Skagit County to Host Public Hearing on Updates to Critical Areas Ordinance

The Skagit County Commissioners will host a public hearing on Monday, July 28, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. to hear testimony on the proposed updates to the Skagit County Critical Areas Ordinance (CAO). Members of the public are invited to join and provide comments either in-person in the Commissioner’s Hearing Room at 1800 Continental Place, Mount Vernon, or via Zoom at the link on the Commissioner’s webpage.

Skagit County is required by the Growth Management Act to adopt regulations protecting critical areas in order to preserve the natural environment, wildlife habitats, and sources of fresh drinking water. The GMA also requires jurisdictions to update its Comprehensive Plans and development regulations every ten years, including the revision of the Critical Areas Ordinance (CAO), if needed. Skagit County adopted the 2025 Comprehensive Plan and updates to development regulations on June 23, 2025, and has been in process of updating the Critical Areas Ordinance. As required by the GMA, a review of the Best Available Science (BAS) was compiled to support Skagit County’s CAO update.

Draft updates to the CAO include the following amendments:

• Increasing the width of the standard riparian buffer.
• Updates to reasonable uses and variances in critical areas.
• Aligning the wetlands and aquifer recharge area sections with best available science standards.
• Adding clarity for application requirements and development standards for new wells, and new sampling requirements in seawater intrusion areas.
• Allowing small park structures under 200 square feet in publicly managed parks within wetland and fish and wildlife habitat conservation area buffers.
• Introduces more specific criteria for adopting previously established protected critical areas.

To view the proposed updates to the CAO, please visit our project website below. Comments will be accepted at the public hearing or may be submitted in writing to pdscomments@co.skagit.wa.us or mailed to 1800 Continental Place, Mount Vernon, WA 98273. Written comments are due by July 28, 2025, at 4:30 p.m.

www.skagitcounty.net/2025CPA