BLAINE NON-COMPLIANCE TAINTS COUNTY PLAN

November 26 letter to Whatcom County:

With one month left to complete the Whatcom County Comprehensive Plan 10-year update, it is impossible to include the non-compliant Blaine Comprehensive Plan without making the county plan vulnerable to legal challenge. Blaine's strategic and egregious undermining of public participation violates the very cornerstone of Growth Management. 

The revelation on the record and under oath during the Avista at Birch Point SEPA Appeal that Blaine Community Development Services used false maps and outdated science to designate Critical Aquifer Recharge Areas (CARAs) is enough alone for rejecting Blaine's plan. Blaine Mayor Mary Lou Steward's attack on citizens (who had to sue to obtain the public records revealing this information withheld by the city) illustrates the level of non-compliance by Blaine.

The Central Business District (CBD) and Urban Mixed Use (UMU) rezones passed by Blaine Planning Commission and Blaine City Council in 2024 and 2025--highlighted in the UGA element --financially benefitted a Blaine City Councilman who owns commercial properties in the CBD, and a Blaine Planning Commissioner who is the listed real estate agent for the UMU properties. Self-dealing is a crime in Washington state.

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