Behaving badly, live from Jefferson County.
Carla Axtman
Update: 6/8/09,7:30AM: The link for Holly Gill's letter to Brian Clem in the Madras Pioneer won't work correctly. To view it, go to MadrasPioneer.com and click on the archives link on the lower left. Then type "Clem" into the search box. The letter titled "Dear Rep. Clem, re. the Metolius: How could you?" should appear in the list.--CA
With the Oregon Senate on the precipice of voting on the protections for the Metolius, I'm reminded of the efforts to do this in 2007. Much of the same cast is still in place, including the Jefferson County Commission and land speculators Jim Kean and Shane Lundgren.
Another of the resident cast is State Senator Vicki Walker, who apparently the Jefferson County Commission loathe. Or at least they did in 2007, when Willamette Week gave Mike Ahern and Bill Bellamy a Rogue smackdown:
The Rogue desk isn't landing on Jefferson County commissioners Bill Bellamy and Mike Ahern for the board's plan to develop the Metolius River Basin near Black Butte.Instead, the two commishes in the Central Oregon county get singled out for their unprofessional, Cheney-style (remember the veep's "Fuck yourself" quote in 2004 to Vermont Sen. Patrick Leahy?) potty-mouthing of State Sen. Vicki Walker (D-Eugene).
The pair ran their mouths in frustration during an April 11 public meeting over Walker's investigation into two proposed resort developments they spent two years mapping in the basin—a unique landscape renowned for its clear water and beauty.
"What a dumbass," Ahern jabs about Walker to his shushing colleagues at a commission meeting attended by a half-dozen staff members and two people in the audience.
About 15 minutes later, Bellamy slowly states, "If [Walker] wants to talk to me, that bitch can come here!" County Counsel David Allen then jokes, "Have you read the Nixon memoirs about the missing tapes?"
As a blogger I use profanity and other colorful language to sometimes make a point. But these guys seem to have forgotten to bring even a modicum of respect for state legislators when they packed their knapsacks and headed to Salem.
Land speculator Shane Lundgren of the "eco-resort" has gotten into the act this time around. Lundgren has attacked State Representative Brian Clem (D-Salem), one of the chief sponsors of the protections, referring to him in committee hearings as "disingenuous" and "duplicitous".
The Jefferson County crew have continued worked the media angle this cycle as well. I suspect it's exponentially helpful to them when lazy, inaccurate journalism is allowed to flourish even in the throes of print journalism's downward spiral. Death by a thousand cuts of careless and slothful work makes it tough for me to mourn the loss.
On Wednesday, Senate Rules passed out two bills -- which originated in the House, one committee member told me, to provide extra cover for Johnson and Burdick -- that would "preserve" the Metolius and tell Kean to take his resort and stick it ... in some other rural area.One of those bills was a gut-and-stuffed version of House Bill 3100, which Reps. Brian Clem, D-Salem, and Mary Nolan, D-Portland, have been unable to generate enough votes to move to the House floor.
I wonder if the "member of the committee" who told Steve Duin that the transfer of development was a way to "provide cover" for Johnson and Burdick is one of the opponents who happens to be in cozy with the lobbyist for land speculators Jim Kean and Shane Lundgren, who claim they just want to build their project. Had anyone writing this column bothered to contact the people actually working on the bills prior writing the piece (y'know, the actual journalism stuff), they might have discovered that one of them gives Kean/Lundgren the vast majority of what they say they want to do. That is if all that this is about is building the project.
On the issue of not having the votes to get HB3100 out of Rules..not true. I've followed this under a microscope. The votes are there.
Not journalism's finest hour here.
Speaking of which, It likely doesn't hurt the Jefferson County Commissioner/land speculator cause as well when the main local county newspaper is published by the brother of one of the Commishes.
Jefferson County Commissioner Mike Ahern's brother Tony Ahern is the publisher of the Madras Pioneer newspaper. To be fair however, the publisher doesn't generally write the news. That's left in large part to news editor Holly Gill. Certainly she must come at this with an objective eye, right?
Nope.
