If approved, a proposed ruling filed in Thurston County Superior Court on Dec. 14 will remand the Lewis County Board of Commissioners’ denial of a rezone on property at Mineral Lake owned by the YMCA of Greater Seattle.
The nonprofit aims to use the land as the site of its first new overnight camp in more than a century.
The uncertified document filed last week was drafted by legal representatives from both parties and is likely to be signed as is, according to a county attorney. If so, it will nullify votes the Lewis County commissioners made in November 2022 and March 2023, kicking off a 30-day deadline for rezone approval.
County staff say the final decision could arrive in the next week.
The proposal claims “Lewis County did disparately treat the YMCA.”
In two separate hearings, the document alleges, commissioners had no legal basis for the land use decision and were ultimately motivated by bias against the YMCA of Greater Seattle.
“The court does find that impermissible racial animus, bias and infringement of the YMCA’s protected free speech rights, through an intent to restrain speech and a desire to prevent the YMCA from speaking in Lewis County were motivating factors for the board’s decision,” the uncertified ruling states.
The first hearing on the application for a “master planned resort” overlay on the property spanned sessions on Nov. 2 and Nov. 8, 2022. Currently, the 500 acres in question are zoned as “forest resource land.”
In that hearing, Lewis County Commissioner Sean Swope asked a YMCA representative where the organization stood on critical race theory, defunding the police, gender reassignment surgery for minors and “biological truth.” Now-retired Commissioner Lee Grose said he was “disturbed” about some aspects of the YMCA’s eventual project plans, “not the least of which is the partnership with the tribe,” citing the Nisqually Indian Tribe’s support for the youth camp.
YMCA representatives have mentioned plans for the tribe to lead camp programs and use the land for traditional hunting and gathering purposes.
Commissioner Lindsey Pollock, despite telling Swope at one point to “recall that this is a land use decision,” joined her seatmates in a unanimous “no” vote.
Per state and county law, rezones are meant to focus solely on whether the proposed land use is appropriate. The Mineral Lake rezone was recommended by Lewis County Community Development staff and was unanimously approved by the seven-person Lewis County Planning Commission.
In December 2022, the YMCA filed a Thurston County Superior Court lawsuit against the county. The nonprofit’s court petition called the decision “erroneous” and “discriminatory.” Among several other quotes from the hearing, it cited Swope asking whether the proposed agreement with the Nisqually Tribe would be governed by “tribal regulation or under just normal citizens?”
In the 47-page petition, the YMCA aimed to prove the commission’s decision was based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the Y’s values, and that those should not have been a factor in the land use decision regardless.
In February 2023, Swope, Pollock and newly elected Commissioner Scott Brummer reopened the hearing. The lawsuit was put on a temporary hold.
In a March 1 decision, Swope and Brummer voted the rezone down again, citing worries about the camp putting strain on law enforcement, emergency services and the environment. Pollock was the lone “yes” vote, but said she still had concerns about the camp that she’d like addressed in the project phase.
In the proposed ruling filed last week, the county concedes error in the initial hearing from November 2022 by “failing to set forth any findings in support of its conclusion that the proposed rezone was ‘not in the public interest.’”
The court, in the uncertified decision, goes further. It “agrees that the board erred,” but says the commissioners were motivated by “animus, bias and a desire to restrict the YMCA’s exercise of free speech.”
In the proposal, the county asserts its mistake was “subsequently cured” by the February hearing and March decision. In the document, if signed, the court disagrees.
The second vote “does not eradicate that the record supports finding” of bias, animus and restriction of free speech, the document claims.
“Based on this context, it is appropriate for this court to review Ordinance 1343 (the March 1 vote) with critical and strict scrutiny,” the proposal states.
The ruling claims that, regardless of the commission’s motivation, the decision was outside the scope of the law. In other words, the landowner’s identity and its eventual goal of building a youth camp should have been irrelevant.
“The court finds that at this non-project rezone stage it is premature to address specific speculative project-level impacts that would be more appropriately considered at the time of project application,” the proposal states, later adding, “As the court finds that the YMCA met all criteria necessary for approval of the site-specific rezone and (master planned resort) designation under state law and Lewis County code, the rezone should have been approved.”
Representatives from the Y have hosted community meetings about the project since 2021. Beyond the 500 acres for the intended camp, the nonprofit owns 1,600 acres of forest land that spokespeople have said will be maintained as a forest.
The land abuts the town of Mineral, which tallied around 135 full-time residents in the 2020 census. On a clear day, the hamlet boasts a view of Mount Rainier towering beyond the lake, arguably the most scenic spot in Lewis County.
The youth camp proposal has incurred support from the Cispus Learning Center and Centralia College, among others. But, it became a political topic in the November 2022 Lewis County commissioner race, where Brummer first declared his opposition. And, several members of the Mineral community have been vocal about their distaste for the idea.
YMCA staff say the full buildout of the camp would occur slowly over about 15 years. It would be staffed by 100 people and host 400 campers.
Community development staff told The Chronicle the county will host a public meeting in Mineral after the final ruling, regardless of the Thurston County Superior Court’s decision.
The county will release a statement when the final ruling is released, Pollock said on Friday morning.
