League of Women Voters of California
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Measure I Open Space Town of Tiburon Initiative 1793 / 47.4% Yes votes ...... 1987 / 52.6% No votes
See Also:
Index of all Measures |
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Results as of Nov 21 1:20pm, 100.0% of Precincts Reporting (8/8) 70.6% Voter Turnout (3899/5526) |
| Information shown below: Summary | Impartial Analysis | Arguments | Full Text | |||||
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Shall the Town adopt the General Plan amendment defining "prime open space" and prohibiting development of such land unless necessary to avoid environmental impacts, to avoid an unconstitutional taking, or to allow affordable housing?
AN INITIATIVE DEFINING 'PRIME OPEN SPACE ' AS LAND MEETING SPECIFIED CRITERIA AND PROHIBITING DEVELOPMENT OF SUCH LAND UNLESS NECESSARY TO AVOID ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS, TO AVOID AN UNCONSTITUTIONAL TAKING, OR TO ALLOW AFFORDABLE HOUSING INITIATIVE MEASURE TO BE SUBMITTED DIRECTLY TO THE VOTERS The Town Attorney has prepared the following title and summary of the chief purpose and points of the proposed measure: Title: AN INITIATIVE DEFINING 'PRIME OPEN SPACE' AS LAND MEETING SPECIFIED CRITERIA AND PROHIBITING DEVELOPMENT OF SUCH LAND UNLESS NECESSARY TO AVOID ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS, TO AVOID AN UNCONSTITUTIONAL TAKING, OR TO ALLOW AFFORDABLE HOUSING Summary: The Tiburon General Plan Open Space & Conservation Element encourages the protection of prime open space to the maximum extent feasible. The proposed initiative would amend the Town's General Plan to more precisely define 'prime open space' and prohibit any development of prime open space land, subject to limited exceptions. The proposed initiative defines as prime open space any portion of any parcel depicted in the current General Plan as 'potential open space' (Diagram OSC-3) that meets any of the following criteria:
1. within 150 horizontal feet, or 50 vertical feet, of either side of
Tiburon Ridge; or This initiative would prohibit the Town from approving any development of prime open space lands except after a vote of the people or where the Council determines that an exception is necessary to:
1. Avoid adverse environmental impacts (requires minimum of
four-fifths Council vote); With respect to the second exception, the Council would consider a variety of specified economic factors; could allow only as much development as necessary to avoid an unconstitutional taking; and would try to locate such development on the portion of the property with the lowest open space value. The initiative would not apply to (1) any application limited to a single residence on a legal parcel that was previously both within the Town and recorded as a separate parcel; or (2) any development project or activity that has obtained vested rights as of the effective date of the initiative. Any changes to the requirements and policies of the initiative would require a vote of the people until December 31, 2022. Thereafter, the Town Council would be able to adopt amendments found to be in the public interest. Notice of Intent to Circulate Petition Notice is hereby given by the persons whose names appear hereon of their intention to circulate the petition within the Town of Tiburon for the purpose of protecting the Town's remaining prime open space from unnecessary development. A statement of the reasons of the proposed action as contemplated in the petition is as follows: WHAT IT DOES: The Tiburon Open Space Protection Initiative protects the Town's most important open space lands from the adverse environmental and traffic impacts associated with development. It does so by requiring the Town to identify the most important (or 'prime') open space lands before they are developed and by requiring that, to the maximum extent legally permissible, development not be permitted on those portions of any particular property that contain prime open space. By preserving the Town's unique ridgelands, hillsides, and other prime open spaces, the Initiative helps to maintain the Town's essential character and quality of life. THREAT TO PRIME OPEN SPACE: Rising land values and pressure from private parties to develop the remaining parcels of open space pose an immediate threat to the Town's ability to preserve prime open space. Increased development on lands that include prime open space also poses an immediate and long-term threat to the Town's public health, safety, and welfare by causing increased traffic congestion, air and water pollution, degradation of biological resources and scenic views, and depletion of water resources. Accordingly, additional protection for prime open space is urgently needed. ALLOWS THE TOWN TO MEET AFFORDABLE HOUSING REQUIREMENTS AND PROTECT RESIDENTS' QUALITY OF LIFE: The Initiative allows the Town Council to permit development on prime open space if the Council finds that doing so is necessary to meet state affordable housing requirements, to avoid an unconstitutional taking of property, or to avoid other adverse environmental impacts. WHO'S BEHIND IT? The Imitative is sponsored by the Last Chance Committee to Save Old Saint Hilary's Open Space. _/s/_ Jerry A. Riessen, Last Chance Committee Co-Chairperson
