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December 05, 2006

Comments

Would your homes have been approved under the current land use, or were they approved under them?

Chuck, I believe all of the homes in our neighborhood were built after Oregon's stricter land use laws (SB 100) went into effect. Most lots were five acres or more; some were less.

We live in a groundwater limited area of the South Salem Hills. Five acres is considered to be the minimum needed for a well, unless special circumstances apply.

Some people were able to partition lots based on the "special circumstance" that the lot adjoined farm land that wasn't being irrigated. That land is now a Measure 37 claim and is proposed to be a 80 lot/well subdivision.

This shows how unfair and nonsensical Measure 37 is. If you buy property for an investment, you need to realize that land use laws may change--for the good of everybody. Similarly, if you buy a long-term bond, you need to realize that interest rates may/will change.

Why should the value of an investment in real estate be guaranteed by government? I don't see government guaranteeing my investment in stocks or bonds, even though government actions may diminish the value of what I own.

Real estate investors in Oregon shouldn't be allowed to get a free ride on the backs of the rest of us. Grow up, cry babies. Some investments make money; some don't. It isn't the job of government to protect you through Measure 37.

I am totally in agreement with you and hope that it can be stopped and some commonsense inserted into it. It shows the problem of our ballot measures where often citizens vote not on logic but emotionalism. It's been a disaster for landuse planning.

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