Zoning Proposal Gets “No” Vote

DAYTON - The Columbia County Planning Commission voted Monday night to recommend against a proposed amendment to the county's zoning code to add commercial uses to the Agricultural/ Residential-1 zone. The vote came after a public hearing in which more than a dozen people spoke in favor of the amendment. Several written comments in favor were also read into the record. No one spoke against it.

The commission's recommendation will now go to the Columbia County Board of Commissioners, who will make the final decision of whether or not to adopt the change.

The amendment would add a new conditional use, allowing on-site sales of agricultural based products in the AR-1 zone. The AR-1 zone is located primarily along highways leading out of Dayton (see map on Page 5). Most of Huntsville is also designated AR-1.

According to Columbia County Planning Director Kim Lyonnais, the AR-1 zone allows for mixed agricultural and residential use on the outskirts of Dayton. Residential lot sizes can be as small as two acres, with a much higher density of homes than in a pure agricultural zone.

The proposed text amendment would add the following language to the list of conditional uses in the AR-1 zone:

"On-site sales of farm products, processed and/ or packaged on site, includ- ing nursery, meat, dairy, orchard, vineyard, hay, winery, brewery, distillery and similar products, together with on-site sales of other agricultural based products, including wine, beer and spirits with tasting room (subject to Washington State Liquor Control Board license)."

The proposed zoning change was made by Pierre Louis and Joan Monteillet, who own Monteillet Fromagerie, a cheese-making facility about two miles west of Dayton. The Monteillet's business has expanded to include retail sales of cheese and wine, as well as wine and cheese tasting events.

The Monteillets received notice from the Columbia County Planning Department in 2011 that their business, which is located in the AR-1 zone, was out of compliance with zoning regulations. Those regulations currently do not allow onsite sales of retail products or hosting of public events.

More than 50 people attended Monday evening's hearing in the Youth Building at the Columbia County Fairgrounds. The Monteillet's attorney, Michael Hubbard, was the first speaker. He described the work the Monteillets do and value they provide to the community. He also read a letter from a neighboring family, who said they thought having the Monteillet's business nearby was a good thing.

Members of the public were then given two minutes each to comment on the proposal.

Many of the speakers were owners or employees of restaurants in Dayton and Waitsburg. Others work in tourism promotion in Columbia and Walla Walla Counties. Most of the speakers focused their comments on the Monteillets and the value their business provides to the community, through tourism and the products they provide to local restaurants.

When the hearing was completed, the commission members discussed the possibility of tabling the issue until their next meeting so they could discuss it prior to a vote. However, a motion was made and seconded to approve the text amendment. The final vote was 4-2 against the motion.

At the end of the meeting, the commission members agreed to address the zoning issue again at their next meeting. But according to Lyonnais, the final decision will be made by the Columbia County Commissioners, regardless what further action the planning commission takes.