Year of the Rural

Coming in September

Draft Rural and Resource Lands Chapter

Draft Potential Code Updates

Rural Reclassification Request Recommendations

Meeting Dates and Materials
Date & Time	Purpose	Location	Related Materials	Video
Tues. February 18, 5:30pm Planning Commission	Briefing	Kitsap County Administrative Building	Presentation	Link
Tues. March 4, 5:30pm-7:00pm	Public Kick-off Presentation & Meeting	Village Green Community Center, 26159 Dulay Rd NE, Kingston	Presentation	Link
Tues., May 6, 5:30pm Planning Commission	Briefing	Kitsap County Administrative Building	Executive Summary, Presentation	Link
Tuesday, June 3, 5:30pm Planning Commission	Briefing	Kitsap County Administrative Building	Presentation	Link
Mon., June 9, 2:00pm BOCC Work Study Meeting	Briefing, Revised Docket Decision	Kitsap County Administrative Building	Presentation, Staff Memo, Recommendations Matrix, Staff Report	NA
Mon., June 23, 10:00am BOCC Regular Meeting	Resolution - Revised Docket Decision	Kitsap County Administrative Building	6/2/25-6/20/25 Comments Combined, Comments Table, Agenda, Resolution	Link
Tues., June 24, 5:30pm-7:30pm	Presentation & Workshop	Kitsap County Administrative Building	Presentation, Workshops Notes Summary	NA
Wed., June 25, 5:30pm-7:30pm	Presentation & Workshop	Eagle's Nest Community Room		NA
Thurs., June 26, 5:30pm-7:30pm	Presentation & Workshop	Village Green Community Center		NA
Tues., July 15, 5:30pm Planning Commission	Briefing - Public Participation Process	Kitsap County Administrative Building	Executive Summary, Presentation	Link
Tuesday, Aug 5, 5:30pm Planning Commission	Briefing	Kitsap County Administrative Building	Presentation	Link

Outreach

Timeline

Feb/March

Compile and review public comments from 2024 Comprehensive Plan Update
Survey to assess rural vision, character, and concerns
Public project kick-off meeting -virutal and in-person
Working group meetings and interviews

June/July

Initial draft of Rural and Resource Lands Chapter
Workshops hosted in all three districts presenting initial draft and facilitated discussions on specific topics

September

Draft Rural and Resource Lands Chapter
Present draft in all three districts and promote opportunity to submit public comments and testify at public hearings before the Planning Commission and Board of county Commisioners September - November

Working Groups

Agriculture Working Group Steering Committee

Jess Sappington, WSU Kitsap Extension
Diane Fish, Kitsap Conservation District
Joy Garitone, Kitsap Conservation District
Brian Stahl, Kitsap Conservation District
Bob Geballe, Kitsap Community & Agriculture Alliance
Jeremy Anunson, Mason-Kitsap Farm Bureau
Stacy Marshall, Kitsap Farmland Preservation Coalition

Forest Management

In progress

Kitsap County Internal Review Team

Scott Diener, Planning & Environmental Programs
Colin Poff, Long Range Planning
Jim Rogers, Long Range Planning
Darren Gurnee (or representative), Current Planning
Kirvie Mesebeluu-Yobech, Environmental Programs
Jade Jarvis, Noxious Weeds Program
David Lynam (or representative), Building, Fire, and Safety
Rose Schaffer, Public Works
Michelle Perdue, Public Works
Carmen Smith, Parks
Brian Nielson, Emergency Management
Rudy Baum, Public Health
Eric Evans, Public Health

Scope of Work

Rural Vision and Character
Community Engagement
Data Analysis, Review, and Research

-Rural and Resource Inventory, Review, and/or Analysis
-Rural Lands, Resource Lands, Rural Population Forecast, Rural Economies, Rural Public Facilities and Services, Rural Areas and Planning by Watershed
-Rural Land Use

Mineral Resources; Agriculture Policy and Code Review – Barriers and Policy Improvements; Energy Siting Assessment – Demand and Zoning; Boundary Line Adjustment Stakeholders Discussion; Open Space Law – Utilization and Barriers 
Rural Economy

-Childcare Assessment – In-home, Barriers and Opportunities; Agriculture Rural Events and Businesses – Code Improvements

Rural Housing
Mobile and Manufactured Home Parks Review
Update Goals, Policies, and Strategies
Draft Rural and Resource Lands Chapter; Prepare Ordinance and Implementation Plan

Project Timeline

Key milestones for the Rural and Resource Lands Chapter Update include:

February/March 2025: community engagement
June 2025: 30% project update
September 2025: 60% draft review and public comment
October 2025: 60% draft public hearing
November 2025: 90% draft and final public hearing

The Year of the Rural initial phase will focus on three deliverables:

Rural and Resource Lands Chapter update
Rural Land Use Reclassification
Rural code updates

Rural and Resource Lands Chapter update

The Rural and Resource Lands Chapter guides land use patterns and directs land use decisions for the unincorporated portions of Kitsap County outside of urban growth areas. Together, the Land Use Element of the Comprehensive Plan and this chapter form the basis for all future land use patterns and decisions.

The policies in this chapter will work in tandem with the Kitsap County Comprehensive Plan and Land Use Map.

The Rural and Resource Lands Chapter aims to define and provide policy direction to preserve and enhance the rural character of Kitsap County. This chapter designates areas in Kitsap County as appropriate for rural and resource activities, both residential and non-residential. The Plan intends to preserve and protect rural character by defining rural character in Kitsap County and establishing measures to preserve it.

Rural Land Use Reclassification

A site-specific amendment can change land uses allowed on a parcel (e.g., residential, commercial, industrial, recreational, and institutional). Requests were submitted during the 2024 Comprehensive Plan update, and rural reclassifications (outside of the preferred alternative and urban growth area boundary) were deferred to 2025.

BOCC Workstudy Documents

Staff Memo
Staff Review Matrix
Initial Review Summary Staff Report

Resolution - Final Docket Decision

Rural residential applications removed from the docket
One Rural Commercial and Two Rurla Industrail request will continue for further review
ResNo 117-2025. Final Docket

View the deferred site-specific interactive map application

Rural code updates

As priorities change and evolve, codes such as zoning also need to change and evolve. Zones classify, designate, and regulate land development for agriculture, forest, mineral resource extractions, residential, commercial, industrial, and public land uses. The Year of the Rural will focus on several key areas and review code for opportunities for updates.