If you own a waterfront parcel in the County, or hope to purchase one, I have detailed below some items to take into consideration. Historically, waterfront parcels were the most coveted investment in the islands but, due to ever changing regulations, they are now the most confusing parcels to develop. For REALTORs they can be a challenge to sell due to our inability to give buyers concrete answers to their questions while on site.
Important Considerations
Timing
Once you purchase a waterfront lot it is prudent to move forward with your plans as soon as possible as the regulations in the future may change and what you had hoped to build at the time of acquisition may not be approved in the future. The County has said they will never render a parcel unbuildable, but regulations may restrict the size of residence and will dictate the location of where you can build on the lot.
Residential Pre Application (RPA)
This is a conceptual approval of the footprint for the residence under the rules that exist at the time of review. While the RPA report is non-binding on the County, constructive reliance can be used for planning your new home including the home site, setback, tree removal, the location for the driveway, well and septic, if applicable. This is a valuable tool to utilize upfront so that your design team and contractor have solid direction from the County early in the process.
Unfortunately, the RPA process is now taking up to 6-9 months to get approval from the County due to shortages and turnover of staff and lingering COVID issues. In the past, we were able to obtain an approval within our typical 30-45 day feasibility study as contained in the contract, now we can only get the buyer confidence but nothing in written form from the County.
Your designer or architect may process the RPA for you as part of their service. If not, you can hire a land use consultant. The cost to process the RPA with a land use consultant is around $2300-$5000 which includes County fees. It varies based on the complexity of the lot.
As an RPA is not binding, and in light of constant regulation changes, one should only be used for near term planning. To bind or vest your project under the current rules, a complete permit application must be submitted to the County. Once the application is deemed complete, that becomes the effective date prescribing which version of the regulations shall apply.
Shoreline Setbacks
This is a difficult topic to address. The Critical Areas Ordinance (CAO) was approved in 2013 and significantly altered the setback regulations by placing the majority of the shorelines in the County into a Critical Areas designation. Basically, a very simple definition of the current setback regulation impact includes there being a “no touch zone” in the first 35 feet from the shoreline, although a 5-foot trail to the beach is permitted. Only dead, dying, and dangerous trees may be removed in the area located behind the first 35 feet to a total of 110 feet from the shoreline. It is possible to clear some of the brush for view and fire protection in the 110 foot zone with an arborist report. You should count on around 100-110 feet back for a water quality buffer on a lot that is under 1 acre. If the lot has slope, you may be closer to 150 feet back.
In addition to the CAO regulations impacting shoreline properties, the Shoreline Master Program was updated in 2018. The Shoreline Master Program dictates land use within 200 feet of the shoreline.
However, if the vacant lot has homes on both sides, the County will consider averaging the setback between the other two neighboring homes.
Having shoreline screening on the lot is also taken into consideration when the County determines the set back.
Due to the individual geometry of each lot, the geological conditions at the water’s edge, the adjacent property home sites, and the amount of vegetation available for consideration as screening, each setback can vary. One size does not fit all; and given the complex and somewhat subjective nature of shoreline setbacks, we recommend obtaining professional advice to assist in planning your project.
Additional rules regarding house location include the possibility of an unstable bank, which requires a site visit by a coastal geologist or engineer; and the fact that all the salt water is protected “fish habitat”, which requires a proposed development impact analysis prepared by a marine biologist. Shoreline wetlands may also play a role in the setback.
The “no net loss” report will be approximately $4,000. The geologist soil stability report will also be around $4,000.
Property Survey
It is always prudent to have the corner monuments properly identified for any construction project, but it is most important on the waterfront. If you don’t know the lot line measurements, you may design a 65 foot-wide home then find out you may only build a 50 foot wide home if the shoreline is only 100 feet wide (you are limited to a 50% lot width coverage). Having a survey will also confirm any encroachments and other issues that you may need to address.
The surveyor will be around $2500-$5000, they are required to determine the top of bank location, topography, impact to the lot due to amount of slope, and the corner locations.
Continue reading at https://www.sanjuanislandslifestyle.com/blog.
Merri Ann Simonson
Managing Broker
Coldwell Banker San Juan Islands Inc
1-800-451-9054 Office
360-317-8668 Cell
