Port Townsend delays an update to agricultural policy

Published 1:30 am Thursday, April 23, 2026

PORT TOWNSEND — Despite encouraging a local group to work on an amendment, the Port Townsend City Council has decided not to take action on updating agricultural policy in the newly adopted comprehensive plan.

Last year, the Port Townsend City Council advised agricultural advocates to prepare an amendment for the comprehensive plan to address desired agricultural updates. Now, the city is delaying the amendment process, citing staff constraints and mandatory obligations that didn’t exist at the time of the recommendation.

“It’s based on severe staff capacity constraints in 2026 and the need to prioritize statutorily required work in housing implementation,” said Emma Bolin, director of the city’s planning and community development. “If the city decides to initiate a new comprehensive plan amendment this year, it would require significant trade-offs. It would displace some work that is not negotiable.”

Public testimony Monday night highlighted the disconnect between the volunteer labor already invested and the city’s shift in direction.

At a time when large corporations are dominating the economy, it is essential to support small business, Port Townsend resident Judy D’Amore said in public comment.

“A really important asset to the community are the many small farms in and around Port Townsend,” D’Amore said. “They provide us with fresh continuous produce throughout the growing season, and they help us to help drive our local economy. When we make purchases from these and other locally owned businesses, the money we spend tends to stay in our community, support employees and other local businesses and our local government.”

The amendment, which was recommended for addition to the 2026 work plan by the Port Townsend Planning Commission in a 3-2 vote, addressed the allowance of community gardens within public rights-of-way, the development of specialized workforce housing on active farm properties, and the establishment of city-supported conservation easements to unlock state and federal grant funding for local growers.

In deliberation, council member Fred Obee voiced support for adopting the amendment.

“From the start, planning commission members agreed to consider only half of the amendments that were contained in the line-in, line-out proposal submitted by the growers,” Obee said. “Of the remaining elements the planning commission forwarded, only those recommendations that appeared to be manageable made the list. Proposals that required a lot of extra staff time or study were not forwarded to the council for approval.”

The amendments, as they were presented to the council, were trimmed-down, mostly aspirational goals, Obee continued.

While approving the amendment would add to city staff’s already full workload, Obee said he supported the work and saw the amendment as worthy of adoption.

Obee pushed back against the idea that the city’s workload is an insurmountable barrier.

“I think the one thing we need the most in Port Townsend is significant economic development,” Obee said. “We’ve heard over and over again in this room how government support can create opportunities far beyond the initial investment. We know that there is a lot of energy around local food systems, commercial kitchens, the development of farmers market facility self-sufficiency and reliance. Supporting this economic sector will produce jobs, spawn construction work, support merchants who sell tools and implements, shop keepers who repair them. Agriculture inside and outside of Port Townsend is likely to play a significant role in our economic future and our sustainability as a community. I think, if we can give them a boost, we should.”

While the 2026 docket remains closed to these amendments, city staff suggested that the Quimper Growers Network resubmit its request for the 2027 cycle.

The council also discussed the possibility of including agricultural policy for the city’s summer work plan retreat. The retreat casts much of the vision for the following year’s work.

Mayor Amy Howard suggested that interested council members should engage members of the agricultural community before that retreat, then bring their thoughts to the work plan discussions.

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Reporter Elijah Sussman can be reached by email at elijah.sussman@peninsuladailynews.com.