Manufactured home park code amendments revisited in city council

In a roller coaster of decisions surrounding a proposed text amendment that would clarify city code on manufactured home parks in east Blaine, both the prospective developers and Blaine City Council are revisiting their proposals. 

City council voted during its August 14 meeting to put off a decision on how it would proceed with a text amendment it initiated earlier this summer to resolve conflicting city codes on manufactured home parks. Councilmembers voiced they wanted to wait on the vote, likely until the September 11 meeting, partly because councilmembers Garth Baldwin and Richard May were absent. Other councilmembers asked for more time to explore their options and potentially hold a study session or talk to planning commissioners.

The council vote came after east Blaine developer Skip Jansen’s attorney submitted an August 3 letter providing notice they would reinstate a text amendment that Jansen had withdrawn in early May. The letter asked that Jansen’s amendment, which harmonized the code inconsistencies to allow for manufactured home parks, be processed as a replacement or in coordination with council’s proposal.   

“The code amendment that Mr. Jansen has will move forward to the planning commission anyway,” mayor Mary Lou Steward said after council’s vote. “It just means city council isn’t resolving its issues with the code.”

The tumultuous debate on allowing large manufactured home parks in east Blaine began in fall 2021, when Jansen and his wife, Katie, submitted their amendment. While planning a development in their upcoming East Harbor Hills subdivision, the pair had discovered inconsistencies between the city’s underlying zoning code and the code for planned unit developments, which are required for manufactured home parks over five acres. 

The Jansens’ amendment request garnered objection from east Blaine residents who voiced concerns on the future project, which had not been officially proposed. Concerns covered traffic, environmental and taxing impacts. 

In early May, the Jansens withdrew their proposal after the planning commission had spent about a year debating whether to send it to city council for a final vote. They also threatened to sue the city if they were denied the opportunity to make a manufactured home park application. Shortly after, council imposed an emergency moratorium on all manufactured home park applications until the city fixed the code. 

Council directed staff in mid-July to create its text amendment proposal to fix the code preventing large manufactured home park development. 

The planning commission will open a public hearing on the Jansens’ request at a future meeting, while council will determine whether the city should continue working on its amendment.