Chelan County Rescinds Construction Resolution At Request Of Governor

Commission is asking the State to consider an optional resolution by Friday

Content provided by Chelan County Commission

The hope of allowing a restart of local home construction in Chelan County has been put on hold. A recent resolution approved by the Chelan County Commission that would have allowed construction activity was rescinded on Monday at the request of the Governor’s office.

The county was recently notified by the Governor’s office that the State considered Chelan County Resolution 2020-42 to be in conflict with the Governor’s proclamations and guidance memorandum regarding Stay Home Stay Healthy and also construction activity.

The Chelan County Board of Commissioners reluctantly took the action to rescind the resolution on construction and have drafted a letter to the Governor’s Chief Legal Counsel Kathryn Leathers seeking answers and clarification on questions pertaining to homelessness and also expressing concern about pending projects in the Lake Chelan Basin regarding damage that may be caused to pilings already in place due to rising lake levels if construction can’t be completed.

Below is the complete text of the letter from the County Commission to the Governor’s legal counsel:

Ms Leathers:

Today, April 21, 2020 the Chelan County Board of Commissioners took action to rescind Resolution No. 2020-42 per your request. The action was reluctantly taken, as we do not agree with your interpretation that this Resolution violated either the direction or the intent of the Governor’s Proclamation 20-25. Note that this resolution has a stated intent to be consistent with Proclamations 20-05 and 20-25. Your correspondence dated April 17, 2020, only addressed one segment of the Resolution and only provided partial information in response to our concerns.

This is an urgent matter. We need to take action because we have situations where spoliation and environmental damage will occur if we cannot proceed.

Attached is a draft, unsigned resolution that we offer as a pragmatic approach that complies with the Governor’s Proclamation 20-25 while preventing spoliation and displacement in Chelan County.

We have repeatedly requested clarification from the Governor’s office, with examples, of what constituted spoliation and how far to extend that exemption. You will note in our Resolution that our concern for the Lake Chelan Basin, which involves seasonally-rising water levels, has the potential to destroy existing footings on halted projects and result in unacceptable erosion to the now exposed shoreline and pollution to one of the most pristine, ultra-oligotrophic lakes in Washington State. We have also failed to receive a clear definition of “homelessness” or “displacement” and the manner by which to use that exemption to prevent an already severe problem in our County from becoming worse.

Please reference the below questions we would like clarified regarding homelessness or displacement:

1.) Does homelessness or displacement mean that a family has to be living on the street now or in the immediate future or does that extend to individuals or families forced to move into another’s home for shelter because they no longer have a residence of their own?

2.) Does homelessness or displacement apply to families living in a temporary housing situation that because of delay in construction has created a financial burden that they are no longer able to cover existing construction loan obligations or rent?

3.) Does homelessness or displacement apply to families that have been forced to live in Recreational Vehicles (RV’s) for longer than County codes permit, while awaiting construction on the few remaining segments of their new home?

We consider all of these questions to be time sensitive and cannot wait for deliberations by “work groups” that have no deadline for recommendations. Our Resolution 2020-42 was successful in invoking a quick response from your office. Unfortunately, it did not supply the much needed answers to our inquiries.

As an extension of State Government, our position as Commissioners require getting the job done on the ground and providing for the health, safety and welfare of our citizens. We recognize that the State provides the broad guidance on the Stay Home Stay Healthy Proclamation, but cannot address the unique situations that occur in each community. It is the role of local government to carry out the Governor’s Proclamation in communities safely and in a practical manner.

We ask that your office provide us a prompt response to our inquiries by Friday, April 24, 2020, so that we can mutually reach a timely resolution. We have attached a draft replacement resolution which we intend to adopt Monday, April 27, 2020, in the absence of your response.

Sincerely,

Board of Chelan County Commissioners