think public involvement is critical.

EPFs - Friends would like to provide comment on the proposed policy in the Utilities Element regarding the designation of utility-scal ... Read All

Comment by Kevin Sterling
Oct 4, 2025

Hi Linda,
This document is difficult to read. The Comprehensive Plan isn’t actually that big - the edits and supporting pages make it significantly larger. I don’t know if there is another version out there that is easier to digest.

The only thing I saw about vacatio ... Read All

Comment by Linda Hudson
Oct 3, 2025

Is there and index? It is in tiny print and I can't/won't scroll thru the whole thing to see if Air B&Bs or VRBOS are to banned, or at least, regulated.

Comment by Chris Greacen
Sep 29, 2025

Essential Public Facilities are covered in SJ county code 18.30.055 "Siting and permitting of essential public facilities (EPFs)" available at:

https://www.codepublishing.com/WA/SanJuanCounty/html/SanJuanCounty18/SanJuanCounty1830.html ... Read All

Comment by Chuenchom Greacen
Sep 26, 2025

Thanks for bringing this to our attention.

I personally think the conversation needs to be moved upstream. When community gets to weigh in only at the project level, it's hard to discuss options and alternatives without getting so emotionally charged. EPF doesn't change the dynamic much bu ... Read All

Comment by Kevin Sterling
Sep 22, 2025

Hi Ruby,
I attended remotely and spoke in opposition of OPALCO being given an Essential Public Facility designation. Friends of the San Juans also gave a very articulate argument against OPALCO becoming an Essential Public Facility.

A majority of the public comments were ... Read All

Comment by Ruby Layne Hampton
Sep 21, 2025

Iyiyi, I’m seeing this two days late..
Did u attend the meeting..?
Was there significant opposition?

Comment by Kevin Sterling
Sep 18, 2025

I got the answer to my question directly from Foster Hildreth, CEO for OPALCO yesterday. Would the public be able to stop a project if OPALCO became an Essential Public Facility? His answer was no, the public would not be able to stop a project.

In the housing element there’s a note about receivin ... Read All

Comment by Kevin Sterling
Sep 17, 2025

Does Essential Public Facility designation make it impossible for the public to stop a project?

If so, this is a ‘red flag’ for me. Changes to the plan that discourage community dialogue and engagement are not welcome in my Comprehensive Plan. We need a plan that encourages and supports communit ... Read All