2.97.060 Selection Criteria.
A. Eligibility. Each conservation futures property nominated by a Sponsor must meet the following minimum criteria to be eligible for selection.
1. Conservation Futures Priorities. The conservation futures property must exhibit at least one of the Conservation Futures Priorities identified in PCC 2.97.030;
2. Not Less than One Acre. The conservation futures property shall not be less than one acre in size, unless it is contiguous to other preserved open space property that together is not less than one acre in size;
3. Public Access. The general public shall be provided access to the conservation futures property in a manner that does not conflict with the conservation futures priorities of the nominated property. For example, unrestricted public access may not be appropriate or required for agricultural land or habitat preservation projects. If the nominated property is enrolled in the Public Benefit Rating System, public access rights shall not be reduced to less than the minimum standards required to receive and maintain open space land classification pursuant to PCC 2.114.060;
a. If Conservation Futures funds are used to acquire fee simple title, a conservation easement or other real property interest in a site, a covenant ensuring public access shall be recorded against title to the property unless the Council's funding Resolution indicates that public access is limited or excluded from the site.
b. If a site with recreational value is selected for Conservation Futures funding, the covenant shall include, at a minimum, a perpetual right to allow the public to enter the property and physically access designated area(s) for the public's recreational enjoyment during reasonable hours and days to be specifically negotiated with the County.
c. When a project Sponsor nominates a site for a conservation easement acquisition, the Sponsor must provide written acknowledgment from the Seller indicating a willingness to negotiate provisions for public access rights to the conservation easement area designated for public access. Lands that have only agriculture, habitat, or water quality protection value and no recreational value may be exempt from the requirement to provide for public access rights.
d. On sites that have both recreation value and agricultural, habitat, or water quality protection values, etc., that could result in a conservation futures site with limited or restricted public access, any public path and designated public access area must be described and generally illustrated in the application nominating the site for Conservation Futures funding and specifically cited in the Council's funding Resolution.
e. If the Sponsor or property owner wishes to limit public access to certain hours and days or limit public access to certain specified activities, those proposed limitations must be described in the application nominating the site for Conservation Futures funding and specifically cited in the Council's funding Resolution.
4. Legal Access to Public Right of Way. The conservation futures property shall have existing, permanent legal access to and from the public right-of-way as shown on a map. If the access is through a permanent easement, a copy of the easement shall be submitted and may need to be revised to allow access by the general public;
5. Legal Lot Requirement. At the time a property is nominated for Conservation Futures funding, it must be comprised of one or more legal lots of record or in the case of a lesser property interest, described upon a legal lot of record. If the proposal is to acquire interest in a portion of a legal lot, or portions of multiple legal lots, such area shall be specifically described and accurately depicted and all persons holding Title to the affected parcels must sign their consent on the Willing Seller Affidavit;
a. Fee Simple. If the proposal is to acquire a fee simple interest in only a portion of one legal lot or portions of several lots, the proposal must be accompanied by a specific plan and timeline of actions that the Sponsor will take to achieve recording of new legal lot demonstrating the Sponsor can complete all steps to close within grant timeline;
b. Conservation Easements. If the proposal is to acquire a conservation easement, the proposed easement must be specifically described and depicted on a survey completed by a professional surveyor and submitted to the Department no later than one year after adoption of the funding Resolution.
(1) For conservation easements that do not follow parcel boundaries, the easement boundary must be clearly marked in the field.
