BY BOB EMMONS
Forces of Destruction
Measure 37 is only the latest
assault on land use laws
T
hanks to Eugene Weekly and reporter Alan
Pittman, voters have a well-researched and graphi-
cally captivating picture of the statewide land
abuse fiasco purchased — on the cheap — by a handful of
developers, corporations and speculators (“Looming
Sprawl,” 1/25). Left unsaid is that Measure 37 has opened a
gaping and potentially lethal wound in a land use program
already suffering the death of a thousand cuts — institu-
tional corruption in which parasites like Greg Demers and the two McDougal brothers
have been thriving for decades.
The story begging to be written would discover how the county’s predisposition to
development, its cozy relationship with developers’ attorneys and agents and its lack
of enforcement, coupled with negligence at the state and federal levels, have routine-
ly facilitated the conversion of farms and forests to sprawling subdivisions. As a
preface to that narrative, the 515-acre Bernheim property near Creswell exemplifies
the modus operandi of three wastrels who for many years have been grasping farm
and forest land all over the county. They profit first by clearcutting, next by subdivid-
ing the remainder into the smallest lots possible and then by moving on to the next
farm or forest.
L it t le w on d er th a t la n d u s e pr ac ti ti o n er s
c o n si de r en fo r ce m e nt p r og r a m s a
l on gs t an d in g j ok e a n d t h a t d e ve lo pe r s
a r e h av i n g a f i el d da y .
Demers and the McDougals contend that Bernard Bernheim, the Measure 37
claimant, owns the Creswell property even though they have an “option to purchase”
that is perpetual; even though Demers is running cattle on it and has posted “No
Trespassing” signs on the perimeter in the name of his company, Frontier Resources;
and even though the McDougals have clearcut most of the trees. For this “option”
Bernheim was paid more than $3 million, told neighbors that he’d sold the property
and then reportedly purchased a McMansion on a Bend area ranchette.
Before the ink had dried on the option agreement, the McDougals dismantled a
bridge crossing a Class I fish-bearing stream and — without a permit — rebuilt it to
serve their logging operation. According to a neighbor who videotaped the project,
the bridge was completely reconstructed, including new concrete piers, and during
the work creosote-soaked timbers fell into the creek.
In response to numerous complaints, the county’s compliance program manager
declined to visit the site, consulting with the McDougals’ legal counsel instead. The
DEQ referred complaints to the Division of State Lands (DSL). A DSL field representa-
tive from Salem who looked at the bridge, talked with neighbors and issued a stop-
work order was pulled off the case, and DSL did not inform the county of its stop
work action. In his place the agent’s supervisor took counsel from the McDougals’
lawyer, and the agency concluded that it would take no action. For their part, the
Army Corps of Engineers and the Environmental Protection Agency said they were
understaffed and could not investigate.
While complaints fell on deaf ears and neighbors grew more frustrated, three
months passed, during which the McDougals had completed the bridge — work never
stopped — and built new logging roads without a permit. The McDougals insist
they’ve just replaced a few boards on the original bridge, the county issued a permit
months after the bridge reconstruction was completed and the neighbor’s video evi-
dence remains unviewed.
Little wonder that land use practitioners consider enforcement programs a long-
standing joke and that developers are having a field day.
To be sure, M37 is the nightmare Gov. Tom McCall anticipated when he imple-
mented his land use planning program almost 35 years ago and thrice defended it
against similar threats. From M37 Oregonians have learned the hard way what McCall
knew all too well: Without zoning and enforcement protections, farms and forests are
no more than feeding grounds for greed grown wholesale.
Yet Measure 37 merely took advantage of an already weakened system. Largely
out of the public eye, LandWatch Lane County and the Goal One Coalition for years
have been challenging the everyday applications to rezone productive farms and
forests to marginal lands; to build in riparian zones and floodplains; and to illegally
adjust property lines for template dwellings on resource lands. The more we expose
these forces of darkness to the light of common day, the closer we come to driving a
stake through their hearts. The media are a powerful and, I think, essential ally in
that mission, and I eagerly await the Weekly’s next installment.
Robert Emmons is president of LandWatch Lane County, a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting Lane
County’s farms, forests and open space from urban sprawl. For more information, visit http://landwatch.net
4 FEBRUARY 22, 2007
TO THE EDITOR
AFFORDABLE EDUCATION
DUCK, INTERRUPTED
In a Dec. 29, 2006 editorial, The
Oregonian urges Oregon legislators to listen
to Kirby Dyess, vice chair of the Oregon
State Board of Higher Education, as he ex-
plains how investment in higher education
brought prosperity to Ireland (“The Celtic
Tiger”). Entitled “A First Step for a Future
‘Northwest Tiger,’”
the editorial advocates
increased investment
in Oregon’s colleges
and universities. Wise
advice — but it does-
n’t go far enough.
During the past six
years, community col-
lege tuition has nearly
doubled. In 1999-
2001, the average cost
to attend an Oregon
community college
was $1,700. By 2005-
2007, that cost was up
to $3,000. In practical terms, if a college stu-
dent worked at a minimum wage job to pay
for school, by 2002 he would have to work
for 55 hours a week, leaving virtually no time
to study. We need to bring tuition costs down
so workers can afford education.
When I was a member of the Oregon State
Senate Education Committee, we contem-
plated starting a commission to figure out
what a quality education in Oregon would
cost. Later, the legislature created the Oregon
Quality Education Commission. The com-
mission has concluded that we have a gap in
excess of $1 billion between the cost of a
quality education and the amount that Oregon
currently provides.
In 2002, Commission Chair Kenneth
Thrasher asked, “Have the reasonable goals
of a quality education become a broken
promise?” In 2007 it’s time to restore that
promise. I hope that this year the Oregon
Legislature will significantly increase invest-
ment in public education at all levels.
Pete Sorenson
Lane County Commissioner
I appreciated Alan Pittman’s Feb. 15 arti-
cle about Councilor Zelenka and myself.
Although there were a few things a conserva-
tive person like me might consider mischar-
acterizations and minor inaccuracies, on bal-
ance it was a fair treatment.
There was only one part that was inaccu-
rate and that I thought needed
correction. While it is true that
I am proud of what I have
earned in my life, one of the
things I have NOT earned is a
degree. I did attend the UO
from 1983 to 1988, paying my
own way, and did major in po-
litical science. But, eager to
begin a career, I took a job with
a few hours left to complete on
my degree and to date have not
yet done so.
I hope Alan will forgive me
if I was unclear. I just don’t
want to take credit for things I
have not yet earned.
Mike Clark
City Councilor, Ward 5
FIRE. GREEN. NOW.
Thanks to the Weekly for the insightful in-
terview (“Andrea Ortiz Represents,” 2/1)
with City Councilor Andrea Ortiz, an exem-
plary public official.
While annexation-related issues infuse
most discussions about good government in
the River Road neighborhood, it is unfortu-
nate that County Commissioner Bobby
Green has essentially abandoned the funda-
mental right of his constituents to representa-
tive government that county — and city —
residents deserve from an elected public offi-
cial.
Green’s once promising career has degen-
erated into one of heeding the well-endowed
special interests that have benefited from his
questionable voting pattern. Green’s voting
record rarely reflects the public’s best inter-
ests.
Councilor Ortiz, holding down a day job