4 thoughts on “Sidebar: Lawmakers want to turn back clock on Smart Growth

  1. Pingback: Today’s Headlines | Streetsblog Capitol Hill

  2. At the assembly hearing on AB-303, Tom Tiffany stated that Smart growth was so bad that voters in the State of Oregon Repealed it. Well, it turns out Tiffany only heard half the story: Oregon voters reinstated it shortly after seeing the results of the repeal. I testified at that hearing to this effect, and further pointed out that Oregon’s Smart growth law was much, much more aggressive that Wisconsin’s law. Oregon’s law creates elected bodies with zoning and taxing authority that go way beyond simply requiring municipalities to have a plan (whether or not it happens to align with what people think is Smart Growth does not matter).

  3. Matt, A correction is in order. Oregon voters have NEVER voted to repeal the state’s 1973 Land Use Planning Program; in fact, they have upheld it at the ballot box 3 times. The program was altered in 2004, when Oregon voters passed Measure 37, which generally required local jurisdictions to compensate private property owners when subsequent local land use restrictions reduced a property’s value. The impact of this law had so many unintended consequences that in 2007 Oregon voters replaced it with Measure 49, which honors some Measure 37 claims, but narrows the eligibility of other claims for compensation. However, the basics of Oregon’s Land Use Planning Program – the requirement that local jurisdictions adopt comprehensive plans that conform to state goals — remain after almost 30 years. See http://www.oregon.gov/LCD for additional information.

  4. Pingback: Green schemes make activists see red | WisconsinWatch.org