PMBC In the News: Our efforts gain attention
February 2023 Updates for Protect Mud Bay Cliffs
Have you seen the 2/17/23 Cascadia Daily News article about our efforts to protect Mud Bay Cliffs and the North Chuckanut Bay watershed?
Future unclear for proposed 38-lot development on Mud Bay
PMBC’s mission is to minimize the adverse environmental and public impacts this proposed project would impose, were it approved by the city. According to state law, the city should require an objective, third-party Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to clearly identify these impacts. PMBC notes that the technical reports commissioned by the developer frequently reflect strong bias in favor of the project, and so fail to identify many impacts – the incompleteness is compounded, because several field investigations were poorly timed or are non-specific, preliminary overviews.
Here are a few reasons why PMBC is fighting to protect this ecologically-sensitive area:
The property owners could build four homes on their four lots. Instead, they want special exceptions and variances from the city to develop nearly ten times that number of lots, and then introduce multiple phases of luxury home construction. Most people realize that more luxury homes wouldn’t address Bellingham’s pressing needs for affordable housing.
Prior development and human activity have already forced great blue herons to move their nesting colony from Chuckanut Bay to Post Point. Nesting great blue herons prefer to feed in estuaries located within three miles of their nests; Mud Bay is about 1.5 miles from the Post Point colony. The Post Point herons can frequently be observed flying over Mud Bay Cliffs, and feeding along its shoreline. Blasting, excavations, earth movers, jackhammers, and other heavy equipment would likely disturb the birds’ feeding and nesting behavior – yet again.
Building 38 homes on Mud Bay Cliffs could reasonably be expected to introduce more contaminants into the fragile bay ecosystem from stormwater runoff, potentially harming salmon and shellfish. Mud Bay’s waters are no longer “flushed” as thoroughly as they once were, after the construction of a railroad causeway in the 1920s, which filled in most of the original open-trestle design with rock. Enough damage has already been done to Mud Bay and its wildlife by past development; we can make the choice now to protect the estuarine habitat from further unnecessary harm.
On the property itself, the woodlands and wetlands of Mud Bay Cliffs provide a continuous wildlife corridor between Clark’s Point and Chuckanut Marsh; increased human activity would undoubtedly hurt this sensitive, complex ecosystem.
Bellingham has lost around three-quarters of its estuarine habitats because of past waterfront development. Today, there are very few unprotected places where the natural shoreline still exists. This makes protecting the unique Mud Bay Cliffs site all the more important for Bellingham.
Developers’ Application Status
Project Webpage: The proposal to subdivide Mud Bay Cliffs is under review by the Bellingham Planning Department. Information about the current proposal can be viewed on the city’s website at: https://cob.org/project/the-woods-at-viewcrest
Requests for Information:
After the developers submitted their initial applications on 3/8/22, city staff determined that required information was missing and issued an RFI on 4/28/22. The developers submitted their response seven months later, on 11/23/22 (after multiple deadline extensions).
On 12/21/22, after concluding that further information is still needed, city staff issued a second RFI (https://cob.org/wp-content/uploads/2022-12-22-rfi.pdf). The developers have until 4/20/23 to respond.
We will keep you informed going forward.
Next Steps: Notice of Application, Public Comment Period, and SEPA Threshold Determination
We will continue to keep you updated on the project as it moves through the planning process. Here are the key elements ahead of us:
The city will first determine whether the developer’s response to the city’s Request for Information is complete. If the application is deemed complete, the city will issue a Notice of Application. If you live within 500 feet of the property or if you submitted a request to receive notices, you will receive the Notice of Application by mail or email.
The Notice of Application triggers a 30-day public comment period during which time the city’s SEPA Threshold Determination is put on hold. This is a crucial time for us to document the likely adverse impacts of the proposed subdivision.
After the 30-day comment period expires, the city’s State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) Official, Kurt Nabbefeld, will begin the process to determine whether the subdivision proposal is likely to have any significant adverse environmental impact. The SEPA Threshold Determination is documented in either a Determination of Nonsignificance (DNS) or a Determination of Significance (DS). A Determination of Significance triggers the requirement for an environmental impact statement (EIS).
We strongly believe that this proposal is likely to impose a significant adverse impact and that an EIS must be required. We have engaged a technical expert and an attorney to help identify and document potential adverse impacts. More information about State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) environmental review can be found on the Department of Ecology site at: https://ecology.wa.gov/Regulations-Permits/SEPA/Environmental-review/SEPA-guidance/SEPA-FAQ
Edgemoor Neighborhood Association – Annual Meeting
The 2/16/23 Edgemoor Neighborhood Association’s Annual Meeting featured an update on The Woods at Viewcrest proposal. Turnout from the neighborhood was strong for this topic, and many residents expressed concerns about the proposed development. The meeting was recorded and can be viewed here: http://bit.ly/3XyPbFW
When available, minutes from the meeting with links to the slide presentations and background information can be viewed here: https://edgemoorneighborhood.com/ena-minutes/
Let’s keep up the good work
We greatly appreciate all you’ve done to help protect Mud Bay Cliffs: staying aware, talking with neighbors, writing letters, displaying PMBC yard signs, volunteering and contributing tax-deductible donations.
Want to do more? Here’s a list of things you can do now (if you’ve yet to do so):
Write a Letter: Send a letter/email to Mayor Fleetwood (mayorsoffice@cob.org) and City Council (ccmail@cob.org) describing, in your own words, your concerns about the proposed development. The mailing address is: City Hall, 210 Lottie Street, Bellingham, WA 98225. Eventually, we’ll also write letters to the Planning Department to speak out about problems with the application itself, during the Public Comment period (dates TBD by City Planning Department).
Sign Up for City Notices: You can receive notices from the city about the development and help signal widespread interest in this project by sending an email:
To: Senior Planner Kathy Bell at kbell@cob.org
Subject: Jones Preliminary Plat
Content: Your home mailing address
Include: “Please accept this email as my request to receive all notices regarding the Jones Preliminary Plat subdivision application at 352 Viewcrest Rd / Parcel # 370213075542”
Donate: If you’re able, consider making a tax-deductible donation of any amount to the Protect Mud Bay Cliffs Fund using the “Donate” button on our website at https://mudbaycliffs.org/join-in. All donations are used solely for PMBC communications, and expert services (such as legal, geotech, hydrology). All day-to-day work is done by our completely volunteer team.