In late April, Gill wrote a full-throated letter against the protections for the Metolius entitled, "Dear Rep. Clem, re. the Metolius: How could you?" Obviously, the letter specifically calls out State Representative Brian Clem (D-Salem), one of the chief sponsors.
The online version of the piece differs from the print version. Gill's print piece included an italicized section at the top which reads:
Clem is credited (or blamed) with proposing to the governor that a new land-use demarcation be established for the Metolius River Basin, which would limit development and ban resorts. Thus the Area of Critical State Concern debate began. Area of Critical State Concern legislation has gained the approval of the Land Conservation and Development Board and is likely to be voted on later in the Legislative session.
The topic is a hot-button issue of local versus state land-use control, private property rights, and has major impact on potential property tax receipts for Jefferson County. Clem has not responded to the letter.
First of all, the fact that Gill wrote this letter in the midst of writing so-called news pieces is highly inappropriate. But second, Clem told me that the letter hit his email box at 8PM on Friday, April 24. It ran in the paper on April 29. Not knowing the deadline for Pioneer, I can't be positive--but it likely has to be early in the day on the 28th, if not the 27th. Not exactly a wealth of time for Clem to respond.
Incidentally, Gill continues writing news pieces on the issue. Her latest piece overwhelmingly and heavily quotes the crew working against the Metolius protections.
Clem says he finally met with Gill on May 29th and spoke with her about the concerns she raised in her letter. Clem says that Gill told him she had no idea the letter was going to print. She said it was printed by her publisher, Tony Ahern. She had intended the letter as personal advocacy and was given no warning that it was to be printed.
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Jun 7, '09
For all the other Betsy Johnson stooges besides Carla: Don't buy the "Protect the Metolius" rhetoric. She wants you to protect her homestead. The watershed gibberish is just that: gibberish.
Jun 7, '09
Robin:
The leadership on Metolius protections is coming from Brian Clem and Ben Cannon. It's also coming from the people in Camp Sherman and Sisters--the ones who live there. And it's coming from others around the state who want to protect this very important piece of Oregon.
The Betsy Johnson stuff is a lie and frankly an attempt to distract from what's really going on. It's also insulting to the intelligence of anyone who has taken even a few minutes to pay attention to this.
Jun 7, '09
Yeah, okay, and several dozen advocacy groups and thousands of people who have written letters supportive of the legislation, not to mention Reps. Clem and Cannon are, what, carrying Senator Johnson's water?
Are you kidding me?? Robin, how in the world can you actually believe this?
8:28 p.m.
Jun 7, '09
Observer: 1000 hand written postcards begging the legislature to protect the Metolius were turned in last week to the House, btw.
One wonders if Robin will accuse Betsy Johnson of sitting down and writing them all herself. That makes about as much sense as the first comment.
Jun 7, '09
Also, Robin attempts to distract from the main point of this piece which is that the Jefferson County Commissioners/Realtors (and now their publisher brothers??) have been downright disrespectful and manipulative on this issue.
Senator Walker stood up on behalf of the Metolius in 2007, and for that they postured and called her names. She didn't deserve that sort of treatment then just like Rep. Clem doesn't deserve to be called d-words now.
Also, I listened via audio to a recent house rules hearing on 3100 and think I heard one of the sitting Jefferson County commissioners talking of "blowing this building up." Did anyone else catch that one?
Jun 7, '09
Can anyone cite me another piece of Oregon legislation supported by 1000 hard-written postcards? Wow, that's incredible.
Jun 8, '09
Carla,
Why won't any of the links you posted open? Has your site/story been hacked?
Jun 8, '09
This bill does not have the votes to pass the House and Senate. Unless Betsy Johnson and Ginny Burdick seriously ramp up their game of chicken.
7:30 a.m.
Jun 8, '09
Insider: Sorry, you're wrong. Courtney says the votes are there on the Senate side. From everything I've heard, once it hits the House floor the votes are there, too.
Anon: The only link that doesn't seem to work is the one for the online version of Holly Gill's letter. I've checked the link twice and it's correct, so it must be a problem with their site. You can view it by going to the Madras Pioneer archives and typing "Clem" into the search box.
