Property owners along Issaquah Creek and Lake Sammamish – as well as other citizens interested in the development and protection of Issaquah’s shorelines – are encouraged to attend an upcoming public hearing on the City’s latest draft of its Shoreline Master Program (SMP).

The City’s Planning Policy Commission will host a public hearing on the draft SMP at 6:30 p.m., July 30 at City Council Chambers, 135 E. Sunset Way.

Several public meetings have been held over the past two years to review shoreline information, evaluate policy options for shoreline buffers and development standards and discuss regulatory options for docks on Lake Sammamish.

The new version of the draft SMP reflects input from these meetings.

The program applies to “shorelines of the state,” which in Issaquah includes the main stem of Issaquah Creek, the East Fork of Issaquah Creek and Lake Sammamish.

The SMP’s regulations cover land located within 200 feet of these shorelines, as well as associated wetlands.

The regulations are intended to protect the shoreline environment, while providing for appropriate water-oriented uses, single-family residential development and public access.

This is the first update to Issaquah’s SMP since its initial adoption in 1990.

Since then, the Greenwood Point/South Cove area was annexed into the City, and the Lake Sammamish shoreline along these neighborhoods will now be included in the City’s SMP.

The state requires that Issaquah’s SMP be updated to comply with the state’s new shoreline management guidelines by December 2009.

For more information on the proposed SMP, go to www.ci.issaquah.wa.us/SMPupdate or call Peter Rosen at 425-837-3094.