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Humboldt County, CA March 2, 2004 Election
Smart Voter

Land Use

By Glen Clifford "Bud" Rogers, II

Candidate for Supervisor; County of Humboldt; Supervisorial District 2

This information is provided by the candidate
Land use policies should be based, not only on the obvious fact of population grown, but also in accommodating small business development siting needs, protecting environmental quality and--most of all--that these policies reflect what will be for the common good in the long run.
With regard to protecting open space and agricultural lands from over development, in California, we passed the Williamson Act. Having grown up in the San Joaquin Valley, I know first-hand of the inexorable pressures of suburban development on prime agricultural land. The need existed to protect small farmers from taxation based on inflated real estate values by putting their land in a sort of conservation easement. The rationale was that if we forced farmers to sell their land to housing tract developers, what would we eat. Considering this basic understanding of the Williamson Act, has this tax waiver had the intended effect here in Humboldt County, which is that of ensuring our food supply?

While I agree with the concept of preserving agricultural lands, I also relate to the urban refugees who come here with the dream of building their own house in a place where it was--until recently--possible to do so. People in the rural areas actually have more freedom to have cottage industry, do some organic farming, light manufacturing or some other small enterprise, than if they lived in town with the more restrictive code and zoning limitations.

Land use policies should be based, not only on the obvious fact of population grown, but also in accommodating small business development siting needs, protecting environmental quality and--most of all--that these policies reflect what will be for the common good in the long run.

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