FAQs and Resources

Who is responsible for land use planning in incorporated versus unincorporated areas of the county?

Cities (incorporated areas) are responsible for land use planning, zoning, and development within their jurisdictions, while Grays Harbor County is responsible for all unincorporated areas (outside city-limits). The Grays Harbor County Comprehensive Land Use Plan will not affect the current plans for the Cities.
What is a Comprehensive Land Use Plan?

A Comprehensive Land Use Plan is a roadmap for a community’s future. It will set long-term goals for land and resource use, to make the community vision a reality. These goals turn into actions, laws, and guidelines that affect decisions on key issues such as housing needs, critical areas, transportation, local economic development, jobs and services, and future land use mapping and zoning.
Why are there different public comment periods for the Draft Environmental Impact Statement and the Draft Comprehensive Land Use Plan?

The Comprehensive Plan and the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) serve different purposes, but they are closely connected. In short, the EIS evaluates growth and policy options and documents environmental review, and the Comprehensive Land Use Plan is the County’s chosen roadmap for future policies, goals and decision-making.

Draft EIS: The Draft EIS is prepared first. It evaluates different growth and development alternatives and analyzes their potential environmental impacts. For Grays Harbor County, the Draft EIS evaluated multiple growth scenarios, including a No Action Alternative, a Moderate Growth Alternative, and a High Growth Alternative. Community feedback for the Draft EIS helped inform decisions about level of future growth and the goals and policies included in the preferred alternative. Using the Draft EIS analysis and public input, the County developed a preferred alternative, which became the Draft Comprehensive Land Use Plan.

Draft Comprehensive Land Use Plan: The Comprehensive Land Use Plan is a policy document that establishes the long-term vision, goals, and strategies for growth, housing, transportation, natural resources, public services, and land use. It guides future decisions and development in unincorporated Grays Harbor County. Community feedback for the Draft Comprehensive Plan will help inform decisions about policies, regulations, and land use designations. The Draft Comprehensive Plan becomes final after adoption by the Board of County Commissioners.

Final EIS: The feedback from the Draft EIS will be used to prepare the Final EIS. The Final EIS responds to public comments and provides environmental analysis of the preferred alternative.
What is a community vision?

A community vision is a shared understanding of what a community wants to be like in the future, serving as a guide for strategic planning efforts and decision-making. It is a collaborative process where the community explores their aspirations and priorities for the future.

Community feedback gathered during Summer 2025 informed the Grays Harbor County vision statement, adopted in November 2025:

Vision Statement
Grays Harbor County will be a vibrant community that preserves its rural character and local identity while embracing new opportunities and well-planned growth. As a gateway to Washington’s pristine coastal beaches and the scenic Olympic Peninsula, we highly value our beautiful natural surroundings and recognize the importance of balancing land uses to protect agriculture and environmentally sensitive areas while supporting development. A variety of housing options, living wage jobs, and shops, services and community spaces will make Grays Harbor County a pleasant and thriving place to live, work, visit and play. A mix of vehicle, bicycle, pedestrian, and transit options will provide efficient and accessible connections throughout the area. We will achieve our vision through community-guided decision making, by working closely with residents, businesses, and project partners.
Will the 2027 Comprehensive Land Use Plan update previous plans and policies?

Yes. Over the past 50+ years, the Grays Harbor County Planning Commission and staff have developed documents that established the long-range planning policies for unincorporated Grays Harbor County (those areas outside of incorporated cities) and guide Grays Harbor County zoning laws. The planning process will update existing plans and policies and incorporate them into a Comprehensive Land Use Plan.

What are the land use designations in the Comprehensive Land Use Plan?

The following table describes zoning and residential densities that correspond to each land use designation. Land use designations can be viewed on the Comprehensive Land Use Plan maps.

Land Use Designation	Zoning	Residential Density/Dwelling Units (DU) Per Acre
Agricultural Resource	Agricultural Use (A-1) or Long-term Agricultural Use (A-2)	1 Dwelling Unit/20 acres to 1 Dwelling Unit /10 acres
Lake Quinault	Lake Quinault (LQ)	1 to 7.5 Dwelling Units/1 acre
Mixed Use	General Commercial (C-2), New Mixed Use Zone, Restricted Residential (R-1), General Residential (R-2), or Resort Residential (R-3)	1 Dwelling Unit/1 acre to 20 Dwelling Units/1 acre
General Development	General Development 5 (G-5)	1 Dwelling Unit/ 5 acres
Rural Industrial	Light Industrial (I-1) or Industrial (I-2)	N/A
Rural Development	General Development 1 (G-1), General Development 5 (G-5), General Commercial (C-2), or Rural Residential (RR)	1 Dwelling Unit/5 acres to 1 Dwelling Unit/1 acre
Rural Residential	Rural Residential (RR), Restricted Residential (R-1), or General Residential (R-2)	1 Dwelling Unit/1 acre to 6 Dwelling Units/1 acre
Satsop Development Park	Satsop Multi-use (SM) or Satsop Development (SD)	N/A
Urban Services	Restricted Residential (R-1), General Residential (R-2), Resort Residential (R-3), General Commercial (C-2), Light Industrial (I-1) or Industrial District (I-2)	1 Dwelling Unit/1 acre to 20 Dwelling Units/1 acre

What is the difference between a Comprehensive Plan land use designation and zoning?

Land use designations, which are determined by the Comprehensive Plan, are more general than zoning. Land use designations direct future land uses while zoning is a detailed set of regulations that specify things like allowable uses, building height, density and setbacks.

Land use designations identify the general types of uses, density of development, and the applicable zone districts (Districts). Each land use designation may have several associated Districts. Grays Harbor County has divided unincorporated Grays Harbor County (areas outside of incorporated cities) into several zone Districts, described on our Districts page.

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