Kitsap County Department of Community Development

Your partner in building safe, resilient, and sustainable Kitsap County communities!

Community Development News - July 2022

The Department of Community Development (DCD) is a multifaceted department of Kitsap County that helps our citizens and stakeholders navigate land-use and building code guidelines. We strive to engage those we serve in meaningful and valuable ways. This ongoing effort includes open comment periods, surveys, advisory groups, webinars, and now this monthly newsletter.

In each of our efforts, we are committed to ensuring our residents' safety, facilitating the construction of reliable and sustainable communities, and preserving our county's uniquely beautiful natural resources. Get to know us, as we share helpful information, events, projects, and opportunities for engagement and feedback. If you have not already done so, please subscribe to Community Development news, sign up today.

Building Safety Month 2022 Kitsap County Department of Community Development celebrated Building Safety Month with outreach activities that began in May and ended the first weekend in June. Building Safety Month is an international celebration of all aspects of building safety that helps communities understand and appreciate the best practices that keep the places where we live, work, and play safe. The activities for the month included a booth at the Olympic College career fair, the Peninsula Home & Garden Show, Port Orchard Farmer's Market, and Central Kitsap Fire and Rescue's Kids' Day. We were able to connect with many of you, at least 750 conversations, during these outreach activities. You can always contact us if you have questions and couldn't meet up with us. We are always glad to communicate with you to help you make the best and safest choices when working on a project.

Our efforts were assisted by two high school interns from South Kitsap High School who have now graduated and will be attending UW in the fall. Thank you, ladies and good luck, in your future!

Fences and Gates Does your home maintenance list include building a fence or installing a gate this summer? Fences and gates do not require a building permit if they meet the following conditions: Under 7' high Not located on a shoreline, near a critical area, such as wetland, erosion hazard area, or near a critical area buffer If your property doesn't meet all of these conditions, then you will want to apply for a permit so that your project can be reviewed. Driveway gates should adhere to Fire Code Requirements for Development to ensure accessibility, in case of emergency. Although your project may be exempt from requiring a building permit, it must conform to building code requirements, zoning setbacks, critical areas, shoreline management, or other Kitsap County regulations. If you are not sure if your project will conform, please get in touch with staff.

Kitsap Nuisance Abatement Team (KNAT) - Case Map

The Kitsap Nuisance Abatement Team (KNAT) is a multi-agency team that supports safe and healthy communities in Kitsap County by providing outreach and education to prevent public nuisances and by working with property owners and other agencies to resolve current nuisances. Examples of public nuisances include:

• Solid waste (trash, junk, litter, animal waste) accumulating outside of trash cans or approved receptacles
• Inoperable motor vehicles within public view
• Dilapidated buildings or structures that are open or unsecured
• Failing septic systems or illegal discharges of sewage
• Illegal dumping
• Obstructions to a public right-of-way

The KNAT team is now debuting a case map where you can view cases throughout the county and their current status. For more information about nuisance properties including its definition in code, the case map, and other FAQs, visit the KNAT site.

Shore Friendly Kitsap is Your Waterfront Partner

Our mission is to empower Puget Sound waterfront landowners to create beautiful, environmentally friendly shorelines for themselves and future generations. We assist landowners interested in voluntarily removing all or part of their marine bulkhead. We incentivize shoreline restoration projects for private waterfront landowners.

We offer a range of assistance:

• Free site visits from Shore Friendly staff
• Free technical site assessments from a licensed geologist to those eligible
• Mini-grants for bulkhead removal and soft-shore alternative projects to those eligible
• Education and outreach events

For more information, please visit www.shorefriendlykitsap.com or contact Christina Kereki, Shore Friendly Kitsap coordinator, at 360-307-4242.

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Kitsap County Department of Community Development
614 Division Street - MS36
Port Orchard, WA 98366

Media Contact: Alicia Adler

KITSAP COUNTY
Kitsap County government exists to protect and promote the safety, health and welfare of our citizens in an efficient, accessible and effective manner.

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
The mission of the Department of Community Development is to foster the development of quality, affordable, structurally safe and environmentally sound communities.