Tonight was a who’s who of Parkland Spanaway and Midland. The land use hearing for a conditional use permit for the Pierce County Village, being pushed by the County Executive’s office and the Tacoma Rescue Mission, attracted a room full of people and a speaker sign up list longer than they had time at the facility to accommodate.

It was November 15, 2023. It began at 6:30 p.m. in the Rainier room upstairs in Sprinker Recreation Center. The parking lot was closed in front of the building. It was a long walk from the crowded other half. People were parking almost to Spire Rock.

The event began with a presentation of the proposed project from the Pierce County planner in charge. That dragged on for 45 minutes. Rob Jenkins detailed the proposal, layout, studies on traffic, wildlife, sewer plan and more.

Then, there were 35 minutes of questions from the commissioners to Mr. Jenkins. These were good questions digging at why there wasn’t and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) required like they needed on the Cross Base Highway for the same location. They asked about the eagle (he might decide to relocate was said), the Western gray squirrel, the traffic, how many people would be housed in each building (1), and whether these were permanent homes or mobile home units.

One answer from the County was incorrect. Parkland and Spanaway to 176th Street does lie in the annexation area for the City of Tacoma. Rob Jenkins said it did not. Having worked on incorporation I know, in fact, it is. So, the site is in a potential City of Tacoma suburb.

After that, the applicants lawyer, engineer and the CEO of the Rescue Mission all spoke. The lawyer spoke of fairness to the applicant according to the ordinances and regulations of the County. The engineer was technical. The CEO descided to talk about the homless and needy they are serving. Again, the Commissioners had solid questions to ask.

It was 8:43 p.m. before the first public comments began. At 9:40, they had to stop to take their vote and get out of the building by 10 p.m. So after the first 30 minutes of comments, the commissioners voted to lower the comments to two minutes from three.

Lyn Boercherding, owner of Woofers, led the comments, appropriate as she was there early with flyers and stickers saying STOP the Village. Paul Lubbesmeyer, a contractor and former LUAC commissioner, spoke more passionately than I have ever seen. For someone generally soft spoken, it was telling about his disgust for the way the Executive’s office had manipulated the process.

There were GIS maps of the enormous marsh, showing how tiny the village site was in comparison. Photos of the eagle from Coffee Creek and stories of the sinking units at the condominiums built too close to the creek.

Sandy Williamson deferred his time slot to the lawyer for FOSL (Friends of Spanaway Lake) who pointed out several maneuvers the Executive made that were not consistent with the community plan.

Boojee Bowman, President of the Spanaway Historical Society, asked about shopping carts, bicycles and cars that will need space at the village.

Sandy Williamson, Elizabeth Iselin, Gary Cooper, Patricia Tibbetts, Mel Oleson, all Spanaway Lake residents, spoke of concerns over water quality damage.

Also in the room, not speaking, but possibly submitting comments on paper or electronically were land use familiars, Roxy Giddings, Claudia Finseth, Kim Underwood, Bud Rehberg, Cindy Beckett, Roy and Karen Marchesini, Carol Bartle, and many more.

And in the end, the committee voted unanimously to deny their approval for the conditional use permit. The project will move forward, because this vote is only a local recommendation. They said the next hearing will be with the Hearings Examiner, who actually has the ability to stop the project. Not that they ever have. That date has not been set at this time.