Jun 8, '09
Insider - no offense, but if you think that Burdick's one of the keys to passing this bill, then you're not much of an insider. Sounds to me like you're just clinging to the same old tired narrative. Is this all you have?
Jun 8, '09
"As a blogger I use profanity and other colorful language to sometimes make a point. But these guys seem to have forgotten to bring even a modicum of respect for state legislators when they packed their knapsacks and headed to Salem."
Carla, this goes both ways. Jefferson Co. leaders feel Salem and specific legislators like Walker have shown them utter disrespect and have hurled false accusations at them. I'm not saying either side is wrong or right, but this is a classic game of he said, she said.
The name calling and fighting over this issue is becoming utterly sophomoric.
Jun 8, '09
Jason, the name-calling has not gone both ways.
Throughout the entire SB 30 process in 2007, both Senator Walker and the bill's supporters showed a lot of respect to Jefferson County. I don't know what happened behind (all) the scenes, but I never heard anyone on the pro-Metolius side of the argument using phrases like "bitch" or "dumbass" on the public record... or awkwardly asking the county attorney if it was possible to erase the public record after the fact.
Regardless of one's feelings about the actual policy... at least some Jefferson County officials have shown a one-sided lack of respect for not only general decorum, but also for the integrity of public recrordkeeping.
9:45 a.m.
Jun 8, '09
Carla, this goes both ways. Jefferson Co. leaders feel Salem and specific legislators like Walker have shown them utter disrespect and have hurled false accusations at them. I'm not saying either side is wrong or right, but this is a classic game of he said, she said.
Jason: I suspect that in part, you're right. But it does seem that especially with Walker--the Jefferson Co folks are way over the line. And frankly, attacking state legislators whose votes you need doesn't seem like the best approach to getting what they want.
This has indeed been a contentious and rough fight. And I suspect there's more of it to come. Steve Duin's Sunday column is an absolute atrocity of non-journalism that includes some of this.
Jun 8, '09
Carla, exactly how is it "lazy journalism" to point out that the people who are constantly defending the state land use system against such "greedy speculators" now want to short-circuit and subvert the system, in which a County land use plan ACKNOWLEDGED BY THE STATE allowed a certain type of resort is being eviscerated by a special interest?
How is this any different from the situation a few years ago when some Bend developers wanted to go the other way and subvert a county land use plan ACKNOWLEDGED BY THE STATE that didn't allow their resort development?
10:24 a.m.
Jun 8, '09
UPO: Short-circuit the system? The "area of critical statewide concern" IS part of Oregon's land use system since 1973.
Incidentally, the comprehensive plan in Jefferson Co, to my knowledge, has not been acknowledged by the state.
Jun 8, '09
And frankly, attacking state legislators whose votes you need doesn't seem like the best approach to getting what they want.
No, but lavishing them with campaign contributions might be! Back in 2008, according to the Bend Bulletin, Hasina Squires, the Dutch Pacific lobbyist had the following to say about why her clients were giving so much money to legislators:
"My client is very interested in making sure they have access to the dialog currently going on about the economy in rural Oregon, and they want to be a player and a partner, not only with local counties but also the state."
10:36 a.m.
Jun 8, '09
When it comes to this issue, I've got to paraphrase one of my favorite sayings: "Them that know aren't blogging and them that blog aren't knowinbg." There's so much more going on here than meets even the trained eye.
10:42 a.m.
Jun 8, '09
tectorgorch--enlighten then. Specifically, where are my errors in this post or subsequent comments?
Platitudes are convenient and easy, but not an especially constructive addition to the conversation. So..let's hear more than just bumperstickers.
This issue is MUCH too important to reduce it to that.
Jun 8, '09
It was nice to hear the Jefferson County Commissioner say, "If this bill passes, it is not a crisis to Jefferson County" (click on WW audio link).
Jefferson County has stated in 2009 public hearings that they also believe the Metolius deserves protection. Ponderosa Land and Cattle has also said publicly that they will support HB 3100 and the ACSC.
