Island County, WA Historic Preservation: Historic-Cultural Monuments (2026)

The Board of County Commissioners created Island County's "Historic Preservation District" on October 16, 1972 under Chapter 36.70 RCW to protect the Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve, later established by Congress in 1978 (Public Law 95-625) and listed on the National Register of Historic Places since December 12, 1973. The reserve covers 17,572 acres of Central Whidbey farmland, prairie, and more than 400 historic structures, jointly managed by Island County, the Town of Coupeville, Washington State Parks, and the National Park Service through a nine-member Trust Board.

Within the reserve boundary in unincorporated Island County, chapter 17.04A protects buildings listed as "contributing" in the 1995 building and landscape inventory, properties on the National Register, and any resource the Historic Preservation Commission designates a protected cultural resource. The seven-member HPC (three appointed by the county, three by the Town of Coupeville, one jointly) serves three-year terms and reviews National Register nominations at a public meeting noticed under the Open Public Meetings Act, Chapter 42.30 RCW, and designation requires the owner's consent.

No property owner may alter the exterior of, demolish, relocate, or build new construction affecting a historic resource in the reserve without a certificate of appropriateness, issued at Level A (ministerial, by planning staff), Level B (administrative, after Reserve Committee consultation), or Level C (after an HPC public meeting), depending on the scope of work. The certificate process runs alongside, not instead of, any required land use or building permit, and its conditions attach to that permit. Demolition of a contributing structure requires a mandatory pre-application conference and is disfavored in favor of relocation.