A new Kitsap County plan to allow increased housing in rural areas may satisfy a hearings board, but it is "unworkable" and probably unconstitutional, according to real estate officials.

The new plan was drafted after the Central Puget Sound Growth Management Hearings Board ruled that county's "rural wooded incentive program" was in violation of the state's Growth Management Act.

The board indicated that clustering housing in rural areas while protecting nearby forestlands is a reasonable goal. But the board was troubled by a provision allowing set-aside forestlands to be developed after 40 years.

In a revised draft, county planners eliminated the 40-year provision, simplified development options and — at the behest of the county commissioners — added a provision that some say could kill support by property owners.

A hearing on the plan is scheduled for Feb. 11 at 7 p.m. at the Kitsap County Commissioners Chambers.

The new proposal would allow rural property owners to increase the average density on their land from one home per 20 acres to four homes per 20 acres, provided that houses are clustered together and that 75 percent of the land is kept in open space.

The revised version eliminates options for managing the open space as a "working" forest, an important provision of the previous plan. The new plan goes further, requiring property owners to give up ownership of that 75 percent kept in open space.

In a letter to county officials, land-use consultant William Palmer calls it a "totally unworkable proposal."

"There is no way that any thinking forestland owner would ever, ever commit any portion of his or their land in permanent open space," Palmer said. "They would be fools to do so."

If the county were unwilling to buy the land, the regulation becomes an unconstitutional "taking," he said.

Mike Eliason of the Kitsap County Association of Realtors said his organization would oppose and possibly sue the county over the proposed rule.

"Land-use designations were never intended to be permanent," Eliason said in a letter. "With all due respect, on what authority do we — the current stewards of the land ... — have to impose legal restrictions on future generations ...?"

Palmer said the county's plan will alienate forest property owners, who could turn around and liquidate their property by selling 20-acre parcels. The county would lose natural areas that could never be replaced, he said.

About 55,000 acres of "rural wooded" lands lie in North Kitsap and along Hood Canal. Owners of those large properties have not yet weighed in on the new rules, but several said previously they would not be interested in even the less-restrictive provisions rejected by the hearings board.

Eric Baker, special projects manager for the county, said it is conceivable that forest owners could retain some value in the timber under the proposed rules, but the "density bonus" provides an incentive by itself.

Meanwhile, environmental groups have appealed the hearing board's decision, saying it should have gone further to protect rural lands.

Other revisions to the county's comprehensive plan include a program that would allow property owners to transfer development rights from rural to urban areas and an analysis showing how the ideas are compatible with the Growth Management Act.

To read the plans, visit the county's Web site at www.mykitsap.org.