Talks between attorneys for Jefferson County and Port Ludlow Associates (PLA) continue to mediate differences involving PLA’s controversial 2015 timber harvest within the Port Ludlow Master Planned Resort.

PLA owner Randy Verrue said in an email last week that a settlement agreement is close.

“I expect we will have something next week,” Verrue wrote Dec. 1.

Jefferson County Commissioner David Sullivan said PLA has agreed not to harvest timber in the residential development known as Olympic Terrace II while the talks continue. PLA plans a 35-unit housing project in the South Bay area.

“It’s my understanding they are going to hold off another month,” Sullivan said. Harvesting timber where houses are to be built is considered legal within the resort community.

Under scrutiny and legal review is timber harvesting done in an area designated as an open space reserve (OSR). PLA contends it had a right to log the land; the county and many homeowners disagree.

“I know the community wants this over with in a hurry, but I think they’d like a good result more than a hurried result,” Sullivan said. “As long as they are not logging, there is no harm in taking time.”

Sullivan also said he thinks progress is being made between attorneys, but he couldn’t be specific due to a tentative settlement agreement. He said commissioners are given updates during executive sessions, which are held almost weekly.

Negotiating for Jefferson County is Patrick J. Schneider of Foster Pepper PLCC; negotiating for PLA is Marco de Sa E Silva of Davis Wright Tremaine.

Bill Dean, father of commissioner-elect Kate Dean and one of three community representatives who had been pushing for an agreement between the county and PLA, had been allowed to sit in on negotiations until the past few months.

“We are disappointed that our community representative Bill Dean, who we were told would be able to observe negotiations, is not being allowed to do so currently and is only getting after-the-fact pieces of information about what is going on,” wrote Dave Jurca in an email to the Leader in November. Dean and Jurca were members of the team of community representatives who dubbed themselves “The Three Amigos.” Dave McDearmid was the third member of that group.

Independent forester sought

Back on May 23, PLA and Jefferson County announced that both parties would hire an independent forester to develop a forest stewardship plan for Ludlow’s open space reserves.

Sullivan said last week that the subject is still being discussed.

The announcement of a possible settlement was originally made after county and PLA officials met May 20 in Seattle for a session with mediator/attorney Phyllis McLeod.

The joint statement came on the heels of a protest by Port Ludlow residents objecting to PLA’s timber harvesting, and the county commissioners’ receipt of a petition signed by 892 Port Ludlow residents urging the county to take a hard line with PLA.

Since then, some in the community have rallied to put more pressure on the county and PLA to conclude those talks. There also were several protests in October in front of PLA’s Ludlow Cove Cottages project, with participants urging officials and PLA to agree and make amends to the community for the loss of trees.