Two more Measure 37 claims at Council next week

Two Measure 37 claims will be heard by the Portland City Council on April 4, starting at 2 p.m. The Baker claim requests $1,343,000 for the rezoning of property owned since 1954 from General Commercial to Multi-family Residential. The Staff Report finds the claim valid, agreeing these is likely loss in value even though documentation/validation of the value lost is absent. It recommends allowing Commercial development on the site as a legal non-conforming use, but not rezoning to allow transferability of this right. The site currently has commercial buildings on it which have been vacant since 1996.

In the Lahti & sons claim, the sum requested is $336,385. It is also a reduction in value from rezoning to Multi-family Residential from Commercial, this time in the South Tabor neighborhood. In this case, the staff report states there is sufficient evidence to support alleged reduction in value. It notes that although the exact number may or may not be correct, if there is reduction in value of even one dollar, a Measure 37 claim is valid. Again, staff recommends allowing the desired Commercial development as a legal nonconforming use, but not rezoning the property as part of the Measure 37 claim decision process.

These two cases are relatively small sites – the first less than an acre, the second under 10,000 square feet. While the staff recommendations would allow development that doesn’t match the decision reached in legislative area planning processes, I doubt either will completely wreck the neighborhood. The sites are inside the Urban Growth Boundary, and while the current residential zoning may be better than the previous commercial designations, in many cases that’s a decision on which reasonable people with good intentions may disagree. I think back to the Southwest Community Plan, which in the end was reduced to a long series of decisions on individual sites based on advocacy by property owners and neighbors. There were winners and losers. I don’t know that these two sites in SE Portland were considered particularly key in the Comprehensive Plan map processes that changed their zoning, nor allowing development that doesn’t match the re-zoning will create irrevocable harm. I doubt they received the individual attention afforded similar sites in SW. I think the Staff Report is correct in not recommending outright changes in the zoning, rather to allow the requested development for the current owners only. Property owners are entitled to what Measure 37 promised, no more, no less.