_/s/_ Joanna M. Kemper, Last Chance Committee
The proposed Initiative would amend the Town's General Plan to more precisely identify lands considered "prime open space." The Initiative defines as prime open space as any portion of any parcel depicted in the current General Plan as "potential open space" that meets any of the following criteria:
1. within 150 horizontal feet, or 50 vertical feet, of either side of
Tiburon Ridge; The Initiative would prohibit any development of prime open space land, except after a vote of the people or where the Council determines that an exception is necessary to avoid adverse environmental impacts, provide access to the non-prime open space portions of a parcel, avoid an unconstitutional taking or comply with state affordable housing laws. The Initiative would not apply to (1) any application for a single residence on a parcel that was previously both within the Town and recorded as a separate parcel; or (2) any development project or activity that has obtained vested rights as of the effective date of the Initiative. The Initiative could affect 18 undeveloped parcels. The proposed Initiative would reduce the Town's discretion in processing applications for those parcels and could significantly reduce the number and location of new homes. Given that this will reduce the potential land value of affected properties, the most significant fiscal impact of the Initiative is likely to be the cost of defending its application to development proposals against legal attack by the owners of these parcels. Such expenditures can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars (and in rare cases, more). However, the Town regularly faces land use litigation, arising from the Town's already-restrictive regulations. Because of this, and the vagaries of litigating individual cases, any estimate of the Initiative's impacts on litigation costs is necessarily speculative. Dated: August 19, 2002 ANN R. DANFORTH Town Attorney
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| Arguments For Measure I | Arguments Against Measure I | ||
| WHY WOULD ANYONE WANT LESS OPEN SPACE
PROTECTION THAN THE LAW ALLOWS?
WHO WANTS MORE TRAFFIC AND HOUSES? MEASURE I seeks to protect the Town's remaining undeveloped ridgelines, varied shorelines, wetlands and woodlands. Such protection is vital to the Town's identity, quality of life and economy, as well as to the continued existence of rare and endangered habitat and wildlife. The Tiburon General Plan already says "protect[ ] prime open space areas to the maximum extent feasible." We want to make it specific and predictable. Town Councils come and go and we want to be certain that prime open space will always be consistently and fairly protected. Experts drafted the Initiative based on Tiburon's existing General Plan. Plus, the Initiative gives the Town Council flexibility to provide for GOOD PLANNING: the Council can move any lot allowed under the Initiative to avoid adverse visual and other environmental impacts. Don't be misled by the scare tactics of the opponents and their lawyers. Landowners have sued in the past when they didn't get what they wanted. They are likely to sue in the future, WITH OR WITHOUT THE INITIATIVE. This Initiative provides a fair playing field for developers and citizens. It was written to give developers a FAIR RETURN on their investment, while protecting the most environmentally sensitive portions of the properties. MEASURE I IS NOT A TAX YES ON I APPLIES ONLY TO MULTI-LOT DEVELOPMENT (NOT to single family lots). ADDITIONAL CONSISTENT PROTECTION OF PRIME OPEN SPACE IS URGENTLY NEEDED. YES ON I allows the town to meet state and federal requirements and protect residents quality of life. THIS INITIATIVE IS ON THE BALLOT BECAUSE SO MANY TIBURON CITIZENS SIGNED THE PETITION TO PLACE IT HERE. NOW IS THE TIME TO VOTE IT INTO LAW! VOTE "YES" ON I
s/ Jerry Riessen, Co-chair
s/ Joanna Kemper, Co-chair
s/ Alice Fredericks
The proponents of Measure I suggest voters should not be scared by this procession of potential adverse consequences, suggesting they are tactical inventions of the opponents and their lawyers. To the contrary, the official report on the initiative prepared by Tiburon's Town attorney states: "The end result...could be inferior site planning achieved only after expensive litigation." Proponents of Measure I also argue the purpose of this ill- conceived initiative is to make Tiburon's General Plan's policies regarding open space "specific and predictable." Tiburon's General Plan and open space policies are already rigorously and consistently interpreted AND enforced:
Please join Tiburon's community leaders in voting NO on this unnecessary, unworkable and costly initiative.
s/ Gary R. Spratling
s/ James G. Wilson
s/ Edgar B. Ross
s/ Kirk Hanson | Measure I makes a mockery of Tiburon's General Plan and the
council, planning commission and town staff who have done an
outstanding job enforcing it.
