[Capr-announce] CAPR News February 2007

Tue Feb 20 20:29:09 PST 2007

CAPR  NEWS

THE MONTHLY NEWSLETTER FROM CITIZENS’ ALLIANCE FOR PROPERTY RIGHTS
February, 2007

Livengood Retained as KCD Supervisor

Matt Livengood was retained as Supervisor of King Conservation District
(KCD) in an election held February 13, 2007.  With support from many of you,
he won handily against a candidate promoted by urban county council members
Dow Constantine and Larry Phillips.

KCD’s historical function has been restoration and other projects to aid
farms and rural properties.  In the current budget year, approximately $5.87
million in tax money was collected from county residents to fund the
District.  The King Co. administration exerts leverage to use much of this
money on pet environmental projects, even though state law says that the KCD
Board has budget authority.  Livengood and the current KCD Directors have
fought hard to maintain their legal budget authority, providing sane
environmental solutions that help landowners and do not violate their
property rights.

CAPR supported Livengood with a ‘get out the vote’ mailing promoting his
candidacy.  Thumbs up, for a good job done, to CAPR Board members Bob Vos,
Pam Sias and Tony Zgraggen along with several volunteer workers in getting
out a large mailing of post cards.

Thanks to Our Volunteers!

CAPR’s Board is very appreciative of the help we receive on large projects.
Many hands make large projects small.  Our coordinator for volunteers is
Cindy Alia.  We are currently working on a large data entry project, which
will compile a statewide database of property rights supporters.  If you
would like to help with this project, have a home computer and a reasonable
Internet connection, please contact Cindy at cindyalia at comcast.net
<mailto:cindyalia at comcast.net> .

Advocate Actions

CAPR Property Rights Advocate Steve Hammond and other CAPR Board members
continue to help property owners having difficulties with government
regulations.  Or rather, over-regulation.  Most of the cases handled involve
folks who have run afoul of rules that they would never have expected to
exist.  The Advocate helps to get issues resolved with the least amount of
grief and expense, but also goes to bat for the property owner when the
government entity involved steps out of bounds.

Steve has had a study stream of requests for Advocate help since he was
appointed to the position.  One case that he is currently working on
involves property owned by a gentleman named Ernie Seliger.  King Co. placed
a lien on Seliger’s property demanding that he “clean it up”.  It has been a
long process but Steve expects that the lien will be released.

He is also currently working to help a landscape company with property in
King Co. near Renton.  The company, Cerna Landscaping, Inc., is storing
landscape materials on a small lot that it owns and the use, at least
visually, appears to fit in with the surrounding properties.  However, King
Co. has cited the company for being out of compliance with the existing
zoning.  What makes this case interesting is that right next door, King Co.
has a vehicle impound lot which is also out of compliance with the zoning!
Steve feels that the situation can be reconciled so that Cerna can keep
operating.

CAPR Vice President Preston Drew is also working on advocacy cases.  He is
currently assisting Ray Burhen, a respected Snoqualmie Valley resident, in
his dealings with King Co.  (Do you see a pattern here?)  Years ago, back
when you could actually do something with your land, Mr. Burhen started
collecting vintage farm implements and logging equipment.  He now has a
veritable outdoor museum.  At least that’s the way normal people see it.
However, King. Co. sees it as junk cars and wants the collection gone.
Apparently blackberries are more important than history.  Preston reports
that this case will be hard fought and we’ll have to stay tuned for the
outcome.

On a related note, King Co. Rural Ombudsman David Spohr has been a definite
asset to folks who need to iron out their differences with King Co.  Spohr
has worked with Hammond and Drew to help get cases settled and takes strong
stands when unjust situations present themselves.  Many of us assumed that
his position was just another county dog and pony show when it was announced
but Spohr has turned out to be the real deal.  If you have occasion to meet
him, say thanks.

The Lady Has a Talent

CAPR member Edwina Johnston had yet another article printed in the Seattle
Times on February 14th.  How many does that make?   Don’t know, I’ve lost
count.  Edwina is an excellent writer.  She is also very deft at taking a
complex property rights issue and saying in a very few words what is needed
to make the point.  She knows how to press the point as hard as possible and
still get published.

Edwina’s latest article was titled “Regulation chokes housing market” and
explored the extreme cost of land use (over) regulation.  It’s worth saving.
To read the article, click here
<http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/disp
lay?slug=edwina14&date=20070214&query=regulation+chokes+housing> .

Beware  T D R’s

One of the items that environmentalists are currently pushing during this
legislative session is regional “transfers of development rights” or T D R’
s.  An example of a “development right” might be your ability to build a
house on a rural property you own.  If you decide you would rather sell your
“right” (for whatever reason), you can do so to a willing buyer.  You will
still own the land but will have to record notice against the property that
you will not develop that “right”, which in this case means that you won’t
build that house.  Governments entities, like the counties, and developers,
sometimes want to buy your right either to preserve the land or, in the case
of a developer, to use the right elsewhere.  Many times the developer can
use the right to make a development more dense than the zoning allows.  For
instance, instead of four lots to the acre, the developer can now get five
smaller lots on that acre using your right that he purchased.  Heretofore,
this has been a common practice within jurisdictions.  However, if the
practice is allowed on a regional basis, its’ use will become much more
common.

Groups that push the so-called smart growth agenda say that it will help
preserve the rural areas, concentrate growth in the urban areas and benefit
land owners for the restrictions they’ve suffered.  For a person who
essentially wants to give up his property so that it will be preserved, it
might make sense.  Or for the person who has property with extensive
critical areas issues, it might make sense.  For everyone else, it’s a dumb
idea.

So what’s the problem here?  You’ve got a willing buyer and a willing seller
(maybe).  One problem is that many sellers agree to the deal because they
don’t feel they have much other choice.  They end up selling land that has
been devalued by over regulation and many times get pennies on the dollar
for it, even at it’s current value.     Another problem is that it forces
extreme density on others who have no idea what is going on.  If you live in
an area where there are supposed to be four lots per acre, you probably don’
t want five and all that goes along with it.  But perhaps the biggest issue
is that it further entrenches the smart growth agenda and erodes property
rights.

If the proceeding sounds like a hallucination, it’s not.  It is happening
every day and if regional T D R’s are approved the practice will quickly
grow.

CAPR Meeting Schedule

The next general membership meeting will be held at 7:00 PM, Thursday, March
1st.  The meeting site is the IHOP restaurant located at 1433 NW Sammamish
Rd. in Issaquah.  Consider coming early for dinner and conversation.

Support the Cause!

As a volunteer organization, CAPR depends on our supporters and Board to get
things done.  If you have time to donate, please contact us.  If you would
like to make a financial contribution, you can do so with this link:
http://www.proprights.org/donate.htm

Jeff Wright
Secretary, CAPR
E-mail:        jeff at proprights.org <mailto:jeff at proprights.org>
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