Thursday, Oct 22, 2009
Teton Valley News
My husband and I have two willful boys who challenge us most of the time. The most effective advice I’ve had on being a parent is simple: be consistent, be fair and enforce the rules.
One area that is sorely in need of fairness, consistency and enforcement is the evaluation of conditional use permits (CUP). It is a woefully broken system. In Teton County we condition nearly everything that is not residential - from gravel pits to cafes and fitness centers to wind turbines. In fact, all the uses in the county’s commercial zones are conditional.
For each CUP application, decision makers must come up with conditions to mitigate anticipated impacts, not knowing if those mitigations are appropriate, if they will work, or how they can be enforced. This leaves decision makers writing the rules at the table, rules that are meaningful and workable that will protect the neighbors’ quality of life and property values. In sum, it’s a ridiculous process that allows no clear guidance to establish fairness, predictability or consistency and leaves everyone feeling frustrated.
One of my priorities since taking office is to address the problems of CUPs. I would like to see the county retain the ability to grant CUPs, but use them very sparingly and only in extraordinary situations. By identifying where certain uses--such as auto sales, cell towers and contractor shops--should or should not be and zoning property to allow or disallow specific uses. it will provide predictability and fairness both for the landowner and the neighbors.
In addition to providing predictability for future CUPs, we need to establish a system to deal with the 130+ CUPs that have been granted over the years and the multiple “pirate” uses that are occurring without a CUP. One problem with past CUPs has been the perceived creation of a de facto zone change. Problems also arise when the original use expands without county review. Ongoing enforcement of conditions and annual review of CUPs must occur for the CUP process to work.
Historically, part of the rationale for granting CUPs in the county has been to allow home businesses and foster economic growth, both of which I support. During a slow economy there will probably be a rise in CUP applications, as people seek creative ways to make a living, which is another reason we need to improve our CUP process. In order for us to foster sustainable economic growth instead of the boom-bust cycle that has been Teton Valley’s fate, we need a system that protects business and Teton Valley’s uniqueness – its natural resources and community character – while cutting down the cost to taxpayers by encouraging compact rather than sprawling communities and providing more predictability and fairness to a chaotic system. Only then will investment come back to Teton Valley.
