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Ashland, Oregon HOME Valley & State Sports Nation & World Opinion/Editorial Classifieds Business Columnists Local Issues Obituaries Weather Archive Revels Etcetera Backpage Hot Topics Most Viewed Forum Photo Galleries Video Readers Polls O-Zone Online Games Movie Preview Special Sections Real Estate Guide Menu Guide Shakespeare Subscribe Contact Us Rate Card Place an Ad October 20, 2005 Is Ashland Planning Broken Or Getting Fixed? Frustrated commissioner resigns New planners are trying to change the job, KenCairn says By Robert Plain Ashland Daily Tidings Citing, in part, turmoil in Ashland’s planning process, Kerry KenCairn has resigned from the Ashland Planning Commission. A local landscape architect who has been on the commission since 1999, KenCairn said the commission’s work has become messy and side-tracked. “It doesn’t function well,” she said. “It’s in such a state of disarray. I don’t think it’s clear what the planning commission’s role is.” Also, KenCairn is bringing a subdivision proposal before the planning commission at its November meeting. Because state law forbids planning commissions from presenting their own projects, she reasoned that this was a natural time to end her tenure. “I wanted to wait until I had my own good reasons,” she said. “If the system was working I probably would have found another way but it’s not a fulfilling process for me anymore. Discussions and decisions that are pretty straightforward take all night, which is probably what a portion of the community wants.” This line of reasoning has become more common in Ashland recently as there is an ever-growing feeling amongst the pro-growth community that the no-growth community is trying to derail the proper functioning of the planning process. “All we are supposed to do is judge the law,” KenCairn said, noting that only in the last few years has planning become so contentious in Ashland. “What you see on the planning commission right now is a bunch of people trying to rewrite their jobs.” Other commissioners, however, believe this slowed down planning process is actually a sign of a health. Fellow commissioner Michael Dawkins said this new detail-oriented style of deliberation is good for the community. “I don’t think the process is broken, I think we are turning it around,” he said. “We’re trying to come up with some sort of grasp of what the planning process should be. And development as usual may become more difficult as a result.” But KenCairn said the planning process is being hijacked by a “vocal minority.” “A bunch of people in the community are not happy with where the vocal minority is taking us,” she said. “We need to get the vocal majority involved.” John Fields, the chair of the planning commission, echoed the comments of both KenCairn and Dawkins. He said Ashland is experiencing a “resistance to rapid change.” As a result, he said, the system has become gridlocked. “Now we have lawyers go through each planning action line by line,” he said. “The whole process is being challenged on every word and the system has to accommodate that.” Fields, Dawkins and other commissioners said they will miss KenCairn’s dedicated service to the commission. Fields said the commission is becoming stacked with people who are not only relatively new to Ashland but also new to planning and zoning issues. “The reality is, we need people involved who have on the ground experience,” he said. Dawkins said he has always appreciated KenCairn’s intellect and her perspective, although he said it often differs from his own. “Pragmatically, her vote was usually different from mine,” he said. “But I like that diversity. We need that conflict to flush things out. There have been several instances in which she came up with great compromises.” KenCairn said she plans to stay involved in the planning process — but does not yet know in what capacity. “Maybe I’ll become a part of the vocal majority,” she said. Staff writer Robert Plain can be reached at 482-3456 x 3040 or [email protected]. --> Copyright © 2006 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers. All Rights Reserved.