The land the purchased by the Metolian is zoned (STILL ZONED) for timber harvest only. If this bill passes it won't be a crisis for the land owners either, because they've still GOT EXACTLY WHAT THEY BOUGHT - timber harvest land with its ORIGINAL value.
This appears to me to be a slam dunk! Everyone involved agrees the Metolius is deserving of protection; this won't be a crisis for Jefferson County; and the owners of the Metolian will keep and own EXACTLY what they purchased, timber harvest land.
Jun 8, '09
I never knew Steve Duin was such a tool. I assumed he at least checked his sources.
The information from his (anonymous)member of the committee isn't worth the paper it is written on. Any confirmation of your reporting Steve?
Jun 8, '09
I've always liked Ahern, have known him for years (but he's not anything like a close personal friend, we just end up seeing each other related to our mutual interest in real estate and our membership and activities with the Democratic Party).
Now, given what Carla has written, he has gone up in my estimation 100 fold. It's about time people in Central / East Oregon stopped playing the "nice" game with people who aren't nice to us.
While I also find I like Vickie Walker, when people do you wrong, I find it perfectly okay to call them assholes or worse.
Local control is a highly valued aspect of Democracy, and I'm continually saddened that Carla and Blue Oregon have come out so strongly against this democratic value.
Jun 8, '09
The owners of the Metolian will keep and own EXACTLY what they purchased, timber harvest land.
Then let them clear-cut it.
Ooops! We didn't mean THAT kind of timber harvest land!... We meant the kind you can't cut the trees on.
Jun 9, '09
The sad fact is that poweful elites in salem are gutting the Oregon land use planning process because they don't like the outcome so far in Jefferson County.
Jun 9, '09
UPO said: Ooops! We didn't mean THAT kind of timber harvest land!... We meant the kind you can't cut the trees on.
So to bolster your argument, you're now citing your own imagination for support? (Not to mention, if you look at the "eco resort" land on Google Earth, it's apparently been clear-cut already!)
Please cite an instance showing that the Metolius advocates are opposed to timber harvesting on these lands.
It seems like the developers had some preconceived notion that the "threat" of harvesting timber off of land zoned as industrial forestland would be so distasteful to those hippie Democrats that the legislators would BEG for development instead!
But reality is different than their (and your) imagination.
8:03 a.m.
Jun 9, '09
Ooops! We didn't mean THAT kind of timber harvest land!... We meant the kind you can't cut the trees on.
Well golly gee, UPO, the land speculators already have cut timber on that land. I haven't seen any advocates for protecting the Metolius protest legal harvesting.
Can we get back to an honest discussion now, please?
Jun 9, '09
Carla, how would you suggest we have an honest discussion around the lege usurping the established Oregon process of centralized land use planning?
Lets take the opposite situation ocurring now in Medford. A huge big box store chain has been stymied for 5 years now in their efforts to build a new super center in Medford, on land that they own. They have followed the established process and been frustrated at several turns, just recently at LUBA level.
Turn the Metolius situation around and have this mega company (Wal-Mart; there I said it!) give enough in contributions to a republican controled lege and watch them ram through bills that alter the established land planning practice to make it easier for them to get their way. Now do you have a problem? You would and you would be correct to do so.
For the record, I am not a supporter or detractor of Wal-Mart in general and have long advocated in the siting of their proposed super store at the South Medford interchange that they be required to conduct a current traffic study before proceeding.
2:13 p.m.
Jun 9, '09
Carla, how would you suggest we have an honest discussion around the lege usurping the established Oregon process of centralized land use planning?
Scott--I would suggest you not start the conversation with a rhetorical backander, for starters. Especially since the lege is following the established Oregon land use process.
I also can't speak to the Medford situation, since I'm not well-versed on it. I can tell you that just because you purchase a piece of land doesn't mean you can build whatever you want on it. In the case of the Metolius, the land speculators purchased land that's zoned for timber management. They knew that when they bought it. They thought that they could get a zoning change rammed through without the local communities pushing back to the point where it became difficult.
