The Comprehensive Plan is a guide to the future – it dictates a vision for how our communities can retain the things we love, and provides a path for growing and responding to increased development pressure, and adapting to natural disasters such as wildfires and droughts.

At its heart, the Comp Plan is built by the people, and written for decision-makers. As elected officials and staff change, the Comp Plan and the body of regulation it supports are designed to stand the test of time, providing consistency and clarity to decisions that people can depend on, ensuring the values of the public are protected.

An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is designed for the public and for current decision-makers to choose the best path for the Comprehensive Plan to take. This is where we are at today.

Okanogan County has released a Draft Comprehensive Plan and Draft EIS that fail to serve our county in looking ahead to the challenges of the future.

The Comp Plan does not meet the minimum standards required by law and fails to clearly articulate the differences between alternatives. In turn, the DEIS does a less than adequate job of analyzing the impacts of the various alternatives on the county’s people, environment or economy.

We believe the residents of Okanogan County deserve a thoughtful Comprehensive Plan that adequately addresses the issues we face in our region, and that can be translated into policies and decisions that make sense. 

How do we make it right?

This is where your voice counts more than ever. 

The Okanogan County Regional Planning Commission (PC) is a body of volunteers, tasked with evaluating public comments on the Draft Plan and DEIS, and making a recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners on what should go into the final draft of the Comp Plan.

They need to hear from you, loud and clear. They need to hear why the current path is unacceptable, and also how to salvage the process to create a Plan that works for everyone. 

Two hundred of you signed a petition supporting MVCC’s proposal for a 4th Alternative (Citizens’ Alternative), which calls for bolstering the Plan to include a dozen improvements to protect the county’s land, air, water and wildlife into the future.

The PC will receive a copy of the signed petition on Monday, August 19. MVCC has also developed issue briefs for each subject, explaining how to include them in the final Plan.

WHAT YOU CAN DO RIGHT NOW:

1. Send comments to the PC before August 19. MVCC has developed simple talking points to address which Alternatives we support, what’s wrong with the Comp Plan and DEIS, and some proposed ideas to get back on track.

2. Plan to attend Monday’s hearing and read your comments out loud. There is a 5 minute time limit. Carpool with us, and feel the support of your friends and neighbors for standing up!

3. For a deeper dive into the things you love – whether it’s Dark Skies or Air Quality, Water or Recreation, or something else – choose from one or more of the 12 issue briefs below, and include some or all of the recommendations in your comments about how to improve a final plan.

Water
Wildfire
Rural Designations
Clearing and Grading
Critical Areas Ordinance
Fish and Wildlife
Recreation
Air Quality
Methow Valley Review District
Agriculture and Forest Conservation
Ridgetops
Dark Skies Ordinance

WE HOPE TO SEE YOU MONDAY EVENING IN OKANOGAN! 
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