Planning Commission Wants To Hear From You

According to the Snohomish County Charter:

“The Snohomish County Planning Commission is comprised of eleven volunteers who review proposed comprehensive plans and land use regulations on behalf of the citizens of Snohomish County.  Their role is to represent the perspective of local citizens as a counter-balance to the technical perspective of a professional planning and engineering staff in a policy advisory capacity to the County Council.”

The commission votes on issues such as; whether a multi-family development can be built in your area, the types of new businesses a farmer can start on their land, how many off-street parking spaces your neighbor is required to have and the county’s capital budget, among many other issues.

Unfortunately, we don’t hear a lot of testimony from the public. There are a few interest groups and lobbyists who regularly testify but citizens are rarely engaged in the process.

The commission recently created a 6 month pilot program which provides an “open comment” period for the public to testify on issues that are not on our agenda. We hoped this would increase public involvement but after three months, not a single citizen has testified.

I recognize that we all lead busy lives and most citizens don’t have time to drive to Everett and testify. However, the commission is here for you, to be your voice. Please take part in shaping the future of our county.

You can sign up for commission updates here: http://j.mp/11QvsUb

Guy Palumbo

Small Business Owner/Snohomish County Planning Commissioner