Candidates for county chair position divided on growth

o Fee waivers

County fee-waiver program a contentious issue for council chair candidates

District 2 candidates, backers and foes, call for changes to fee-waiver program

o Transportation

County chair candidates weigh in on transportation issues

Councilor candidates in District 2 discuss transportation priorities

o Growth management

Candidates for county chair position divided on growth

Growth management plan of particular importance to District 2 as area grows

Updates to Clark County’s comprehensive growth management plan have the field for Clark County council chair divided.

At the crux of the debate is Councilor David Madore’s Alternative 4, which Madore has said will recognize existing parcels in rural Clark County. Alternative 4, if implemented, will reduce the minimum size of some rural, forestry or agriculture lots, allowing landowners to subdivide their properties to sell, give to their families or develop.

Opponents of the plan — which include land-use activists, farmers and top officials of cities in Clark County — say Alternative 4 could kill the potential for job growth, strain public resources, raise taxes and pave the way for thousands of “McMansions” across the county.

Alternative 4, however, is only one of the four alternatives to the plan. The first will make no changes to Clark County’s zoning. The second will make some changes to rural and urban areas, including decreasing minimum lot size in some places. The third will draw some new lands into Battle Ground, La Center, Ridgefield and Washougal.

The county will likely adopt a preferred alternative, which could contain pieces of each alternative, in October.

Here are talking points on key issues surrounding the comprehensive growth management plan update from the council chair candidates:

• Tom Mielke, Republican: Mielke praised Alternative 4, saying it’s the best option for rural landowners.

• Jeanne Stewart, Republican: Stewart, who voted to move all four alternatives on to environmental review, said she fears Alternative 4 would have “unintended consequences.”

“I look forward to seeing the experts give us feedback and the (environmental impact statement),” she said.

The draft environmental impact statement, which will detail what impacts all four alternatives will have on Clark County, is scheduled to come out Aug. 5 — a day after the primary election.

Stewart also said she was concerned that the Office of Financial Management’s projection for Clark County’s 20-year population growth is too small. The office indicates Clark County will have 562,207 people by 2035.

The OFM last month, meanwhile, announced that Clark County is the second-fastest-growing county in the state, growing by 9,020 people between April 1, 2014, and April 1, 2015, for an overall population of 451,820. If that trend continues, Clark County’s population will reach about 676,000 people, far exceeding the office’s original projection for 2035.

“Our growth rate expectations are substantially understated,” she said.

• David Madore, Republican: Madore declined to respond to questions about his campaign.

He is the author and lead champion of Alternative 4.

“Alternative 4 proposes to correct the massive mismatch between the actual rural land and the inappropriate zoning map that was imposed 20 years ago,” Madore posted on his Facebook page in April.

• Mike Dalesandro, Democrat: Dalesandro said, “I do not support Alt, 4,” criticizing the atypical process of a single councilor — Madore — writing the alternative.

“This all stems from leadership and leadership style,” he said. “We need to make sure we’re leading and not controlling.”

He also said the county will open itself to legal challenges and may even be in violation of the Growth Management Act if it adopts Alternative 4.

“The GMA is not perfect, but it’s the law of the land,” he said.

The State Department of Commerce won’t comment on county growth management plans before they’re submitted, so it’s unclear if Alternative 4 will violate state law.

Dalesandro said he most supports Alternative 3, which will increase the urban growth boundaries of several of Clark County’s small cities — including Battle Ground, where Dalesandro is a sitting city councilor.

• Marc Boldt, no party preference: Boldt believes Alternative 4 will be “thrown out” once it reaches the state, he said. Boldt said it was created without communication with the cities or core planning principles in mind.

Boldt also criticized Madore for developing the alternative instead of letting county planning staff do it.

“I believe in the intent,” Boldt said. “But the way he’s handled it, he’s alienated everyone.”