Opinion ID: 2455395
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Board Improperly Dismissed Community Testimony

Text: ¶ 100 The Board dismissed the community testimony of Lila Hanson, Pat Deneen, and Urban Eberhart from the Kittitas County Farm Bureau to support the proposition that three-acre zoning preserves the rural character of Kittitas County and promotes agriculture. They testified that three-acre zoning would allow farmers to sell off the smallest portion of agriculturally marginal land possible for cash flow purposes in low-irrigation years, allowing the farmer to remain economically competitive by being able to retain the greatest amount of productive farmland. This, they argued, would allow farmers to retain the most agriculturally valuable farmland possible for subsequent years when farming is better, thereby promoting agriculture and preserving rural character. ¶ 101 This is exactly the sort of flexibility and consideration of local circumstances the legislature intended local governments to address in their comprehensive plans. Therefore, it was improper to dismiss the evidence. Accordingly, following our analysis in City of Arlington, the County's action was not clearly erroneous and the Board's decision was not rendered in view of the entire record. See City of Arlington v. Cent. Puget Sound Growth Mgmt. Hr'gs Bd., 164 Wash.2d 768, 774, 193 P.3d 1077 (2008). While the majority dismisses this evidence as not dispositive of the question of rural character, City of Arlington is clear that when a hearings board dismisses a key piece of evidence supporting the county's action, it commits error. Id. at 795, 193 P.3d 1077. The community testimony is reflective of the local circumstances of many Kittitas County farmers. Dismissing such evidence is error, which warrants reversal of the Board's decision.