Read first time 01/15/2004.   Referred to Committee on Land Use & Planning.

     AN ACT Relating to providing nonagricultural commercial and retail uses that support and sustain agricultural operations on designated agricultural lands of long-term significance; and amending RCW 36.70A.177.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1   RCW 36.70A.177 and 1997 c 429 s 23 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) A county or a city may use a variety of innovative zoning techniques in areas designated as agricultural lands of long-term commercial significance under RCW 36.70A.170. The innovative zoning techniques should be designed to conserve agricultural lands and encourage the agricultural economy. A county or city should encourage nonagricultural uses to be limited to lands with poor soils or otherwise not suitable for agricultural purposes.
     (2) Innovative zoning techniques a county or city may consider include, but are not limited to:
     (a) Agricultural zoning, which limits the density of development and restricts or prohibits nonfarm uses of agricultural land and may allow accessory uses that support, promote, or sustain agricultural operations and production, as provided in subsection (3) of this section;
     (b) Cluster zoning, which allows new development on one portion of the land, leaving the remainder in agricultural or open space uses;
     (c) Large lot zoning, which establishes as a minimum lot size the amount of land necessary to achieve a successful farming practice;
     (d) Quarter/quarter zoning, which permits one residential dwelling on a one-acre minimum lot for each one-sixteenth of a section of land; and
     (e) Sliding scale zoning, which allows the number of lots for single-family residential purposes with a minimum lot size of one acre to increase inversely as the size of the total acreage increases.
     (3)(a) Accessory uses allowed under subsection (2)(a) of this section shall comply with the following:
     (i) Accessory uses shall be located, designed, and operated so as not to interfere with natural resource land uses and shall be accessory to the growing of crops or raising of animals;
     (ii) Accessory commercial or retail uses shall predominately produce, store, or sell regionally produced agricultural products from one or more producers, products derived from regional agricultural production, agriculturally related experiences, or products produced on-site. Accessory commercial and retail uses shall offer for sale predominantly products or services produced on-site; and
     (iii) Accessory uses may operate out of existing or new buildings with parking and other supportive uses consistent with the size and scale of existing agricultural buildings on the site but shall not otherwise convert agricultural land to nonagricultural uses.
     (b) Accessory uses may include compatible commercial or retail uses including, but not limited to:
     (i) Storage and refrigeration of regional agricultural products;
     (ii) Production, sales, and marketing of value-added agricultural products derived from regional sources;
     (iii) Supplemental sources of on-farm income that support and sustain on-farm agricultural operations and production;
     (iv) Support services that facilitate the production, marketing, and distribution of agricultural products; and
     (v) Off-farm and on-farm sales and marketing of predominately regional agricultural products and experiences, locally made art and arts and crafts, and ancillary retail sales or service activities.