Sumner's Orton Junction Proposal Goes Before County Planners Tonight

Pierce County planning commissioners will again take up the question of whether the City of Sumner should be allowed to eliminate agricultural land to accommodate the Orton Junction project.

The meeting is scheduled for 7 tonight in the Pierce County Annex, 2401 South 35th St., in Tacoma.

If the Planning Commission rejects Sumner’s application it will die on the vine, unless the seven-member Pierce County Council chooses to resurrect it, senior planner Dan Cardwell said.

For now, however, the Planning Commission is reviewing supplemental material provided by the city in response to concerns Cardwell raised last week that ultimately resulted in rejection of the Orton Junction proposal.

Read that meeting coverage .

Cardwell told the commission at the June 15 meeting that the city has not demonstrated a need for additional commercial lands and that it has not adopted reasonable measures to accommodate more employment within the city.

The city had until 4:30 p.m. the next day to submit additional comments and documents. Paul Rogerson, Sumner’s community development director, said the city presented substantial additional information that addresses and satisfies the county’s concerns.

At the June 16 regional council meeting, Cardwell hinted at the new documents, which included changes to provisions protecting agricultural resource lands. However, the conversation was stopped when Cardwell admitted to the council he did not have enough time to analyze all the materials.

Read that meeting report .

Patch called Cardwell on Tuesday and he said he still has not finished analyzing the new material or completed his revised report. And while the commissioners could choose nonetheless to act tonight, “They’ll probably have questions they’ll want me to answer,” said Cardwell.

The commission also may want to hear public comments on the newly submitted information, said Planning Commission clerk Toni Fairbanks, although it is not required to do so since the public hearing was held last week.

If the commission does take more public comment tonight, it would be limited to the new material, Fairbanks said. Cardwell added that the commission also could delay its decision again to have more time to absorb that material.

If the planning commission supports Sumner’s plan, the UGA amendment will be forwarded as a proposed ordinance with a recommendation for the County Council to approve it.

The planning commission's decision is advisory only, as is the regional council recommendation. The County Council must make the final determination, which is expected Aug. 15, along with other UGA proposals from throughout the county.