Today approximately 10,600 acres - including one quarter of Hood River Valley's active farmland - are at risk of being converted forever into sub-divisions and hugely impacting Hood River County's number one revenue producer: a hundred-million-dollar per year fruit growing industry. The maps below provide a glimpse into the valley wide impacts, and what could be lost.
(August 7, 2007) We are currently working on improving our Google Earth Maps and will have updated versions in the coming months that will help educate voters about the impacts of Measure 37 vs. Measure 49. Please contact HRVRC if you would like more information.
Above is a
google-earth created image of Measure 37 claims in Hood
River Valley. Contact HRVRC if you would like to use google
earth to 'fly' through the valley and look at individual
claims or acquire images of your specific property and
claims around it. To download a PDF of the map, click on
the photo.
Is Measure 37 happening - I thought it was being
stopped? In November,
2004, Oregon voters approved Measure 37 requiring cities,
counties and the state of Oregon to waive land use
protections or pay the owners to obey the laws. Measure 37
was challenged at a state level and deemed constitutional
in February 2006 by the Oregon Supreme Court. In the spring
of 2006, hearings by the special Joint Committee on Land
Use Fairness were attended by, in total, thousands as the
legislature sought a 'fix'. The first bill to come before
the committee was SB 505.
Measure
37 claims (red stripes) in Hood River Valley with farm and
forest land highlighted underneath. One third of Hood
River's farmland could become sub-divisions and
golf-courses under Measure 37. For a PDF, click
here.
What's
going on today with Measure 37? (August 10,
2007) Oregonians will be voting on a legislative referral
to voters - Ballot Measure 49 - on November
6th, 2007.
(June 12, 2007) Oregonians are studying the
HB 3540-C, a revised
version of 3540 that was passed by the Oregon House of
Representatives and Senate last week. 3540-C will be
sent back to Oregonians in the form of a referendum. The
timeline is as of yet not set, however, it is likely to
be November 6th, 2007. Oregonians will have a second
chance to vote on a Measure 37 that provides clarity,
limits homes in farm and forestland and ensures larger
claims (more than three homes) have a documented loss in
value.
(May 10, 2007) we are on the brink of sending a proposed
'fix' to voters in November 2007 with HB 3540. This 'fix'
would provide clarity to the mess that has been created
over the last two years but would be a huge compromise
for HRVRC and many other supporters of M37 reform. To learn more
about HRVRC's stance on
3540,
see this recent PR.
How
does Measure 37 work? "As specified in
the measure, the owner of private real property is entitled
to receive just compensation when a land use regulation is
enacted after the owner or a family member became the owner
of the property if the regulation restricts the use of the
property and reduces its fair market value."
"If a property owner proves that a land use regulation
restricts the use of the owner's property, and reduces its
value then the government responsible for the regulation
will have a choice: pay the owner of the property an amount
equal to the reduction in value or modify, change or not
apply the regulation to the owner's property." -2004 Oregon
Voter's Guide
What's
the difference between a 'claim' and a
'waiver'? A 'claim' is the
act of the city or county paying the owner for the
reduction in value of their property. A 'waiver'
waives
the
payment of property and instead allows the owner to develop
their property consistent with land use in effect at the
time the family bought the property.
How much land are we talking about?
Hood
River County alone has 232 claims totaling 10,483 acres
(almost 17 square miles) claimed with a stated value of
over $1.1 billion (data from Hood River Planning Department -
December 2006).
