Volume 2: Draft Gorst Planned Action Environmental Impact Statement

GORST PLANNED ACTION EIS | AFFECTED ENVIRONMENT, SIGNIFICANT IMPACTS, AND MITIGATION MEASURESOther sections of this Draft EIS address the first three impacts listed more specifically. Sections 3.12 Public Servicesand 3.13 Utilities address impacts on public services and utilities in more detail, respectively. Section 3.7 Land UsePatterns addresses land use impacts and the conversion of land, and Section 3.11 Transportation discusses trafficand transportation impacts. The following section, discusses potential impacts to the local economy in more detail.IMPACTS COMMON TO ALL ALTERNATIVESThe current character of the local economy in Gorst is a mix of small to medium scale auto-oriented businessesserving a larger geographic area as well as pass through traffic on SR 3 and SR 16. These types of businesses oftenneed large amount of land area, for parking and easy access, with relatively inexpensive rent. The resultingcharacter is low scale buildings on large lots of land, what one currently sees in Gorst. The small population base inthe Gorst UGA, just 222 in 2010, makes it difficult for the local economy to support smaller scale local serving retailand commercial service businesses.The increase in people living, working, and passing through in the watershed is anticipated to increase the demandfor retail and commercial services in the UGA. The increase in demand for housing and commercial uses will likelymake land more valuable as businesses are able to be more productive and serve larger and/or new markets. As aresult, the types of businesses located in Gorst could also change over time, especially if land owners are able toget higher rents for their land. The types of businesses currently there and those that are able and willing to payhigher rents in the future may be different, leading to a change in businesses located in the UGA.All of the alternatives studied anticipate an increase in some mix of residents and jobs within the UGA by 2035. Asa result, changes in the character of the local economy, as discussed above, could take place. Impacts of thesechanges could include the displacement of existing businesses and the establishment new businesses. Additionalimpacts from the increase in economic activity could include higher tax revenues for local jurisdictions, especiallyfrom retail sales taxes, business and occupation taxes, and utility taxes.WatershedOutside the Gorst UGA, it is not expected there will be any differences for the Gorst Creek Watershed in terms ofpopulation and employment growth between the alternatives. Population growth will most likely occur on rurallots in the areas designated Rural Residential and Urban Reserve in the southern part of the watershed. Bothdesignations limit development to relatively low densities. Rural Residential allows one dwelling unit per five acresand Urban Reserve allows one unit per 10 acres. Commercial and employment growth will most likely occur withinparts of SKIA and Bremerton in the watershed. Impacts from the large increase in jobs in SKIA are addressed in theSKIA Subarea Plan and EIS.Gorst UGAUnder all alternatives, additional growth is anticipated in the Gorst UGA. The number and composition of peopleand housing varies considerably by alternative, however. Table 3.8-5 2035 Net New Population and Housing UnitCapacity by Alternative in the Gorst UGA lists the population and housing unit mix for each alternative.Table 3.8-52035 Net New Population and Housing Unit Capacity by Alternative in the Gorst UGASector Alternative 1 Alternative 2 Alternative 3Population 304 1,207 1,304Housing Units 139 644 703Single-Family 121 113 98Multi-Family 18 531 605Source: Kitsap County, 2012; BERK, 2012Draft | June 2013 3-113