Agenda - Planning Commission - 08/05/2010

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Zoning Bulletin June 25, 2010 l Volume 4 I No. 12 See also: Genesis Assembly of God v. Davies, 208 A.D.2d 627, 617 N.Y.S.2d 202 (2d Dep't 1994). Case Note: The court also held that the Church had standing (i.e., the legal right) to bring an application for a special exception permit. The Board had contended that the Church did not have standing because the Church had indicated that it was a "chari- table corporation, rather than a religious one." The BZO allowed "religious use" by special exception permit. The court said that "the determination of `religious use' focuses on the proposed use itself, not the religious nature of the organization." Use -Agricultural —Landowner contends parcel is no longer "agricultural land" subject to preservation goals because it is no longer profitable Opponents contend parcel is within larger "farm unit" and therefore still protected "agricultural land" Citation: Wetherell v. Douglas County, 235 Or. App. 246, 2010 WL 1879388 (2010) OREGON (05/12/10)—This case addressed the issues of: (1) what is a "farm unit," subject to state land use preservation goals; and (2) whether a particular parcel of land was a "farm unit," limiting the owner's ability to develop the land. The Background/Facts: In 2006, Garden Valley Estates, LLC ("Garden Valley") acquired a 259-acre parcel (the "Parcel") in the county. The Par- cel was designated "Agriculture" and zoned "Exclusive Farm Use -Graz- ing". The Parcel had, until 2005, been part of a 590-acre livestock ranch. After acquiring the Parcel, Garden Valley contended that it could not be used profitably for grazing. It asked the county to make a determina- tion that the Parcel was "non -resource land and for that reason not sub- ject to ['Goal 3' of Oregon's statewide land use planning goals, adopted by the state's Land Conservation and Development Commission]." "Goal 3" was "designed to facilitate the preservation of agricultural land," as directed by Oregon statutory law (ORS 215.243). "Agricul- tural land," as defined in Goal 3, includes: land classified as predomi- nately containing certain specified classes of soil —"capability classes I-IV/I-VI," depending on location; land in other soil classes that is suit- able for farm use, taking into consideration certain factors; and land © 2010 Thomson Reuters 9 181