News Release 2003-7
October 10, 2003
Griffin Bay Preservation Committee has sued to halt barges from unloading at the waterfront wharf of the Friday Harbor Sand & Gravel property on San Juan Island. The defendants in the suit are San Juan County and Friday Harbor Sand & Gravel Co.
The complaint was filed in the Skagit County Superior Court and served on the County on October 3, 2003. No court dates have been scheduled. The Plaintiff is represented by the Seattle law firm of Helsell Fetterman LLP.
"The central theme of the case is that the County, somehow, violated the land use laws of the state by allowing barges to land at this site without first securing a permit," said Prosecutor Randall K. Gaylord.
"This is the property that is the being closed down by Friday Harbor Sand & Gravel Co. Barges have been arriving and departing from this property for as long as anyone can remember," added Gaylord.
According to Gaylord, most recent barging activity has occurred based upon the doctrine of grandfathered rights. The County has declined to issue permits where the right is not grandfathered. The County has shared its research on the grandfathered rights status with the neighbors, the Department of Ecology, the Attorney General, the Washington Department of Fisheries, and the U.S. Corps of Engineers. All of the government agencies have acknowledged the grandfathered rights to land barges at this location.
The property at issue – the wharf and waterfront – is the subject of a purchase and sale agreement between the defendants in the case. The County has signed agreements to purchase the property owned by Friday Harbor Sand & Gravel and then convey part of the property to the San Juan Island Recreation District (Island Rec). "There is nothing in this lawsuit which shows an intention by the neighbors to interfere with the purchase and sale," said Gaylord.
In 1987, a Citizens Transportation Committee identified this property as the location for the construction of a public dock and barge-landing ramp. This Committee recognized that an island community needs to have a public barge landing location that is capable of handling all of the goods and needs of the community. "The Friday Harbor Sand & Gravel property has been recognized as a logical and important part of the transportation network for all citizens of the County," added Gaylord.
According to Gaylord, enforcement authority for this property was turned over to the Attorney General earlier this year. "Once the County Commissioners moved forward with the purchase and sale agreement, our office recognized that we could not represent the enforcement authority and the purchaser at the same time. State law allows the Attorney General to enforce the shoreline land use laws. We have notified the Attorney General and have referred all enforcement-related matters to their office. If the neighbors have a concern with the choices made by the enforcement authority, they should take it up with the Attorney General, not file a lawsuit against the County."
Randall K. Gaylord
San Juan County Prosecuting Attorney
350 Court Street, 2nd Floor
P.O. Box 760
Friday Harbor, WA 98250
(360)378-4101