In a move that generated an immediate and unexpected negative reaction from the development community, the Kitsap County Board of Commissioners named Kamuron Gurol as the new director of the Department of Community Development (DCD). He replaces Bruce Freeland who retired in January.

He is currently the planning manager for Snohomish County, and previously served as the senior policy analyst at the King County Office of Regional Policy from 1995 to 98.

Gurol, who lives on Mercer Island, holds a master of Public Administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and a Bachelor of Science in Geology from the University of Washington.

He was selected after the other finalist, Russell Forrest of Vail, Colo, withdrew from consideration. According to several sources, Forrest’s wife was not impressed with the school district situation in Kitsap County and was reluctant to move here because of it.

Gurol is a strong proponent of the state’s Growth Management Act (GMA) and believes it should be strengthened. His selection has some stakeholders in the growth management debate clearly worried it could negate the delicate balance of progress made over the past couple of years in eliminating the polarization between participants. Therefore, it was no surprise that clients of DCD — mainly builders and developers — were disappointed in his selection.

Art Castle, executive vice president of the Homebuilders Association of Kitsap County was cautious with his comments, and would only say, “I was surprised by the choice, and I hope he is able to develop an effective relationship with the building and construction community in Kitsap County.”

On the other hand, South Kitsap developer Dick Brown, who has had a running battle with DCD over the zoning around the intersection of Sedgwick and Sidney Roads for most of a decade, was much more forthcoming. “I’m willing to give any planning director a chance. But I’m only interested in a planning director who lives here, shops here, has to live under the rules he makes and has the same vision as the people he represents. Bruce Freeland didn’t live here, didn’t have that, and I’m really afraid this guy may be just like him.”

The unease about Gurol’s residence is a thorny issue. It bothered Kitsap Alliance of Property Owners (KAPO) Executive Director Vivian Henderson as well.

“I’ve never met him, but some of my contacts in Snohomish County are grateful that we’re taking a problem off their hands.” She commented. “I thought we learned our lesson by having a DCD director that didn’t live in the county, and now we’ve hired another one? That concerns me more than anything. How can you have a passion about what happens here if you don’t even live here?” she wondered aloud. “This was a perfect opportunity to get the right guy in there. My question is, do we have the right guy?”

According to Commission Chair Jan Angel, Gurol is going to maintain his Mercer Island home and commute because of the situation with his children’s schooling and elderly parents who live close by. Angel said he’d either rent an apartment or buy a home here and stay overnight when it is necessary.

Gurol’s staunch support of the GMA, combined with the fact he isn’t planning on moving here, also worries local developers. Under Gurol’s leadership, Snohomish County went from creating approximately 5,000 buildable lots a year to around 500, according to sources in the construction industry there. With the current critical shortage of lots a major issue for builders here, the concern is that Gurol will help make a bad situation even worse.

On the other side of the coin, Tom Donnelly, head of the Kitsap Citizens for Responsible Planning, lauded the selection of Gurol. “I’m delighted that the commissioners selected Kamuron Gurol to lead the DCD. He is exceptionally well qualified and seems to be a quick learner. I expect him to bring out the best in his staff, offer sound, even compelling, advice to the commissioners, and listen with respect to voices like mine.”

The commissioners fiercely defended their unanimous appointment, with Patty Lent saying, “He answers to us. We are the ones who are setting the direction.”

Angel was clearly surprised at the opposition to the appointment by one of her core constituencies. “We went through 30 citizens and staff to come up with him,” she said. “The scoring came out with him way on top. I met with him with the other two commissioners and felt I got really good answers to my concerns — especially about economic development.”

Angel said she talked with a Snohomish County official who has worked with Gurol, while at a recent Washington Association of Counties meeting, She said she was told, “He feels GMA is the eleventh commandment, but if you just give him your direction, he’ll be fine.”

Gurol was one of 19 initial applicants for the $93,205 a year job, and was interviewed by a citizen committee appointed by the commissioners. The group included three past DCD directors — Ron Perkerewicz, Jim Tracy and Bill Palmer. The committee’s initial recommendation was to scrap the application process and begin again, as the majority felt none of the applicants were a good “fit” for Kitsap.

This suggestion drew the immediate ire of Commissioner Chris Endresen, who insisted the process go forward in spite of the committee’s recommendation. Given that mandate, the committee narrowed it down to two finalists — Gurol and Forrest

Gurol, an engaging type of guy, knows he’s under scrutiny from DCD’s clients as well as other parts of the community. “I don’t have any agenda,” he stated. “I’m going to need the help of the community and the staff.”

One of the things the commissioners said most impressed them about Gurol was his reputation for promoting a high-level of customer service — something that has been a major gripe about DCD from builders and developers ever since Perkerewicz resigned as director in 1997. They also cited his experience managing large departments and that he has worked on a wide variety of economic and environmental issues.

Gurol makes no bones about supporting the GMA, but said he didn’t recall saying in one of the interviews that strict enforcement of it was a panacea to Kitsap’s growth ills. “I don’t think every problem can be solved by GMA, but I do think it’s the right balance of top down and bottom up. That’s what I like about GMA in comparison, to other states, like Oregon, where you have more of a top down direction.” He added, “I have not uniformly agreed with the Hearings board either. I think sometimes they misinterpret.”

When asked about the possible return of Kitsap’s traditional large lot subdivisions, he said flatly, “I call that sprawl.” He did allow that there could be some innovative ways under GMA to create some larger lots. “I don’t want to force everyone into apartments, but I don’t want to make them live on 20 acres either. I’m all about balance. I’m not looking to make Kitsap County into Hong Kong. I still need to learn a lot more about Kitsap County.”

Gurol says he understands the commissioners’ focus on economic development and intends to take their direction on that issue. ”Of course I have concerns about economic development. It’s an issue that is critical. It’s a national problem and we’ve been extremely hard hit. If I had to articulate a goal today, it would be to grow family wage jobs.”

“The most important commodity the Department has is trust,” said Gurol. “We plan to build on the foundation the Department has already established, following through with commitments made while making our community better and stronger for future generations.”

Gurol is wrapping up some loose ends in the Snohomish County Comprehensive Planning effort, a project that involves gathering input from the 20 cities there. He will be meeting with staff here and studying Kitsap County issues in the interim. He will start work on May 5.