Measure 37 Claim in Portland

The City of Portland’s Measure 37 site is excellent. Clearly linked from the front page of PortlandOnLine.com, it has a nice map showing location, type, and cost of claims submitted so far. And lots of other easy-to-find information, too. My only lament is that I don’t see a link to the report of the Citizens Advisory Commitee, accepted by Council last year. This committee was authorized by Council, just like the Charter Review Commission, yet the Council has done nothing with our recommendations. Some animals are more equal than others.

I’m eagerly awaiting the posting of next week’s Council agenda, as I bet hundreds of Portlanders keep refreshing this site to see if I’ve posted the next thrilling installment of “Next Up at City Council” (hey, even a 48 year-old woman can dream). One item pre-scheduled is the Measure 37 claim of Dominic Corrado, reviewed in the Staff Report (pdf). Chris Dearth, the City’s Measure 37 manager, and the staff in both Planning and Development Review are doing outstanding work with their case reviews. They are recommending denial of this claim.

The City has generally held most challenges to environmental restrictions to be invalid, as those regulations protect public health and safety – exempt under the Measure 37 language. In this case, the land division code regulations are examined, and found not to reduce the value of the property because there was no reduction in the number of homes allowed. In fact, the report states that had Mr. Corrado chosen to pursue the application process recommended by staff, under new Environmental Zone regulations he would be allowed to develop more homes than under the rules when he purchased the property in 1991.

Notification of nearby residents resulted in five letters in support of the claim. To me, this shows predicting neighbors will always be anti-development is a flawed assumption. And that people don’t understand the details of the Zoning Code or Measure 37, or how each is supposed to work. If there isn’t a reduction in value because there isn’t a reduction in the number of homes allowed, people supporting the claim must surely be advocating in support of something other than the rights bestowed in Measure 37. “Let all property owners do whatever they want”, perhaps?

I believe zoning regulations have great value in setting standards and policies for keeping Portland and the state of Oregon a wonderful place to live, work, and play. I hope the Legislature does something, soon, to make statewide land use laws better for property owners, their neighbors, and the long term public good.