Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
The proposed new comprehensive plan for the city of Palouse is moving forward; a public hearing was set to resume Tuesday night.
The plan has been in front of the city council since July 22 with the start of the public hearing period. In the process, the council has suggested small changes to the document which would replace the 1997 plan which includes an update to the zoning map for the first time since 1986.
“I’m so proud of our planning commission,” said Palouse Mayor Michael Echanove. “They’ve worked hard. I like that I see things that reflect the 1997 plan the are being carried forward.”
One change which the council has suggested is to change the minimum lot size in Palouse from the current 5,000 square feet to 7,000 square feet.
“A little legroom,” Echanove said. “Make sure there is plenty legroom between structures.”
“The council is going through and doing what their job is,” said Planning Commission chairman Corey Laughary. “Do we want to amend this or that? They will make those amendments to our draft. It’s out of our hands as long as they want it to be.”
“I think everyone is happy so far,” Echanove said of the zoning part of the comprehensive plan. “We’ve just got another couple sections to go,” he said, naming the Mobile Home Park and Critical Areas.
Going further into the overall comprehensive plan will be next.
“I don’t know how much there is to argue about,” Echanove said, indicating that the town will likely have a new comprehensive plan adopted by Palouse Days, Sept. 13.
“The planning commission, they set the tone for the future,” Echanove said. “They’re unknown, unsung heroes. Everything they do is basically thankless.”
The work of the current planning commission follows an effort to update Title 17 in the late ‘90s that ultimately did not get passed.
“A previous committee did all the work we did,” Laughary said, who has been chairman since 2006.
The new push will ultimately need to be approved by city council as well.
The Title 17 zoning map includes changes from the previous version, which was produced on tissue paper in 1984.
The proposed new map has a total of six zones; low density residential, high density residential, commercial, light industrial, agricultural and open space.
The documents for Title 17 and comprehensive plan may be seen at city hall or online at VisitPalouse.com.
Garth Meyer is a former Whitman County Gazette reporter.
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