McCarthy vetoes Pierce County land-use plan amendments
Posted By David Wickert on October 29, 2009 at 5:41 am
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Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy has vetoed a County Council ordinance approving various zoning and other changes to the county’s comprehensive land-use plan.
In a letter dated Wednesday, McCarthy cites concerns with two of the “comp plan” changes approved by the council recently after months of public hearings. One amendment, known as T-6, addresses criteria used when evaluating the expansion of urban growth areas. The second amendment, U-8a, would rezone 5.2 acres of land from “rural separator” zoning to “moderate-density single-family residential.”
As I read McCarthy’s veto letter, her concerns are somewhat technical in nature. I don’t have time to follow up on this today, but I thought I’d post the letter and let folks who know more than I do address the significance.
I believe this is just McCarthy’s second veto since she became executive last January (someone correct me if I’m wrong). Last month she issued a “friendly veto” of an ordinance establishing an E-Verify program that would require the county and its contractors to check the legal status of their workers. The council subsequently addressed her concerns and approved the E-Verify measure.
My experience with such issues is limited to drafting the some of King County's first UGA boundaries digitally, back in the early 90's, and no experience with Pierce County land use law.
That said, it does look like a valid area for discussion, addressing both the policies of ammending the growth management boundary and a specific case of same. The balancing of expansion between different areas also goes to regional questions of equity.
Unfortunately the technical nature of such discussions, especially as presented here in legalese, make serving the public interest problematic - especially given the history of abuses of same within the related area of professional environmental practice.
A huge thanks to the Executive for her wise veto of the Comp Plan update. As Executive McCarthy noted, the amendments were bad policy and against state law.
Amendment T6 would have weakened protections for agricultural lands, making it easier for them to be put in the UGA. Amendment U8a would have added more of the County's rural lands to nearby urban areas, increasing the pressure to urbanize neighboring rural lands. By choosing to sprawl outside of our existing cities, taxpayers will be forced to pay to extend sewers, water, roads and other urban infrastructure - and especially now, it's a cost we cannot afford.
Wow, a 5:41am posting?
At last our politicians comprehend that not only does E-Verify--WORK--to oust illegal immigrants from the all businesses, but 54 members of the Congress support the 287 G program that was nearly buried under political baseness. So this insures two very active immigration enforcement programs are firmly entrenched to remove illegal aliens, without mass deportation. As on hiring, a new worker they must concede a verification of there national status. E-VERIFY MUST BECOME A PERMANENT PROGRAM TO VET THE ELIGIBILITY EVERY US WORKER. They say that ignorance is bliss, but this issue has been elongated by years of unceasing pressure by the hierarchy of business concerns, so that lawmakers have turned a blind eye to the annual illegal alien rush across our seemingly undermanned border. Even the main border fence was arbitrated, by being under-funded so illegal workers could slip past vehicle barriers, open areas that was substituted for the two separate- spaced-fences?
Simply speaking it’s all an underhand close relationship with corporate organizations and radical open border extremists, who don't want any prohibitions on the millions of beggared workers and families slipping into America. Once--even Sen. Harry Reid was adverse to illegal immigration, but once he entered the bastions of Washington where corruption is rampant from associating with business groups and foundation lobbyists.To survive you must adhere to their ideology or become ostracized by other Democratic or Conservative members in these chambers of iniquity. USE YOUR VOTING POWER TO DEMAND E-VERIFY AS A COMPREHENSIVE AUTHENTICATION DATA BASE. It could be used when issuing drivers licenses,
transportation insurance, house buyers tax credits, real estate applications for legal residents, health care, unemployment benefits and other issues subject to fraud?
In this final version of the House health care package, is a summary clause to verify that only citizens and legal residents can participate? It could establish a apparatus by which the Commissioner must authenticate that individuals are citizens or legal immigrants in order to receive afford ability credits for health care. Of course emergency health care treatment access will still be there for those individuals without legal documentation? But Madam Nancy Pelosi still wants to reward illegal immigrants, making them eligible, without a verification mechanism in place; illegal aliens could receive credits under the plan. Every American should show their support for these amendments, without--ANY--avenue to illegal immigrants by commanding their Representative in Washington at 202-224-3121. After any House-Senate bill goes to the floor and voted on; they still have to clear the obstacles in most closed-door conferences. This is where the wheeling and corrupt dealing goes on, with what the membership calls "Sweeteners." This is where political favors are exchanged, promising such sweeteners such as pork for their constituencies, campaign contributions, from corporate execs, or undisclosed gifts of money or family vacations.
These are where immigration laws are passed or indifferently discarded to the disadvantage of THE PEOPLE. Its sad travesty, but it’s the raw facts of legislative playtime in committee. Then there is the H-1B working visa game? H-1B has been full of fraud and hypocrisy since its inception. With corporate attorneys giving devious advice of how to cheat the foreign labor importation system by the labor Department.125,000 brand new work permits to foreign nationals was issued last month. Watch a U-Tube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCbFEgFajGU video of an attorney with the law firm of Cohen & Grigsby discussing how a company can turn at H-1B worker into a permanent Green Card holder. His comments demonstrate the disposition behind the entire process: "Their goal is clearly not to find a highly skilled H-1B immigrant, because cheap labor is plentiful in poor foreign nations willing to come to America. It's just another working visa program for supposedly PhD and top of the business ladder absolutely copious with sleaze TODAY IS THE DAY TO LEARN MORE ABOUT CORRUPTION AND COMPROMISE BY OUR POLITICIANS AT NUMBERSUSA, JUDICIAL WATCH & CAPSWEB. SAY NO TO ANY NEW PATH TO CITIZENSHIP. ADD HONEST AMENDMENTS TO THE 1986 SIMPSON/MAZZOLI BILL, NOT ANOTHER COMPREHENSIVE IMMIGRATION BILL, UNLIKE THE PREVIOUS ONE THAT WAS OVERFLOWING WITH FRAUD.
Bravo to Executive McCarthy for this veto!!!!
Now, really, do we want to offer four more years to the very Council who approved these law-breaking land-use plan amendments? Noooooo.
Reject Charter Amendment 1, please (which Executive McCarthy is also against).
3 cheers for this veto!
1. Spot zoning is so sloppy, damaging & wrong.
2. "No Net Loss" of Rural Separator was provided as a concession to Pierce County citizens for the sickening act of splitting Mid-County rural areas down the middle at 112th for more strip malls we don't need. The ad-hoc committee developing the proposed annexation rules, which was weighted heavily in favor of developers & bureaucrats, had 100% consensus around re-stating "No Net Loss". The Council removed this after the 11th hour , when they re-started the clock thinking no one was looking.
You should see how hard the citizens fought to stop the Council from approving the illegal portions of the amendment. If they'd only have listened...
Council Meeting video - Oct 13, 2009