Pierce County: 2024 Comp Plan
Pierce County's 2024 Comprehensive Plan Periodic Update, effective February 15, 2025, culminates three years of revisions and numerous community inputs, significantly impacting future development within the county. Adopted with 44 amendments by the Pierce County Council on December 3, 2024, the plan sets revised parameters for urban and rural growth. A notable development-related change is the 1,541-acre reduction in the Urban Growth Area (UGA) boundary, achieved through 19 amendments. These areas, now designated for rural land use and zoning, will see a shift away from potential urban development, prioritizing the conservation of open space, farms, and forests. The finalized UGA boundary directly dictates where future urban-scale development can occur.
While Community Plans remain unchanged at this time, a new policy establishing the Comprehensive Plan's precedence in cases of conflict will influence the interpretation and application of development regulations across the county. This ensures a consistent overarching framework for all development activities, potentially overriding specific provisions within individual Community Plans.
The updated plan introduces new policy support that could facilitate specific types of development in rural areas. The inclusion of civic uses like day-care centers and medical offices as supported uses in rural zones may lead to an increase in these types of development in previously less permissive areas. Furthermore, the new Economic Development policies, emphasizing family-sustaining wages and sustainable industries, will likely shape the types of commercial and industrial development the county aims to attract and support through future permitting and incentives.
Changes to rural residential development are also significant. The retention of the Rural 5 (R5) zone in existing areas provides continuity, but the new limitations on its expansion signal a more restrictive approach to low-density rural housing development. The removal of the rural density incentive, which previously allowed for increased housing density in exchange for open space dedication, will directly impact the scale and character of future residential projects in rural areas. The concurrent removal of related development regulations that encouraged rural development by spring 2025 further reinforces this shift towards managed rural growth.
The immediate next step following the Comprehensive Plan's adoption is the crucial development of the zoning code and development regulations. These will translate the broad policy directives of the plan into specific, enforceable rules governing land use, building standards, and infrastructure requirements. The anticipated drafts of this code language in spring 2025 will provide the detailed framework that developers, residents, and county agencies will use to navigate and implement future development projects in Pierce County. This upcoming phase is critical for understanding the practical implications of the updated Comprehensive Plan on the ground.