Committee OKs report on 'slope' rules
Restrictions raise concerns among mountain landowners
By
Jason GewirtzCamera Staff Writer
Dozens of mountain landowners again protested Boulder County's attempts to limit development in the mountains Wednesday, questioning a recent county poll as well as the motives behind efforts to create "steep slope" regulations.
The comments came at a public hearing on the anticipated report from the Steep Slope Advisory Committee to the Boulder County Commissioners. The report suggests ways the county can improve its land use policies and control development on steep property.
The advisory group, which finalized its report at the meeting, will present its findings to the county commissioners in September.
Before the committee gave its final stamp of approval to its report Wednesday, several mountain landowners asked that more work done to prevent regulations from infringing on rights of property owners to build on their land.
Kevin Probst, a member of the Land Use Coalition that opposes the regulations, said the report did not clearly represent the thoughts of the majority of mountain landowners.
"Virtually nobody defended the regulations while many people spoke out against them," he said.
The slope advisory group was formed earlier this year after county land use officials presented a plan to regulate development on steep slopes, citing natural hazards associated with building on those sites. The original plan, which proposed building restrictions on land with slopes greater than 20 percent, met with disapproval from many mountain landowners who said the rules were too broad.
The advisory group of county residents has since met 10 times and drafted a 29-page report that outlined recommendations on natural hazards, natural values, aesthetics, visual impacts and communication associated with development.
The report states that the original county proposal to limit development on slopes greater than 20 percent was "worthwhile" but cast "too wide a net" in its effort to address growth issues in the mountains. In its recommendation, the group encourages the county to approach development issues on a site-by-site basis.
On Wednesday, several landowners criticized a poll released last week by Boulder County showing that mountain landowners are concerned about growth in the mountains and want more done to protect natural resources. Several called the survey a "push poll" whose questions were written to illicit a certain response.
Advisory group members defended the poll and said the survey results did not influence their final report to the commissioners. Some members said they were concerned about suggestive wording on a few poll questions but that they found the results overall to be helpful.
"A push poll is a poll intended to influence a voter base preceding an election," said committee member Sam Weaver. "I don't believe the commissioners' poll was that."
In another twist, Land Use Coalition members presented copies of correspondence between the commissioners and a mountain landowner in 1998 who suggested slope regulations be drafted before the Bureau of Land Management sells off thousands of acres of land in Boulder County's mountains. The coalition suggested the original slope regulations were drafted as a growth control measure and not with public safety and natural hazard issues in mind.
"I would recommend that before making your final report you do conduct an investigation," resident John Henderson told the committee.
Reached at home after the meeting, Commissioner Jana Mendez said the allegations were "outrageous." She said the commissioners discussed potential regulations with several local interest groups including the Sierra Club before anything was drafted.
"Good lord, we would never make public policy based on one person's wishes," she said.
Advisory group members also downplayed the connection.
"I have never seen any evidence that these regulations were anything other than concern about proper building techniques," said Sylvia Dane.
July 8, 1999
Copyright © 1999 The Daily Camera.
Reprinted with permission.
For more information contact the Land Use Coalition at info@landusecoalition.org or call 303-666-7903.
Last updated January 24, 2002.
URL: http://landusecoalition.org/dc_sac_article.htm
Page created by Patrick
and Patty Baker
http://home.earthlink.net/~patrickmbaker
Hosted by The Sugarloaf Internet Cooperative.