October 5, 2018 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com • 3A
Manzanita homeowner, city reach a settlement
Lawsuit alleged
fines of $1.8M
were excessive
‘THE GOAL WAS TO NOT PAY $1.8 MILLION.
WE GOT THE RESULT WE WANTED.
WE’RE VERY HAPPY.’
By Brenna Visser
Kevin O’Connell,
Cannon Beach Gazette
MANZANITA — A prop-
erty owner will no longer have
to pay $1.8 million in vacation
rental fines after reaching a
tentative settlement with Man-
zanita.
Sandra Petersen, a co-trust-
ee of the Kingwood Trust,
which owns the home that has
been used as a rental, will only
pay “a modest amount” of the
city’s attorney fees, said Kevin
O’Connell, an attorney for Pe-
tersen.
In exchange, Petersen will
drop a federal lawsuit that al-
leged the city’s enforcement
of its vacation rental ordinance
was unconstitutional.
In the lawsuit filed in fed-
eral court in Portland in June,
Petersen tried to block Man-
zanita from enforcing the ci-
tations, claiming the $1.8 mil-
lion penalty was a violation of
an attorney for Sandra Petersen
BRENNA VISSER/THE DAILY ASTORIAN
Sandra Peterson is suing Manzanita over $1.8 million in
fines incurred from allegedly renting her home without a
license.
the Eighth Amendment, which
protects against excessive
fines.
“The goal was to not pay
$1.8 million,” O’Connell said.
“We got the result we wanted.
We’re very happy.”
The legal fight generated
attention up and down the Or-
egon Coast, where many cities
are struggling to regulate vaca-
tion rentals.
Manzanita City Manager
Jerry Taylor declined to com-
ment until the settlement is fi-
nalized and approved by both
parties. The City Council will
need to approve the agree-
ment, he said.
Petersen, who lives in
Washington state, said she was
fined by the city for operating
a vacation rental without a li-
cense and for not paying the
lodging tax. But she claimed
she was not notified of the
citations until last October —
nearly two years after the first
alleged violation in January
2015.
Petersen believed she was
not violating Manzanita’s
vacation rental ordinance be-
cause she only allowed family,
friends and current and former
trustees to stay at her home on
Edmund Lane, according to
a court filing. The trust took
guest donations of about $50
to $65 a night for upkeep,
supplies and repairs, not for a
profit.
“It was my belief that the
use of the property by our ex-
tended family members did
not constitute an event that
generated either registration
or a tax,” Petersen said in a
court filing.
But Manzanita warned Pe-
tersen as far back as 2009 that
the home appeared to be a va-
cation rental.
“Your home must be reg-
istered as a short-term rental
in order for you to legally ac-
cept money for the use of the
house, even if you merely in-
tend to use the money towards
taxes and maintenance on the
house,” a letter from the city
stated.
While not part of the settle-
ment, O’Connell said he be-
lieves “it’s been made clear” to
Petersen to not take donations.
Petersen does not plan to apply
for a vacation rental permit ei-
ther, as the city has a waitlist.
If the city becomes aware of
any future issues, they must be
brought back to federal court,
where a judge will decide if the
violation is deliberate.
“We don’t anticipate any
future issues with the city on
this,” O’Connell said. “(Pe-
tersen) doesn’t want any trou-
ble. It’s not going to be used
like it has been.”
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Republican House District 32 candidate Vineeta Lower, right, meets with advisory council
members.
niors and people with disabil-
ities,” Manesis said. “Advi-
sory council volunteers also
had the opportunity to share
with candidates the needs of
seniors and people with dis-
abilities, before and after the
interviews. It was a joyous
occasion and a very well-or-
ganized event.”
NWSDS and its councils
take a nonpartisan approach
to ensure that the public can
receive information necessary
to make their own, best-in-
formed decisions. The goal
is to empower and educate
older adults and people with
disabilities, so they can get in-
volved in the election process
and have additional tools to
aid them in electing the can-
didate of their choice.
To view the candidate
interviews, go to bit.ly/
NWSDS-interviews.
Zaira Flores Marin is bi-
lingual council and volunteer
coordinator for NorthWest Se-
nior and Disability Services,
an intergovernmental agency
that contracts with the state
to serve seniors and people
with disabilities. She can be
reached at 503-304-3451 or
zaira.flores@nwsds.org.
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For Cannon Beach Gazette
The Advisory Councils of
NorthWest Senior and Dis-
ability Services hosted their
biennial candidate interviews
forum in August, providing
an opportunity for candidates
running for Oregon govern-
ment positions to express
their views about the state’s
services for seniors and peo-
ple with disabilities.
The taped interviews are
available to view on YouTube
prior to the Nov. 6 general
election.
The interviews included
Gov. Kate Brown, Indepen-
dent gubernatorial candidate
Patrick Starnes, Republican
congressional candidate John
Verbeek, and state House
District 32 candidates Tiffiny
Mitchell (D) and Vineeta
Lower (R), among many oth-
ers.
All participating candi-
dates were asked questions
regarding budget cuts, senior
nutrition programs, and sup-
port of crucial senior and dis-
ability programs such as Or-
egon Project Independence,
as well as other topics. The
interviews were taped, and
the candidates’ comments and
responses were not edited.
The interviews of opposing
candidates seeking the same
office were grouped together
for the broadcasts.
The project was coordinat-
ed by volunteers to offer com-
munity members an opportu-
nity to learn the differences
among candidates and the
views and ideas each of them
had to offer.
Advisory council member
Steven Manesis, a Clatsop
County resident and advocate
in Salem for those with dis-
abilities, interviewed Starnes.
“The event gives NWSDS
and members of the com-
munity the opportunity to
discover what prospective
lawmakers at the state and
federal level will do for se-
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