The 3 Crabs land grab
County considers "relocation strategy"
Another “engineered catastrophe” in Dungeness and a three-step how-to guide to seizing other people’s land.
Without warning, the Clallam County Commissioners have adopted a new meeting format. After public comment ended on Tuesday, a county issue that was not on the agenda was discussed. Since public comment had already ended, residents could not respond to the commissioners. The topic was controversial, but the new format prohibited the public from voicing dissent.
The controversial topic concerned seizing private property from Clallam County citizens.
“When there have been typically a combination of a king tide and a storm event, recently the 3 Crabs area experienced a pretty significant amount of flooding which impacts a number of the property owners there,” said Commissioner Ozias.
His post-meeting comments were unexpected for the gallery, but the county engineer, director of public works, and support staff had arrived moments before, indicating that the discussion was planned.
“I’ve explored previously with Public Works and with Emergency Management whether there’s anything that the County might be able to do to address that periodic flooding,” continued Ozias.
“Can the danger be remediated?” asked Administrator Todd Mielke. “If it cannot be realistically remediated, then is there a program to remove the risk? Which is typically a relocation strategy.”
Mielke explained that the County is undergoing a Hazard Mitigation Study as part of the Comprehensive Plan update. “I’m assuming that this is one of the issues that they will look at,” said Mielke. “If that is either not financially, or from an engineering perspective technologically feasible, then the issue is, ‘are there other programs?’ I don’t know of any off the top, I believe the federal government has engaged in some relocation projects.”
A fiscally feasible plan could be challenging — the commissioners passed up an opportunity to complete Towne Road without any county funds. Instead, they spent $1.4 million of Clallam County Taxpayer money unnecessarily. Combined with their estimated $13 million response to address the Jamestown Tribe’s early breaching of the Dungeness River dike, there is little money left to address a handful of taxpaying residents wanting to access their homes via a flooded county road.
“I know the cold response is: Typically, you always encourage people to do their due diligence when they buy,” said Mielke. “I also know that typically when you pick a fight with Mother Nature, you’ve got an extreme foe to deal with.”
It hasn’t always been that way
Locals know the area around 3 Crabs has always been marshy, but it didn’t used to flood as badly or as often. Some say the area was engineered to flood.
In 2012, the County began working with Washington State Fish & Wildlife, the North Olympic Land Trust, and the Jamestown Tribe to purchase nearly 52 acres of land and tideland where the 3 Crabs Restaurant once stood. It was part of a $3.8 million salmon restoration project. “The purpose of the purchase is to restore the shoreline,” Fish & Wildlife told the Peninsula Daily News.
The 3 Crabs Restaurant was demolished, and the road was relocated. In addition, sloughs were realigned, new channels were excavated, a tidal lagoon was constructed, and a new tidal slough was added. These features moved Meadowbrook Creek and brought it much closer to the homes.
According to locals, the flooding on the west end of 3 Crabs Road worsened after the County and its partners completed the restoration of Meadowbrook Creek.
Step one: Fund an NGO
Five years after Meadowbrook Creek was reengineered, a non-governmental organization (NGO) called Strait Ecosystem Recovery Network (SERN) held a workshop. SERN’s fiscal agent, the Jamestown Tribe, and other community leaders attended.
The North Olympic Land Trust (NOLT) planned the “Strait Climate Change Resiliency Technical Workshop.” The goal was “To begin to help our communities and ecosystems better prepare for climate-induced changes, including human migration of climate refugees to the North Olympic Peninsula.” A few key objectives resulted from that workshop:
Attendees determined that “we might need to relocate homeowners out of harm’s way and to better enable restoration actions.”
The workshop determined that flooded or flood-prone properties should be bought back, but homeowners should not be paid full price for their parcels. “We need a well-funded buy-back program for parcels that are and will soon be flooded, or otherwise negatively affected, because of climate change. With such a program, we need to make sure we’re using taxpayer dollars wisely and not paying full price for parcels that will be devalued because of the risks from climate change, but instead are helping the ecosystem become more resilient.”
The North Olympic Development Council (NODC), a non-governmental organization led by its president, Clallam County Commissioner Mark Ozias, “might be able to provide some level of assistance” in seizing property from residents.
The workshop concluded that they would work to influence local governments’ comprehensive plans to achieve their goals.