Don't be fooled by the proponents of Measure I. This initiative is based on the false premise that Tiburon's General Plan and its elected and appointed officials are incapable of accomplishing the legitimate and reasonable protection of open space in Tiburon. The two obvious reasons to vote against this poorly conceived measure are: Measure I Will Result in Drastic Financial Consequences for Tiburon There are 18 private properties that will be affected by Measure I that could result in the town defending itself against 18 separate lawsuits. Measure I would prohibit building any structure on almost all of the area on many of these properties. The owners of the land will have no recourse but to fight this illegal confiscation of their properties through the courts. These lawsuits could cost Tiburon more than four times the town's annual budget. Read Tiburon's official staff report for the details. Measure I Subverts Intelligent Planning The measure's proponents would have you believe that Measure I will result in better planning but the report prepared by the town's own attorney regarding this ill-founded measure states otherwise: Measure I "....dictates the location of development on these properties using criteria that are not necessarily tied to common sense, logical site planning, or access. The result could be poor and/or inferior site planning." We urge you to join a broad coalition of community leaders who oppose this poorly thought out measure. Complicated policy and legislative issues should be made through the town's legislative process _ not by ill-conceived initiatives. Show that you care about the future of Tiburon by Voting NO on Measure I.
s/ Kirk Hanson, Former Mayor
s/ Peter Logan, Former Mayor
s/ Valerie Bergmann, Former Mayor
s/ Nicky Wolf, Former Mayor
s/ Mogens Bach, Former Mayor
Don't be misled by opponents' scare tactics. The Initiative was written by legal experts who have drafted similar land use procedures, NONE of which have been overturned. They successfully defended Tiburon in the landmark Agins case, where the US Supreme Court UNANIMOUSLY rejected claims that Tiburon's open space zoning took private property. WHY ARE SO MANY DEVELOPERS AND THEIR LAWYERS AGAINST MEASURE I ? To maximize their profit, property owners may CLAIM that Measure I takes their property. In reality, Measure I allows development on all 18 properties. It also provides a FAIR exception procedure to help ENSURE owners that their property won't be taken. The League of California Cities_-through its Institute for Local Self Government--encourages cities to adopt a similar exception because it"...TREATS PROPERTY OWNERS FAIRLY." Developers may sue. They have sued in the past and will probably sue again, regardless of the Initiative. Even Tiburon's town attorney notes, "...any estimate of the Initiative's impacts on litigation costs is necessarily speculative." WHY HAVE MORE TRAFFIC AND BUILD MORE HOUSES THAN ARE NEEDED? MEASURE I provides for GOOD PLANNING. It encourages strict adherence to our General Plan. Measure I allows the Town to grant exceptions and to relocate development if necessary to avoid adverse environmental impacts. THIS MAY BE YOUR LAST CHANCE TO PROVIDE CONSISTENT FAIR PROTECTION FOR TIBURON OPEN SPACE VOTE "YES" ON I
s/ Jerry Riessen
s/ Joanna Kemper
s/ Alice Fredericks
s/ William M. Lukens
s/ Sharon S. Bass |
| Full Text of Measure I |
| To the Honorable Clerk of the Town of Tiburon: We, the
undersigned, registered and qualified voters of the Town of
Tiburon, hereby propose an initiative measure to amend the Town
of Tiburon General Plan. We petition you to submit this measure to
the Town Council for the Town of Tiburon for adoption without
change, or for submission of the measure to the voters of the Town
of Tiburon at the earliest regular or special election for which it
qualifies. The measure provides as follows:
The measure provisions are in Adobe Acrobat format, to access them click on the following link: http://smartvoter.marin.org/measure-i/21-518-522.pdf Exhibits 1 and 2 to the measure are in Adobe Acrobat format, to access them click on the following link: |
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Created: December 6, 2002 03:14 PST
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