Rush applies to build triplexes in Purdy ahead of zoning change
Dec 23, 2024The company has filed an application for 30 triplexes near Peninsula High and Purdy Elementary, under current zoning regulations.
Updated Pierce County Comp Plan will affect Purdy, parks, zoning, STRs and more
Dec 10, 2024Capping more than two years of intensive public process, the Pierce County Council last week passed an update to the Pierce County Comprehensive Plan. The broad-scoped document directs growth and development in unincorporated areas of the county over the next 20 years. The updated plan now awaits County Executive Bruce Dammeier’s signature. Under Washington’s Growth
Hearing examiner approves permits for proposed Burley Lagoon geoduck farm
Nov 27, 2024The conditional use permit for Taylor Shellfish’s proposed geoduck farm in Burley Lagoon now goes before the state Department of Ecology for review.
School district buys 20 acres in Purdy, forestalling Rush Companies’ 130-home development
Nov 25, 2024The Peninsula School District closed on its purchase of 20.42 acres of land in Purdy on Friday, Nov. 22. The district paid Gig Harbor-based Rush Companies $6.24 million for eight parcels, most of them directly across 62nd Avenue from Peninsula High School. The district reiterated its earlier statement that it will hold the land for
Rush-owned property near Peninsula High could be sold to school district … or, it could become 130 homes
Nov 11, 2024Two plans unfolding in Purdy promise to help shape the unincorporated community’s future. Rush Companies is working to build a new subdivision of 130 homes, packed tightly on land bordering busy 144th Street. The developer has already spent thousands of dollars on permitting fees and applied with the city of Gig Harbor to extend sewer
County planners switch views on Purdy, now recommending a more urban future
Oct 30, 2024“Shock” is the term one lawmaker representing Gig Harbor used to describe her response to the Pierce County Planning & Public Works Department’s recent flip-flop on the future of Purdy, the unincorporated community just outside Gig Harbor’s northern border. Early this year, county planners recommended stripping Purdy and some other unincorporated areas next to Gig
A filling station in the forest? Developers propose bringing gas, retail and more to the heart of Swede Hill
Oct 17, 2024Leaving Highway 16 at Burnham Drive and turning left onto Sehmel Drive has always meant a quick shift into rural mode. As drivers navigate the winding two-lane road through Swede Hill and North Rosedale, over hills and alongside woods and scattered residences, there’s nary a place to shop or fill the gas tank before arriving
After failed acquisition, undeveloped Eagles Ridge parcel still on PenMet’s’s radar screen
Oct 02, 2024The Eagles Ridge property is 114 acres of forested property with waterfront access. Only a fraction of it is developable.
Owner of huge Crescent Valley forestland threatens logging, selloff to preserve dream of Canterwood-like development
Sep 11, 2024Unpaved peninsula: The Harbor’s hidden forests and fields Note: Growing up on the Gig Harbor Peninsula used to entail some familiarity with the woods. If you knew the routes, you could cross the peninsula on trails, sticking to fields and forests (and occasionally crossing a country road). That’s much harder today, yet undeveloped land remains
Trouble in paradise: Short-term rental on sandspit becomes flashpoint for controversy
Jul 19, 2024From the watery world of the Lighthouse Beach short-term rental property, it’s easy to forget worldly cares. The site, boasting two complete houses and a boat dock, straddles the sandspit at the mouth of Gig Harbor Bay. It is adjacent to the city’s iconic lighthouse and its grassy, marine-access-only park. With ample picture windows looking