Protect Portland's Livability - LivablePDX
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PROTECT PORTLAND'S LIVABILITY
UPDATE 3.4.24
The costs of Macadam Ridge exceeded the funds raised and all donations through GoFundMe were applied to costs related to the stated intent that include marketing, professional and legal services that culminated in a successful win over a protracted multi-year fight. Some of the marketing assets built were retained beyond the win at LUBA to preserve the record and education gathered for the public, as a repository for records and should the assets be needed for a future fight. There were costs that extended beyond the date of the win as necessary for preservation of materials and outreach. All GoFundMe donations have been applied to costs of the Macadam Ridge project.
UPDATE 4.17.19
VICTORIOUS!
We won yet again and this should be the final verdict in this application. The Oregon Court of Appeals supported the opinion of LUBA (Land Use Board of Appeals) who agreed with the Portland City Council in supporting South Burlingame Neighborhood Association vs Riverview Abbey's proposed Macadam Ridge development. We cannot thank you enough for your continued support along the way. It takes a united community to prevail and we appreciate the support everyone shared with their talents, their perseverance and their financial support to LivablePDX. The decision was made as a case affirmed without opinion: https://www.courts.oregon.gov/publications/Pages/default.aspx
UPDATE 2.12.19
WE WON AGAIN AT LUBA and NEED YOUR HELP
After the City Council decided against Riverview Abbey’s Macadam Ridge development, Riverview Abbey appealed the decision to the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA). In December 2018, Carrie Richter and the city attorney appeared before LUBA to defend the City Council decision. In January 2019, we again learned South Burlingame had won.
Now Riverview Abbey is appealing the LUBA decision to the Oregon State Court of Appeals. This will be their final chance to develop the land with this application. We continue to believe we will be victorious through to the end, but WE NEED YOUR HELP with this final push. Your gracious donations have allowed us to strategically use the funds with legal representation, other experts, marketing materials, etc... at each turn, and we have one final battle.
The monies raised now will cover attorney fees for Carrie Richter to represent our collective interests before the Oregon State Court of Appeals, alongside the city attorney.
Having both the city attorney and Carrie at LUBA proved helpful in presenting a well-rounded argument at LUBA, and we expect the same before the appeals court.
Carrie, shared that the Oregon State Court of Appeals lacks expertise in land use decisions which is why having a Land Use Attorney to argue this case along side the city attorney is paramount. She states the "lack or precedent and expertise is likely to mean that the court is going to be particularly attuned to the optics/equities that may result. If Riverview wins this case, South Burlingame is entirely deprived of any remedy for the Hearings Officer’s decision. Whereas, if our appeal survives, Riverview got its day in court and lost on the merits, which is a much more fair result. The neighborhoods participation is critical to illustrating its commitment to this outcome.” Since LUBA cases are not precedence for the State Court of Appeals, this case will become a case of first impressions. Having the City and an attorney for South Burlingame will make a better impression on the Court and will give our side a broader depth of knowledge.
Please contribute to this last effort to prevent the development we all oppose.
UPDATE 2.7.18
We WON in City Council with a 5-0 vote.
Ms. Carrie Richter (Bateman Seidel) did an over the top amazing job of getting up to speed in just a few days to represent the Appeal. We are so grateful to her for her expertise, and dedicated efforts on South Burlingame's behalf. She has been wonderful to work with. See her in action in the video below.
7.5 minute City Council Decision:
27 minute City Council Discussion:
2 1/2 hour Presentation with all Stakeholders & Attorneys:
This shows democracy in action; we were fortified to see the thoughtful discussion between the Commissioners and Mayor--after all of our hard work, they listened.
We still need donations to cover legal costs getting us through City Council and helping with findings preparation for Land Use Board of Appeals.