When the local folks couldn't get a straight and fair-handed set of hearings from the Jefferson County folks, they had to turn to the lege and the Governor, using the legal land-use planning avenues available.
Jun 9, '09
"When the local folks couldn't get a straight and fair-handed set of hearings from the Jefferson County folks, they had to turn to the lege and the Governor, using the legal land-use planning avenues available."
Carla, what you have written is a bold faced LIE. The folks who are against the development didn't like the hearing outcomes in Jefferson County so they usurped the process rather than using the legal land use planning avenues available. Had their tactics and stragem been currently available, there would have been no need for the state legislature to get involved.
You are gifted with words Carla, I especially like how the antagonists in your little passion play have now morphed from developers (once and evil enough word on its own) into land speculators. Brava, Brava.
3:16 p.m.
Jun 9, '09
No Kurt, what I'm saying is the truth. I've interviewed the folks from out there. It was so bad that LOCAL RESIDENTS felt they had no recourse but to look to leadership elsewhere. Of course they didn't like the outcome--these locals had no voice in it.
These "antagonists" as you put it, are the very definition of land speculator. They purchase property and hope to change the playing field so they can turn it around for a lot of money. That's exactly what the Metolian Resort folks have attempted here.
Make no mistake Kurt--there are hundreds of local residents who have tried to address their LOCAL GOVERNMENT on this situation, to no avail. It's a travesty.
You don't get 1000 hand-written post cards to protect the Metolius delivered from Central Oregon to the lege otherwise.
Jun 9, '09
Carla, I love your spunk and commitment here. I don't agree with you on this one and think you're wrong. Heck, perhaps you and others are being utilized by a highly effective Corporate Campaign against the developers. I have no direct horse in the race and really have no opinion regarding the resort as proposed.
It would be interesting to have someone review the 1000 postcards for:
handwriting ink color message wording
I hate being so cynical, but similar reports of a large amount of handwritten comments regarding the Mt. Ashland expansion were, in fact, produced by a relative small number of folks working in a modified sweatshop atmosphere grinding out hand written comments. I would hope that did not occur here in the Metolius situation and all of the postcards came from local Jefferson County folks who are against the development.
Jun 9, '09
Kurt, the ACSC IS part of the land use system, and has been since the system was created. Look it up. This is what it's there for...
As for Jefferson County's process, here's a couple crucial pieces of info (from a 2007 flyer on the matter):
Throughout most of the process, Jefferson County made it difficult for citizenry to focus opposition to any specific site by proposing to map all land not excluded from mapping by state law. This included vast tracts of land in east county, nowhere near the Metolius.
Although commissioners were given drafts of the new Comp Plan and zoning ordinances at a Commission meeting on December 13th, 2006, the materials were not made available to the public until December 18th.
The plan turned out to include Destination Resort mapping -- contrary to a staff advisory made on December 6 suggesting that destination resort mapping would be adopted separately through a more stringent process. The preliminary adoption came on December 21 - only three days after the plan became public and the resort opponents realize that Destination Resorts were included in the Comp Plan draft.
The old Comp Plan and Zoning Ordinance were discarded December 27th, 2006 with a new plan taking effect on January 1, leaving Jefferson County without either for a period of four days. DURING THAT TIME, several land transactions occurred leading to multiple M37 claims.
Forget the fact that the county relied on 20-year old wildlife studies to determine Goal 5 impacts, and that the allegedly the county planner assigned to this matter had never visited the Metolius Basin before zoning rules were drafted or hearings were held.
Now, does this sound like a fair, balanced, or thorough approach by Jefferson County? It sure doesn't to me.
So what you have is a screwed up local process being "usurped" by a valid state process that exists (and has since the early 70s) to protect this place under these circumstances.
This is not a case of the state stepping in unjustly or unfairly. The Metolius IS an area of critical statewide concern, and Jefferson County completely disrespected that. The state's doing its damnedest to make things right.
Jun 9, '09
Kurt:
I've seen the postcards - all two 4" binders worth. From what I saw that there is one person for every postcard and they have come in from all over the state from more cities that I would have imagined possible. They are handwritten and unique.