6. No Eminent Domain. The conservation futures property shall not be part of a current or anticipated eminent domain process;
7. Complete Application. The application shall be presented on a fully completed form which complies with the requirements of PCC 2.97.050;
8. Limitations on Existing Structures. The conservation futures property shall not contain structures which cannot be removed immediately after completion of the acquisition, except for structures that are deemed operationally, culturally, historically, or archeologically significant and are consistent with the conservation purpose for which the property was nominated;
9. Limitations on Improvements. The Conservation Futures property shall not retain rights to construct, reconstruct, or expand improvements other than those improvements directly related to maintaining agricultural operations, timber growth and harvesting or recreation consistent with conservation values as described in the conservation futures application and cited in the Council's funding Resolution;
10. Executed Options. If the conservation futures property is subject to an executed option, the Sponsor must provide the County with a copy of the option agreement. Regardless of the terms of the option agreement, the County will only offer to purchase the property at a price established by the County's appraisals;
11. Not Already Protected from Development. The conservation futures property shall not be adequately protected from development through an existing Conservation/Historic Preservation Easement. This provision is not intended to disqualify reimbursement of costs associated with conservation futures projects that have been acquired prior to approval of the Council's funding Resolution when recommended for acquisition by the Board;
12. Matching Funds. The nomination shall include matching funds equal to or greater than 10 percent of the purchase price provided either through a cash contribution at the time of closing or an agreement by the owner of the conservation futures property to reduce the purchase price of the conservation futures property by up to the match funding amount of the appraised value as evidenced by a written letter indicating such signed by the owner. Pierce County reserves the right to withdraw Conservation Futures funding from a project if an applicant is unable to provide additional or matching funds identified in their application before final documents are ready for execution of the sale at closing; and
13. Compliance with Other Open Space Programs. If the nominated property is enrolled in the Open Space Public Benefit Rating System pursuant to PCC 2.114.060, the Sponsor must demonstrate the property is in compliance with program requirements by providing a letter or statement of compliance from the Pierce County Planning and Public Works Department.
B. Verification of Open Space Priority Resources Eligibility by Committee.
1. The Committee shall review all conservation future property applications to determine their eligibility using the minimum criteria set forth in subsection A of this Section prior to review by the Board. Only conservation futures applications deemed to have met the minimum criteria by a majority of the Committee shall be reviewed by the Board. In conducting its review, the Committee shall verify the presence or occurrence of proposed open space resources.
2. In all cases, the Committee shall have the latitude to use its professional judgment when reviewing conservation futures property applications, but shall also strive to use a strict interpretation of the minimum criteria in subsection A of this Section.
3. If the nominated property is enrolled in the Public Benefit Rating System, the Committee shall review and make recommendations regarding protection of conservation values and public access requirements pursuant to PCC 2.114.060.
C. The Evaluation Point System.
1. Evaluation points may be assigned for each conservation futures application by the Board as provided for in Table 2.97.110-1 found in Appendix "A" titled "Conservation Futures Evaluation Categories and Points."
2. The presence or occurrence of an Evaluation Category shall be verified using the definitions set forth in PCC 2.97.020.
3. Where there is a range of points allowed in an Evaluation Category, each member of the Board may use individual discretion in the assignment of a point value for the category for the application.
D. Scoring of the Conservation Futures Application.
1. At least one public meeting shall be held by the Board at which the members present at that meeting shall, after examination, provide for each application, a score for each Evaluation Category based on the Sponsor's application.
2. A composite score shall be computed for each conservation futures application which will yield a ranking for that application as compared to all applications under consideration in that year and calculated as follows: (1) The points given to a conservation futures application shall be totaled; and (2) the application's totaled points shall be divided by the number of Board members present at the public meeting who scored the conservation futures application at which the review occurred.
3. The composite score for each conservation futures application shall be used to establish an overall ranking of all conservation futures applications reviewed by the Board. Where conservation futures applications share identical scores, the Board shall establish the priority among those applications.
E. Evaluating Intended Future Uses, Including Active Recreational Uses.
1. The Board shall consider intended future uses identified on an application and evaluate compatibility with the conservation values and requirements of the Conservation Futures program and may recommend additions to covenants and property restrictions needed to assure the preservation of the conservation futures property or may recommend denial of proposed future uses to be consistent with the goals of this Chapter.
2. Active recreation uses may be allowed on conservation futures properties when recommended by the Board and approved by the Council, and addressed in the covenants or property restrictions.
3. When an application indicates active recreational uses are intended future uses of conservation futures property, the Board shall determine if such uses should be recommended for approval and shall identify the specific active recreational uses to be recommended. Applications that include proposals for active recreational uses shall include cost estimates for the development, maintenance and operation of proposed active uses.
4. The Board may recommend that only a portion of a conservation futures property be used for active recreational use.
5. The Board's recommendations concerning intended future uses and related covenants and property restrictions shall be included with the priority list of conservation futures properties identified by the Board pursuant to subsection D above.
6. Any intended future use recommendations approved by the Council shall be included in the Council's resolution approving purchase of conservation futures properties with conservation futures funds.