May Valley is surrounded by the relatively steep hillsides of Cougar, Tiger, and Squak Mountains, much of which is park or natural resource lands.
The 109 acre DeLeo farm, located on a hillside next to western May Valley, was purchased for conservation by King County Natural Resources and Parks in 2018. Neighboring the property is 30 acres locally called “the DeLeo Wall, which butts up against the Cougar Mountain Regional Park.
The DeLeo Wall is owned by Dalpay and Associates, a real estate company. They applied for a permit to clear cut the property.
As part of their forest management authority, the WA Department of Natural Resources (DNP) granted Dalpay permission to clear cut the property. The City of Newcastle sued Dalpay, Erickson Logging, and the WA DNR claiming DNR ignored city and county codes and findings. The case will be heard by the Pollution Control Hearing Board (PCHB). The hearing is scheduled for October 18-20, 2022 at 9AM.
Links
Drone movie showing the potential clear cut area
How Washington allows clear cutting when cities don’t want it