Jun 9, '09
Sorry Watcher, I respectfully call foul.
IF the process being used were in fact, part of the actual centralized land use planning process, then there would be no need for slight-of-hand bills being ushered through the lege in Salem.
I'm not defending Jefferson County. They may have made the process unduly difficult or been misleading. The fact remains that those in powerful positions in Salem are working overtime to produce NEW regulations and law to stop the destination resorts. Down here in southern Oregon we call that usurping the process. I'd call the same foul were it a bunch of republicans pushing through regulations/law in order to make it easier to develop destination resorts like this while the issue were pending and those fighting them were "winning".
Jun 9, '09
Kurt, I don't understand what you mean about the "centralized" land use system. Do you mean centralized as in state run? If so, then the ACSC is clearly part of that in ORS 197 and has been for over three decades. Do you mean centralized as in some set of "core" land use statutes and that other more obscure portions of the land use statutes somehow don't qualify? That wouldn't make much sense... if it's in the land use, it's in the land use system. Please explain, because I don't get it.
You know, in 2007 there was a speedway destination resort bill that passed the legislature with every R and many Ds voting yes. That resort couldn't have been built under "existing" law so they needed to "usurp." It's funny (not ha ha) that so many Republican legislators are so quick to call foul in this case but had no beef with stepping in for a pro-development bill two years ago.
And your premise that if the ACSC were truly part of the land use system this bill would be speeding its way through doesn't make sense either. It's not like every legislator supports every part of the land use system. There are fights over pretty much every element of the land use system all the time. So I don't get that either.
Are legislators working overtime to protect the Metolius? Yes. Are they producing new regulations? More accurately, they're working to develop specific implementations of existing regulations, which is how those regulations were always intended to be used. Check it out yourself at ORS 197.405 to 430. It just so happens, and I just realized this, that the ACSC statutes are just before the speedway resorts section...
Jun 9, '09
A friend emailed me and suggested that I jump on this site and clear up any concern mentioned by Kurt about the postcard/support statements.
First of all, I personally drove to the PO Box every day for two weeks and opened every single support statement that was printed by people at home on their computers, filled out, signed and mailed in. I am also the one who stuffed nearly 1000 of them into plastic sleeves and put them into 3-ring binders and hand delivered them Salem.
This was an idea started by me and a couple of friends when HB 3100 and SB 741 were moved into Rules Committee. The idea was to have a way for people to show legislators their support of the Area of Critical State Concern who otherwise wouldn't be able to drive to Salem and attend the public hearing(s). I was going to present the support statements at the public hearings on behalf of the people that sent them in, but there never were any public hearings.
The support statements arrived each day over a two week period before I delivered them to Salem. I continue to receive them every day and have in fact, many, many more which haven't been added to the books (which currently sit somewhere in Salem).
Each support statement was filled out with name, address, phone number, signature and email address. I received them from all over Oregon: Portland, Salem, Eugene, Hood RIver, Sisters, Bend, Camp Sherman and various other Oregon counties and towns. I also received many from surrounding states; Washington, California, Idaho as well as some from Florida, Hawaii, Maine and New York. The public support for the Metolius is absolutely overwhelming!
If our little postcard/support statement campaign (of just two weeks) is any indication of the type of public input the legislature is getting, there is no question why this topic is getting the attention it is. It is in fact our legislator's job to listen and act upon public and voter input. The Area of Critical State Concern is a land use tool for situations such as this.
Jun 9, '09
As a blogger I use profanity and other colorful language to sometimes make a point.
I guess the point is that you can't write.
Jun 9, '09
Aww c'mon Tony...I wryte good enuf that you figgered it wuz darned necessary to reply.
Care to try again? :)
Jun 11, '09
Anonymous, thanks for addressing my concerns. If the postcards and letters were truly a groundswell of support as you state (and I believe they are) then well done. Personally I could care less if 100,000 similar memos came from out of state. If those folks want to have a say in Oregon's interests then let them move here.
<h2>Thanks and have a nice day.</h2>