The Burien Planning Commission made some dramatic changes to the proposed Shoreline Master Program at the March 23 meeting.

They raised the trigger requiring a destroyed non-conforming structure to meet new vegetation buffer standards from 50 percent to 75 percent.

The 50 percent threshold has been a contentious number for shoreline homeowners, many of whom will see their houses become non-conforming if new setbacks are passed.

Planning Commission Chair Joe Fitzgibbon proposed the percentage increase, saying he wanted to give flexibility to homeowners.

If 75 percent is used in the SMP passed by the City Council, it will leave a disparity between the SMP and the zoning code. 50 percent is the number used in the zoning code for non-conforming structures, and was originally used in the SMP for consistency.

Planning Commissioner Rebecca McInteer was the only Commissioner opposed to the change. She said there was value in the consistency.

In the proposed SMP new building setbacks along the shoreline of the Puget Sound would become 65 feet, increased from the 20-foot setback in place now.

Staff was asked by Commissioner Jim Clingon to find out how many houses would become non-conforming if the new setbacks were put in place.

Clingon said he had reservations about the increased setbacks and the impact they could have on home and landowners. He said increased setbacks could potentially make sale more difficult and lower property values.

He said on undeveloped land the new setbacks were the equivalent of a taking, as the landowners would not be able to develop as much of their land as they would have before the new SMP.

Clingon’s comment brought a round of applause from the homeowners at the meeting, an unusual sound during this arduous process.

McInteer warned Clingon to not throw the word taking around, comparing the word taking to the f-bomb in land use. She said there will be change coming to Burien. She said it will come from Federal regulations and State regulations, saying Burien is not autonomous from the areas around it and one way or another there will be changes.

Fiztgibbons said reviewing the setbacks is something they owe consideration to. But he said we are not going to make everyone happy.

He said some homeowners have argued to keep the setbacks at 20 feet, while Futurewise believes the setbacks should be 200 feet. He said he believes the best distance is probably somewhere in the middle.

A special Planning Commission meeting will be held next Tuesday, March 30 at 7 p.m. in the Council Chambers at the Burien Library.