The many items discussed in the Centralia City Council’s first meeting of the year on Tuesday, Jan. 9, included an ordinance with three proposed amendments to different sections of the city’s zoning codes.
The council approved two of the three amendments on first reading: allowing hotels to be built in open space public facility (OSPF) zones and increasing building height up to 80 feet in two commercially zoned districts. The council denied a request to reduce the buffer distance required between supportive housing facilities.
The ordinance — amended to deny the buffer distance request — will receive a second reading at the next Centralia City Council meeting, scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 23 at Centralia City Hall.
As for the first amendment, Centralia Community Development Director Emil Pierson explained his staff recommended it after they repeatedly received interest in purchasing or developing in city-owned OSPF zones.
Pierson said most OSPF zones are like game farm areas owned by the Washington state Department of Fish and Wildlife.
“Let's say somebody wanted to build a hotel or motel on a portion of Borst Park, and you guys said, ‘Hey this is a great revenue opportunity. It would work great with the (Twin Cities) Sports Commission. We have all these people supporting it.’ This would provide that opportunity,” Pierson said.
Mayor Kelly Smith Johnston expressed some concern about this zoning change, which would allow for someone to build permanent supportive housing in an OSPF zone as state law now allows developers to construct supportive housing anywhere hotels are allowed.
According to Pierson, while that is a possibility, he believes anyone who wanted to develop permanent supportive housing would come to the council to work with them on such a project.
Councilor Max Vogt said permanent supportive housing developers would have to build an entirely new housing facility, unlike the developers of the former Motel 6 and former OYO Hotel, who are converting old facilities, as is now allowed by state law.
“It still opens up the … the transitional housing, and I think that’s an important part of the consideration,” Smith Johnston said.
Ultimately, the amendment was approved by a vote of 4-2, with Smith Johnston and Councilor Mark Westley opposed.
The council unanimously approved the amendment that proposed increasing building height from 40 to 80 feet — or up to four stories high — in the Gateway commercial zoning district, where the new Centralia Station development is located, and the Harrison Avenue commercial zoning district.
The denied amendment
Finally, the council discussed reducing distance requirements between supportive housing facilities before voting against the request.
Centralia city code currently dictates that a minimum buffer of 1,500 feet must exist between two supportive housing facilities of any kind.
Harrison Square Presbyterian Church, along with other partners including Gather Church and Chehalis United Methodist Church, make up the Hope Housing Collaborative of Lewis County and have been planning a supportive housing facility utilizing property Harrison Square Presbyterian already owns.
Unfortunately, that location is within 1,500 feet of the former Motel 6, which was purchased last year to convert it into permanent supportive housing by the Sage Investment Group.
Another member of Sage Investment purchased the former OYO Hotel last year with the intent to convert that into permanent supportive housing.
Gather Church Pastor Patty Howard explained the city had only created the 1,500 buffer late last year after the Sage Investment Group expressed interest in also purchasing the King Oscar Motel for conversion, which is directly in between the former Motel 6 and former OYO Hotel.
“Our project was in the works before the OYO Hotel was purchased,” Howard said.
Harrison Square Presbyterian Church Pastor Ralph Carr explained he, along with his partners, began this project at city staff’s recommendation because the community desperately needs more supportive housing.
“This effort for this housing village, we’re receiving a lot of support for it,” Carr said. “We’ve already got verbal commitments of money and materials over $300,000.”
Pierson explained the Centralia Planning Commission recommended denying this amendment request.
“When you change that 1,500 foot (buffer), if you decide to, it is city-wide,” Pierson said.
He added the proposed amendment would affect all types of transitional housing, as well.
Centralia City Attorney Kyle Manley said he believed this request fell into the category of “arbitrary and capricious” zoning changes, meaning it benefited a specific property owner or a group of owners, not the entire community, which made it illegal for the council to approve.
Manley recommended waiting for a more comprehensive review of zoning codes and buffer areas as part of the ongoing 2024-25 Centralia Comprehensive Plan update.
“If the comprehensive plan makes concessions for having these types of housing where we can, and possibly looking at limiting barriers to entry for that, then, yeah, it could be supported that way,” Manley said.
Vogt agreed with Manley’s opinion and worried about the possibility of the city facing a lawsuit, which could force the city to reverse the code amendment.
Councilor Chris Brewer explained the project is still something the city “desperately needs” and requested the council revisit this proposed amendment later this year.
A motion to deny the request to reduce the buffer zone between supportive housing facilities passed by a 5-1 vote, with Westley being the sole opposition.
During her report at the end of the meeting, Smith Johnston told those in the Hope Housing Collaborative she still supported the project but didn’t want to expose the city to legal risk.
“You’ve been caught up in a process that was precipitated by a legislative action … and we are all figuring out how to respond to that,” Smith Johnston said.
The denial of the request means Hope Housing Collaborative will have to find a new location for its transitional housing facility. Smith Johnston added she is working to help find a new location and new funding to ensure the supportive housing development is still built.