According to software promoted at the workshop, water rising in Dungeness Bay would completely inundate the Three Crabs community.
However, that same rise in sea level wouldn't threaten the Tribe's campus at the head of Sequim Bay. There would be no reason to relocate the casino, hotel, gas station, or cannabis dispensary.
Likewise, when the software generated the same amount of rise a mile east of 3 Crabs, Seashore Road was devastated, and Graysmarsh became uninhabitable. Yet, Jamestown Beach, the ancestral home of the Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe — where the newly constructed pavilion, fry bread shack, and totem carving shed were built — remained untouched by rising seas.
SERN’s closed-door workshop went largely unnoticed, and that’s by design. When policy is formed and carried out by non-governmental organizations (like SERN and NOLT) at the behest of a sovereign nation (like the Jamestown Tribe), transparency requirements (like the Public Records Act) are circumvented, and the public (who funds these organizations) is left out of the process.
In October, Commissioner Ozias partnered with his nonprofit, the NODC, to host a conference influencing local governments’ comprehensive plans. The closed-door summit was held at the 7 Cedar Casino, on a sovereign nation’s land where laws promoting transparency do not apply.
Step two: Change the comprehensive plan
When asked during a public meeting in October, the commissioners had never heard of “Cascadia Consulting Group,” but they were sure the County hadn’t contracted with them. However, Sequim resident John Worthington was adamant that the two were in a contract. Public records proved that Worthington was right — the commissioners were in a $370,000 contract with Cascadia but had forgotten.
(Note: Cascadia Consulting Group is not Cascadia water from the article “Water Woes.”)
In February, the commissioners hired Cascadia to “update the Hazard Mitigation Plan alongside the development of the Comprehensive Plan Climate Element.” Updates to the Hazard Mitigation Plan could determine which homes are allowed on beachfront property and which residents must be evicted and paid below-market value for their homes to “make sure we’re using taxpayer dollars wisely.” (This likely wouldn’t be an above-fair-market-value compensation like Representative Steve Tharinger received for his home during the Lower Dungeness Floodplain Restoration project.)
Updating the Hazard Mitigation Plan aligns with SERN’s objective to change local governments’ policies.
Cascadia Consulting Group has collaborated extensively with Commissioner Ozias’ nonprofit, the NODC, and contracted with the Jamestown Tribe. The partnership between the consultant, commissioner, and sovereign nation has created county policy supporting the off-channel reservoir and prioritized the installation of car charging stations and a cell phone tower in Blyn, home to the Jamestown Tribe’s campus.
Prioritizing Jamestown’s needs has been a tradition of Cascadia Consulting Group. If Cascadia updated the County’s Hazard Mitigation Plan to reflect that beachfront property should be seized on Rivers End, 3 Crabs Road, Seashore Lane, and Jamestown Beach Lane, it would align with the stated desires of two of its clients: the Jamestown Tribe and the NODC.
Step three: Get local government to work for you
The Jamestown Tribe funded 53% of Commissioner Mark Ozias’ last campaign.
Ozias heads the North Olympic Development Council (NODC).
The NODC, working with Cascadia Consulting Group, is updating the County’s Hazard Mitigation Plan.
Cascadia Consulting Group also works for the Jamestown Tribe.
The NODC and Cascadia Consulting Group will submit recommendations to Clallam County, which Commissioner Ozias can approve.
That is how policy is created in Clallam County. That’s a legal way to evict residents, seize their property, and pay them pennies on the dollar. The County will revisit the relocation strategy in January.
To view Commissioner Ozias discussing the flooding of 3 Crabs, click here and advance to timestamp 1:14:10.
And, after the announcement of this plan, the chair also abruptly used the power of the State Constitution to limit public comment to ten minutes. He did not mention that the commissioners could, by consensus, increase the amount of time for public comment. They insist that they wish to engage with constituents, but really don't utilize the opportunity when presented. SHAME!!!!
Thank you for informing us on the facts so we can FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT back.
The Commissioners have used this unparliamentary procedure several times. This is when the public can understand the true intent of the Board, so always stay until the very end. One attendee from the gallery tried to get the attention of the Board during this discussion, but the Board intentionally avoided looking at the gallery. Jeff, your Step by Step reporting is what everyone needs to have handy. Thank you!