Newsletter -
July 16, 1999
THE LAND USE COALITION
P.O. Box 20265
Boulder, CO 80308-3265
303-666-7903
http://landusecoalition.org
Greetings Fellow Boulder County Landowners:
There is so much to tell you in this, our second, newsletter.
First of all, the slopes proposal is defeated! The Slopes Advisory Committee (SAC) has completed the final draft of their recommendations to the commissioners. The Land Use Coalition is generally pleased with the report.
In a nutshell, the SAC determined that building on slopes is not "inherently dangerous", nor were they able to declare at what point a slope becomes dangerous. Among other recommendations, the SAC recommends that an ombudsman be appointed to monitor land use applications, that a public policy consultant be hired to review the fairness of the system to landowners, and that the Site Plan Review process be revamped to become more user-friendly to the landowner.
The Land Use Coalition’s contributions were taken very seriously by the Committee: We monitored each meeting, and provided extensive information and live testimony to the SAC. Our concerns were specifically addressed in the report, and the slopes regulation, at least for now, is a dead issue.
The report will be formally presented to the commissioners on September 2, 1999 at 2:00pm in the Commissioners Hearing Room in the courthouse. The report is available on the Land Use web site at http://co.boulder.co.us/lu (click on the "Report to the Commissioners.") Also, it can be accessed from our web site (click here), or you can call us and request a copy.
The commissioners, apparently in anticipation of the SAC findings, ordered a survey of Boulder County residents in June. We believe they were trying to garner public support to further restrict building, and to refute the findings of the SAC. The LUC obtained a copy of the survey and had questions regarding the validity of the poll, and its impact on land use issues.
For $250, the LUC had the survey evaluated by an independent survey researcher from Indiana University, Kevin Vryan, who determined that the poll was biased. In his conclusion he states that he is very concerned that "public policy might be based on the findings" due to the biased nature of the poll. We provided copies of his 14-page report to all the local newspapers and to the commissioners. It is also available on our web site (click here), or you can call us for a copy.
As we look forward to a breather upon release of the SAC final report, we face a new issue directly affecting all mountain landowners whose land is adjacent to any BLM land. On Friday, July 9, the LUC learned that Boulder County submitted a surprise proposal to purchase (at fair market value for open space) 2500 acres of BLM land in Boulder County, which accounts for almost all of the BLM land in the county.
On the surface, this is great news, however, we landowners have reason for great concern: While BLM's policy has always been to allow access to landowners with land adjacent to BLM land, this is not the case if Boulder County owns and manages the land. Even if there are pre-existing roads, the county may use its ownership to block access to private landowners with inholdings or rights of way across BLM land. We have many questions to answer before we report to you on this purchase, and we have attorneys looking into it. Please check the web site often for updates, or feel free to call.
We continue to work on our survey of 1500 landowners who have experienced the Site Plan Review (SPR) process over the past six years. We hired Kevin Vryan again to help us create a valid and reliable questionnaire. The information we collect will be invaluable in our quest to change the SPR process into one that works with landowners -- one that is fair and just, environmentally sound, and free of arbitrary and capricious impositions on landowners trying to build.
We are very pleased to announce that we have hired a public relations/fund-raising specialist to help us be even more effective. Pam Archuleta has a long history in Boulder County, including several years as the head of United Way in Boulder County. We are thrilled to have her and are confident she will help us achieve our goals. So, beware, we will be asking for more money. Pam will also target businesses and the thousands of people who own land in the plains of Boulder County for contributions, as well.
As many of you are already aware, Ron Stewart, Commissioner Chair, was just appointed to the head of Boulder County Open Space by Jana Mendez and Paul Danish, the other two commissioners. However, he did not give up his commissioner post, and is currently filling both positions and intends to continue doing so. We believe this creates a conflict of interest, especially for landowners, and will continue to monitor this situation.
Overall, we are very pleased with our successes, and confident we will continue to improve the situation for Boulder County landowners. We will be monitoring the application of the Takings Bill in land use issues in Boulder County. The slopes proposal is defeated.
The next issues for us are the county's proposed BLM purchase, the SPR survey, and continued monitoring of issues that affect landowners. With so much going on here in Boulder County regarding land use issues, we need your help. We need volunteers to work on projects, attend meetings, provide input, write letters, etc. If you are unable to help us in person, please consider sending financial support. We have stirred the pot and people are listening. Please help us have a loud voice.
Thank you,
AJ Chamberlin
President
The Land Use Coalition
For more information contact the Land Use Coalition at contactus@landusecoalition.org or call 303-666-7903.
Last updated October 27, 2003.
URL: http://landusecoalition.org/july99_newsletter.htm