Prineville pays Oregon’s first M37 claim settlement

Way to go, little Prineville! It’s on the high desert east of Redmond/Bend, with around 10,000 residents, if you’re wondering. The Associated Press reported last week that the City of Prineville has paid a property owner $180,000 to settle a Measure 37 case there. The City Council decided that the community’s view of the rimrock above downtown is valuable enough to pay the property owners’ claim and continue protecting it. They could have chosen to waive the ordinance prohibiting development on the rim, to allow a home or hotel to be constructed. This is the first time any jurisdiction in the state has chosen to pay compensation rather than waive a regulation challenged under Measure 37.

Portland had an opportunity to take the lead in respecting both community values and personal property rights, when the City Council processed the Calcagno claim in St. Johns. I mentioned both that case, and the Prineville battle in progress, back in April. In the St. Johns case, our City Council wimped out and waived zoning decided in a long community involvement process, rather than considering paying the claim.

I support Measure 49. It will restore some balance between individual property rights and protection of neighbors, farm/forest land, and community values. Without it, jurisdictions don’t have enough money to pay all claims, and this is the first so far to have the courage to pay even one. Well done, City of Prineville.