The Clark County Council voted unanimously on October 13, 2026 to adopt the 2025-45 Comprehensive Plan. While the Council decided to reconsider Exhibit 10 in the plan (cluster developments on ag resource land), is seen as an opportunity, it also came with a moratorium that gives County staff time to review and potentially develop a policy for cluster development on ag resource lands. There will be a public hearing on the moratorium, likely in early December. Stay tuned, the BIA advocacy team will keep you updated.

Briefing: Clark County Comprehensive Plan Adoption

At a glance

The Clark County Council adopted the 2025–2045 Comprehensive Plan update on a 5–0 roll call on Oct. 13, 2026. Before the vote it removed the resource-land clustering code and replaced it with a moratorium while the program is reworked.

How we got here

Oct. 13 was the formal adoption step. The substantive decisions came at the hearings on Oct. 1, 2 and 5, and staff said the ordinance reflects the Council's Oct. 5 votes.

•      Growth areas: on Oct. 5 the Council approved several contested urban growth area expansions, including around Battle Ground, Ridgefield and La Center, despite repeated testimony urging farmland protection.

•      Climate: it voted 4–1 to adopt greenhouse gas targets aligned with Vancouver's; Councilor Belkot voted no.

•      Camas: the proposed Camas UGA expansion including Grove Field was approved.

What staff presented

Staff did not walk through the exhibits and took questions instead.

•      Scope: the ordinance covers the land use plan, the comprehensive plan and zoning maps, the Arterial Atlas and the Title 40 code changes.

•      Code changes: the amendments are written into the ordinance itself rather than attached as separate exhibits.

•      New fees: they take effect after a lag of about two to three months, giving Community Development time to load them into its permitting system.

Clustering amendment

The Council reopened the resource-land clustering change it had adopted Oct. 5 and replaced it with a moratorium. Both reconsideration and the final motion passed.

How it unfolded

•      Councilor Belkot asked whether the Oct. 5 clustering change should have had its own public hearing.

•      Councilor Little, who voted with the majority on Oct. 5, moved to reconsider, saying clustering could work as a conservation tool if the rules were improved. Reconsideration passed on a voice vote, with some no votes.

•      Chair Marshall said clustering's requirements, such as building on poor soils and keeping the remainder in resource use, had not been applied consistently, and that many remainder parcels had gone to weeds. She backed a moratorium during review.

•      Deputy County Manager April Furst said there have been no clustering applications in the resource districts in seven years, apart from vested ones.

Final motion (Little / Fuentes), passed 5–0

•      Remove Exhibit 10, the clustering code, from the ordinance.

•      Impose a moratorium on cluster development on resource lands.

•      Have staff propose conservation-focused improvements.

•      Send the issue to the Agricultural Advisory Commission and hold public hearings.

Chief Civil Deputy Prosecutor Amber Smith advised that state law requires a public hearing within 60 days of adopting a moratorium, plus reviews every six months. The motion was adjusted to match.

Other discussion before the vote

R-36 upzone at NE 139th St / NE 50th Ave

About 88 acres in the Vancouver UGA drew the most plan-related testimony.

What Councilors Said

Public comment

Most open public comment was not about the plan. Plan-related themes:

•      The NE 139th St upzone (above).

•      Climate amendments on gas line extensions and right-of-way franchise fees.

•      A pro-growth caller warned about housing affordability and higher impact fees and argued Chair Marshall should recuse herself.

Next steps

•      Appeals: watch for Growth Management Hearings Board review and any appeals. Orjiako said the county hopes to come into compliance before an appeal arrives.

•      Clustering moratorium: its required hearing falls within 60 days, by about mid-December, followed by six-month reviews.

•      Code follow-up: equestrian standards and the clustering fix, with Agricultural Advisory Commission review.

•      New fees: take effect on January 1, 2027.

•      Further amendments: staff said the plan can be amended again as problems turn up.