Pasco City to hold public hearing on six-month moratorium for essential public facilities

Moderator announced that the Pasco City Council will hold a public hearing on March 16 about an emergency six-month moratorium on applications to create new essential public facilities, often referred to as less restrictive alternative (LRA) housing. The moratorium, approved by the council on Feb. 17, temporarily halts new applications so the city can prepare new regulations.

The hearing will allow residents to speak specifically to the ban, the Moderator said, and will not address draft or proposed regulations for LRA housing; city officials plan a separate public feedback session for regulatory questions. The Moderator framed the moratorium as a time-limited measure “to give the city time to create new regulations.”

Council members approved the emergency moratorium on Feb. 17, according to the announcement; the transcript did not provide vote tallies or the motion text used at that meeting. The city described the moratorium as six months in length and presented the March 16 hearing as the public’s opportunity to discuss the ban itself.

The hearing is scheduled for the regular City Council meeting on March 16 at City Hall starting at 7 p.m. Members of the public who wish to comment may attend in person or watch the meeting through the city’s livestream channels. No regulations or regulatory language were described in this announcement; regulations will be the subject of a separate feedback process.