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Talent building moratorium appealed to land-use board TALENT -- The developers of an unfinished retirement community are challenging the city's new building moratorium. Oak Valley attorney Fred Wilson says he will ask the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals to invalidate Talent's moratorium because of a state law that limits building moratoriums to four six-month periods, or about two years. "When the moratorium came, they kind of got left in the lurch," said Wilson. "Now they're being asked to wait another two years." The City Council first declared a water emergency and adopted a building moratorium in February 1997. It adopted a second moratorium March 3 in anticipation of the expiration of the first moratorium March 14. With at least 18 months left to go before the completion of a water intertie with Medford, city staff anticipate extending the moratorium at least that long. Even if LUBA approves the concept of a second moratorium, Wilson says the city hasn't met other requirements for a moratorium. He says the city should have tried to get additional water from the Talent Irrigation District or allow new residents to drill wells. Only 26 of 47 approved Oak Valley sites have been built on. The remainder can't be assigned building permits until the moratorium ends. An additional 30 lots haven't been approved by the city. Craig Jackson and Scott Crenshaw of Roseburg have cited serious financial jeopardy as the reason they need an exemption to the moratorium. "There's not a moratorium on interest payments," said Wilson. There are at least two other unfinished subdivisions in the city, according to city planner Nancy Kincaid. "We have to apply it (the moratorium) equally to everybody," said Kincaid. "We can't make exceptions." While Kincaid has said the moratorium doesn't prevent Jackson and Crenshaw from selling lots, no lots have been sold since the moratorium began. "Who's going to buy a lot and pay the taxes and homeowner dues and not be able to build a house on it?" said John Green, an Oak Valley homeowner. Wilson estimates it will be six to nine months before LUBA makes a decision. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA