This is the first article in a three-part series on Clark County’s 2025 comprehensive plan update. Part 1 covers urban growth area expansions and agricultural land; Part 2 covers rezoning, overlays, and code changes; and Part 3 covers impact fees, new policies, and next steps.
On October 13, 2026, the Clark County Council adopted Ordinance 2026-10-01, completing the county’s 2025 periodic update to its Comprehensive Growth Management Plan. The ordinance follows three days of hearings on October 1, 2, and 5, during which the Council worked through nearly 100 recommendations from the Clark County Planning Commission. In several important places, the Council departed from those recommendations.
The update was due December 31, 2025, and the Growth Management Hearings Board later set a compliance deadline of October 29, 2026. The adopted plan covers 2025–2045 and plans for a 2045 county population of 718,154, an increase of 190,754 residents, and 269,000 jobs.
Key dates
- October 23, 2026: Most of the ordinance takes effect, including the plan text, maps, and Title 40 code amendments.
- November 12, 2026: New school, fire, and traffic impact fees take effect.
- 60 days after adoption: UGA expansions and agricultural resource land de-designations take effect, subject to any appeal.
- Upon state approval: The greenhouse gas emissions reduction subelement of the new Climate Element takes effect when the Washington State Department of Commerce approves it.
575 acres added to urban growth areas
The adopted plan adds a net 575 acres to the county’s urban growth areas (UGAs). UGAs define the boundaries between urban areas and rural, agricultural, and natural lands to limit sprawl, encourage compact development, and protect natural resources. More intensive development is generally allowed only within UGAs. The plan and the ordinance’s parcel details show:
- Battle Ground: 196 net acres, primarily employment and commercial land, after removing land from the southwestern portion of the UGA and rezoning it to rural center residential zones.
- Camas: 82 acres, adding the Grove Field Airport area and rezoning it from Airport to Mixed Use.
- La Center: 46 acres, mostly agricultural land rezoned to Light Industrial.
- Ridgefield: 239 acres, rezoned from agricultural to Mixed Use, with a small public facilities component.
- Yacolt: 12 acres, rezoned from rural to Light Industrial.
The Council split on agricultural land
The Council did not follow the Planning Commission on every agricultural de-designation. The ordinance findings show that the Council:
- Denied the de-designation of agricultural land and eastward expansion of the Camas UGA for housing;
- Denied the de-designation and northward expansion of the La Center UGA for employment, relying in part on an interlocal agreement between the City of La Center and the Cowlitz Indian Tribe involving the affected properties;
- Approved the southwestern La Center expansion for employment, but excluded a 20-acre parcel in equestrian use; and
- Approved both Ridgefield de-designations, to the north for employment and housing and to the southwest for housing.
Inclusion is not the same as development
Inclusion in a UGA does not mean a project can proceed right away. Under the plan, the urban holding overlay protects land from premature division and development until urban services are available, and removing it requires a Type IV legislative process. Owners of newly added land should confirm whether the overlay applies.
Appeals are also a real risk. Under RCW 36.70A.067, if a petition for review is timely filed with the Growth Management Hearings Board, a UGA expansion does not take effect until the board issues its final order. The plan itself recounts that agricultural de-designations in the county’s 2007 and 2016 plans were challenged and, in part, invalidated.
Transfer of development rights: a new program starting in 2027
Policy 1.1.24 directs the county and participating jurisdictions to begin implement a countywide transfer of development rights (TDR) program in 2027. The program will designate sending areas to preserve farmland, forests, historic areas, and open space, and receiving areas for development and affordable housing. The policy favors a county-operated TDR bank that sells credits at a set price and allows mitigation payments to the bank for projects outside receiving areas.
An earlier version of the policy would have required every UGA expansion to participate in the program. The adopted policy does not include that requirement, and the plan’s glossary describes TDR as a voluntary, market-based mechanism. Developers in growth areas should follow the program’s design in 2027, since receiving-area incentives and mitigation payments could affect project costs.
What to do now
- Check whether your property is in an expansion area, and confirm its new designation, zoning, and any urban holding overlay.
- Watch for appeals to the Growth Management Hearings Board, which are due within 60 days after the county publishes notice of adoption.
- Follow the county’s TDR program as it takes shape in 2027.
Miller Nash’s real estate and land use team is following the county’s implementation of the update. If you have questions about how the update affects your property or project, please contact us.
This article is provided for informational purposes only—it does not constitute legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship between the firm and the reader. Readers should consult legal counsel before taking action relating to the subject matter of this article.
