The City of Sequim is taking a six-month pause on processing all Master-Planned Overlay applications, such as Westbay’s proposed 600-lot proposal on West Sequim Bay Road.

City councilors unanimously approved a moratorium on the application types at the July 28 council meeting at staff’s recommendation.

A public hearing about the moratorium will be required to occur in the next 60 days in late September but was not scheduled as of the Gazette’s press deadline.

City Attorney Kristina Nelson-Gross said the moratorium was recommended by the city’s outside legal counsel so staff could review “internal processes and procedures as outlined in our Comprehensive Plan and our Sequim Municipal Code, and it is not something that is a reflection on the (Westbay) application whatsoever.”

“The purpose of this is to give a pause to city staff for us to reevaluate the multiple moving parts that are occurring as the result of our Comprehensive Plan update and to ensure that we are following the processes needed to provide the opportunity for Westbay’s application to be in the best position possible to move forward through the approval process,” Nelson-Gross said.

On July 21, city planners reported that Seabrook Holding Company’s Westbay application was “technically incomplete” with seven pages of requested corrections, documents and studies needed, according to city documents.

The decision was not a complete substantive review of the application, staff wrote, but a process to identify the minimum necessary for the city to determine if a full technical review can continue.

In an interview, Nelson-Gross said she did not want to comment on specific issues for the city with processing a Master-Planned Overlay.

“We’re vetting potential solutions and looking at alternatives to a moratorium as well,” she said.

Nelson-Gross confirmed the city has been in discussions with John Wayne Enterprises’ and Westbay’s lawyers since the week prior.

At the July 28 meeting, Kristine Wilson, a lawyer with Perkins Cole of Bellevue representing John Wayne Enterprises, said in public comment that she understood the moratorium vote was not about Westbay’s application’s approval or disapproval.

“Given that this Master Plan community has been part of the city’s expectations now for many years, we don’t believe that solutions to these planning issues should wait on a full update to the city’s Comprehensive Plan,” she said.

“In the weeks ahead, we ask that you please continue to look for another option.”

Nelson-Gross said staff are exploring alternatives to a moratorium process but she couldn’t assess how much time that would take. If an alternative is available, she said she would “absolutely bring that forward to the council as doing the moratorium is not something that staff take lightly.”

Feedback

A handful of proponents, including developers and local real estate agents, spoke in favor of the project and asked councilors not to proceed with the moratorium.

Jeff Gundersen, CFO/COO for Seabrook Holding Company, said they were “surprised and deeply disappointed by the City of Sequim’s proposed emergency moratorium … after over 12 months of collaborative work in good faith with both the city staff and leadership.”

He said Seabrook has invested more than a million dollars in the project so far, and the decision comes quickly after learning of the application being “technically incomplete” and starting work to rectify that.

“Until we learned of the city’s intent to impose the moratorium, we were unaware of any city concerns with respect to its Comp Plan and development regulations that would warrant such an action,” Gundersen said.

“In our view, the city’s determination that a moratorium is needed at this point in the Westbay review process also sends an unfortunate message to those looking to invest in Sequim’s future.”

He added that they remain committed to the project and “look forward to continuing to work with the city to find a path forward and achieve a successful outcome for this project.”

After the meeting, Gundersen said in an interview that they’re hopeful the city won’t need a full six months and that there’s good collaboration happening between legal teams.

Seabrook CEO Casey Roloff spoke to the city council about Seabrook’s general amenities and attractiveness, and their efforts to support the community, such as through its foundation where each home sale supports area schools and other community projects.

“We don’t want to come in here and do our own thing,” he said. “We want to fit in, we want to be a great neighbor. That’s something that has been one of our values wherever we go.”

Rick Anderson, founder of Anderson Holmes, said Westbay would support the city’s revenues, the community at-large, including the school district and fire district, and create opportunities for local builders.

Lisa Roberts, a local real estate agent, said Westbay is “a real chance for growth … it’s more resources for our schools, better roads, and the kind of local services that truly enhance our daily lives. And jobs — we’re talking about putting our neighbors, local contractors, and skilled trades people to work right here in Sequim.”

No one spoke during public comments in favor of the moratorium or against the Westbay development.

A petition on Change.org against the project has 1,279 signatures by press deadline asking the city council and/or hearing examiner to deny Seabrook’s application for multiple reasons, such as concerns about water availability, traffic safety, and that there is enough homes in development already.

Process

Nelson-Gross said city planning staff have held preliminary discussions with potential developers about Master-Planned Overlays but have not seen any other applications come to the city as of July 28.

“The unfortunate reality is that (the cause of the moratorium) was one of those things that until staff had an application in front of it and started digging into various matters that we discovered the issues that have prompted staff to look at a moratorium as a tool to remedy that practice,” she said.

She encouraged Westbay to continue speaking with city staff about addressing the items needed in the “technically incomplete” letter.

“Those types of things can still be done through a moratorium process,” Nelson-Gross said. “It does not mean everything comes to a halt.”

She also said city staff do not plan to propose changing the concepts behind zoning for a Planned Resort Community, such as Westbay.

“We intend to bring this forward to have the clearest, most defensible path for the city, for the applicant, and frankly, for the residents as well,” Nelson-Gross said.

For more information about the City of Sequim, visit sequimwa.gov.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash Seabrook CEO Casey Roloff speaks to the city council on July 28 about Seabrook’s intentions to build Westbay. “We don’t want to come in here and do our own thing,” he said. “We want to fit in, we want to be a great neighbor. That’s something that has been one of our values wherever we go.” Councilors agreed to a moratorium on Master-Planned Overlays like Westbay’s so city staff could fix any legal issues before any plans move forward.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash Rick Anderson, founder of Anderson Holmes, told Sequim City Councilors on July 28 he supports the development of Westbay because it would bring in more jobs, revenue and support for local entities. City Attorney Kristina Nelson-Gross said a six-month moratorium was recommended by the city’s outside legal counsel and was not related to the Westbay application.

Photo courtesy Seabrook Holding Company/ Any applications for Master-Planned Overlays, such as Westbay, a planned 600-lot development with up to 650 units along Sequim Bay, are on hold for up to six months under a new moratorium by the City of Sequim.