Big thanks all the way around to every one and every group who donated time to our efforts pro bono--for instance the CRAG law firm--big shout out! Check them out for any environmental law issue at http://crag.org. They are definitely community oriented and the depth of cases they have taken on is impressive (Hersheys water, Oil transport near waterways, etc...). They offered insight for testimony preparation that was so incredibly helpful. Also, Scott Burns, PhD has been so gracious in educating us about landslides and why ancient landslides should not be built on as they can never be engineered to never slide again. Thank you to him for coming in pro bono to fortify our testimony. Again, thanks to Audubon Society of Portland's Bob Salinger who testified--many thanks; we are grateful. Support the Audubon Society! http://www.audubon.org/content/audubon-society-portland
It takes a caring, involved, passionate community and the integration of all of our skills to protect our beautiful natural resources and safe housing for our neighbors.
BACKGROUND
City of Portland's Land Use Hearing's Officer has approved a development called "Macadam Ridge" proposed by Riverview Abbey Mausoleum against the recommendation of denial by 5 of the 6 reviewing City bureaus. The video footage shows the vast amount of trees and habitat that will be lost to clear cuts.
We need funding to fight the deep pockets of these developers and safeguard our city!
The Proposed Egregious Development
This development will add 21 new single dwelling lots within the South Burlingame Neighborhood north of Taylors Ferry Road between Macadam and Terwilliger. This is the largest undeveloped single family residential parcel within the city limits with Environmental Overlay Zones which were established to protect our city’s natural resources; such as contiguous habitat, urban forest, water quality and much more. If City Council approves this final step, these citywide Overlay Zones safeguarding our environment will be at risk of being overrun by greedy developers in the near future!
The development will have major, local environmental impact by destroying over 500 mature trees, clear cutting all of the land and grading moderate to steep sloped, sensitive environmental lands. It will compromise the watershed, which is one of the last open channel creeks in the city used by endangered Salmon and Trout.
If the impact to the environment isn’t enough, the development is on a known historic, very high risk hazard landslide zone mapped by the State. This is a HUGE safety concern affecting the properties of the current residents above the landslide and the future families buying these homes. A foremost Geotechnical expert has deemed this parcel of land as dangerous to build on.
Why Should You Care?
The impact is significant to this environmentally sensitive land and will dramatically change our landscape throughout the City of Portland by setting a precedent allowing developers to destroy other designated Environmental Zones to develop in sensitive areas. This is not a solution to our city’s housing shortage, but a way for developers to rape our environmentally sensitive land to build a small amount of expensive homes.*
We Need Your Help!
An appeal has been filed by the South Burlingame Neighborhood Association (SBNA), and the case will be going before City Council. The tentative council hearing date is February 7th. LivablePDX is working with experts to represent our collective and time is of the essence - we need your help to fund this effort. We expect costs to be:
Environmental/Land Use Attorney: $15,000 and up
Water Resource Engineer: $3,000
Misc Marketing Materials: $2,000
We have an active volunteer base of 50 people fighting this egregious development for the last 4 years and this is the last and defining moment. We ask that Portlanders unite to protect our city's values ensuring our wildlife, green space, rivers and land is here for generations to enjoy. Please join us in support and show up for the city we all love.
Note:
*The houses slated to be built will likely sell for over $750,000 each and does not contribute to affordable housing stock.
Safety is of huge concern as pedestrian and bicycle safety has not been properly addressed on a known hazardous street.
THANK YOU to Urban Office for their generous donation of conference room space to our cause!
Details:
All monies raised will go towards the appeal of the Macadam Ridge project. Should monies remain, a fund will be established for other neighborhood associations within Portland to draw upon for their use in protecting the environment. A committee of 5 appointed Neighborhood Association board members selected from each corner of the city will determine awards to applicants seeking support in appeals through expert and legal representation.
South Burlingame Neighbor, Shannon Hiller-Webb, has set up the fund and will direct the monies towards the outlined expenditures to cover the cost of bills as received. If there are additional monies they will be sent to ONI or other Neighborhood Association non-profit in land-use funds designated for the neighborhoods awarded.
Organizer
Shannon Hiller-Webb
Organizer
Portland, OR
