Skagit County commissioners deny appeal of permit issued to Skagit Golf and Country Club

The Skagit County Board of Commissioners denied Monday an appeal of a building permit issued to Skagit Golf and Country Club.

The club west of Burlington was granted a permit from the county in March 2025 to remove a maintenance shed and replace it with a new "turf care center." The proposed turf care center will be located at 12352 Eleventh Tee Lane.

The permit allows for the country club to build a 10,500-square-foot turf care center in place of the 4,000-square-foot maintenance shed.

The board of commissioners held a public hearing on the appeal on May 11. The board was set to make a decision May 18, but the decision was delayed at appellant Dean Shaughnessy's request because the record was incomplete.

Commissioners Joe Burns and Ron Wesen agreed to deny the appeal Monday. Commissioner Peter Browning had previously recused himself from the appeal because he is a member of Skagit Golf and Country Club.

Wesen said Monday that he and Burns were basing their decision exclusively on materials that were available to county hearing examiner Rajeev Majumdar at the time of his decision.

Majumdar denied the appeal in February.

"I appreciate the case coming forward, but I don't see anything in the record from the hearing examiner that would have me want to change that result, so I am leaning towards denying the appeal," Wesen said.

Wesen said that if the Shaughnessy wishes to appeal the permit to a higher level, the next step would be Skagit County Superior Court.

At the May 11 hearing, Shaughnessy said he filed the appeal because the proposed turf center would depreciate the value of his home, which is less than 500 feet away from the turf care center.

Shaughnessy and his lawyer Julie Herber argued that the county granted the permit without proper process.

Herber argued that the proposed turf care center did not comply with Bayview Ridge zoning, and should require a special use permit.

Herber said Skagit Golf and Country Club plans to store gasoline in the proposed turf care center, which is a hazardous material.

For industrial buildings with the principal purpose of storing and treating hazardous waste, no treatment or storage of hazardous materials is permitted within 500 feet of the nearest residence, according to Bayview Ridge industrial code.

Skagit Golf and Country Club lawyer Carolyn Gilbert said concerns about the hazardous materials at the turf care center are unfounded - the turf care center's principal purpose is not to store or treat hazardous waste.

A separate Land Use Petition Act appeal related to the turf care center has been filed by Shaughnessy in Skagit County Superior Court, but the case had been paused while the commissioners considered the appeal.

Now that the board of commissioners has rendered its decision, the Land Use Petition Act appeal will likely resume.

Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.