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City of Missoula, Montana Item to be Referred to City Council Committee Committee: Plat, Annexation and Zoning Item: Sand and Gravel Resources and Wildland Urban Interface Amendments to the Missoula County Growth Policy Date: March 10, 2010 Prepared by: John M. Newman, OPG Initiated by: Urban Initiatives Action Required at City Council Public Hearing: Adopt the proposed Sand and Gravel Resources and Wildland Urban Interface amendments to the Missoula County Growth Policy. Recommended Motions at City Council Public Hearing: 1. THAT the Missoula City Council adopt a resolution to amend the Missoula County Growth Policy to include Appendix E “Sand and Gravel Resources” as recommended by the Missoula Consolidated Planning Board. 2. THAT the Missoula City Council adopt a resolution to amend the Missoula County Growth Policy to include Appendix F “Wildland Urban Interface” as recommended by the Missoula Consolidated Planning Board. Timeline: Referral to committee: March 15, 2010 Committee discussion: March 17, 2010 (Pre-Public Hearing Informational Item) City Council Public Hearing: March 22, 2010 Background: Pursuant to changes in statute enacted by the State Legislature, the Missoula County Rural Initiatives Office has developed amendments to the County's 2005 Growth Policy related to Sand and Gravel Resources and the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI). Rural Initiatives began this project for the Board of County Commissioners (BCC). For the purpose of consistency in the policies of the BCC and Missoula City Council, OPG is recommending the same amendments for adoption by the City Council. In addition to the agency review conducted by Rural Initiatives, Urban Initiatives staff sent the proposed Growth Policy amendments to City agencies and other organizations. Comments were received from the Missoula City- County Health Department, City Fire, and City Parks and Recreation. No adverse comments were provided regarding the amendments. Following the comment period, the Missoula Consolidated Planning Board considered the proposed amendments at a Public Hearing on February 2, 2010. Planning Board recommended revisions to the proposed Growth Policy amendments based upon the state law requirements to address these two resource elements. Planning Board revisions focused primarily on clarifying the proposed language to indicate that the amendments themselves were non-regulatory, and that future adoption of regulations pertaining to these issues would be based in part upon further, more detailed study of sand and gravel resources and the WUI. The Planning Board-recommended amendment language is included as Attachment 2. ---PAGE BREAK--- Financial Implications: None anticipated. Attachments: 1. Draft Resolutions to Adopt a. Sand and Gravel Resources b. Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) 2. Planning Board-recommended Draft Amendments to the Missoula County Growth Policy 3. Staff Report a. Memo to Agencies and Interested Parties i. Rural Initiatives Memo to Planning Board, including original proposed amendment language b. Agency Comments i. Missoula City-County Health Department ii. Missoula City Fire Department iii. Missoula City Parks and Recreation Department 4. Planning Board Minutes from February 2, 2010 Meeting