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Good boundaries make good neighbors Mail Tribune / Jim Craven As part of a regional growth planning initiative, officials of the Rogue Valley Council of Governments are trying to create a standard for buffer zones between farms and new developments. Some cities require 200 feet, others require no separation. These houses are going up on the east side of Hillcrest Orchard. Buffer zones between homes and urban farms could lead to strict rule By TONY BOOM New homes have sprouted just 12.5 feet from the south property line of Jerry May's Central Point orchard on Gebhard Road. "I'd like to maintain the orchard, but at this point who knows what's going to happen. You can't spray an orchard for too long with houses right there," said May. Buffer zones between homes and farms vary in the Rogue Valley. Jackson County and Phoenix require 200-foot buffers. Medford usually requires a 100-foot buffer. Talent has no standards, but works with the county on each development. Central Point has no standards, but encourages larger lots to create buffers. Uniform rules may be on the way as part of the 50-year regional planning effort. A Resource Land Review Committee will recommend a model ordinance for buffers as part of the Regional Problem Solving project coordinated by the Rogue Valley Council of Governments. Participants include Jackson County, Ashland, Central Point, Eagle Point, Jacksonville, Medford, Phoenix and Talent. "There's a stunning lack of uniformity in ag land setback requirements among the communities in the study area," said John Eads, project coordinator. Besides drifting spray, other problems include trespass and vandalism, said Nancy Kincaid, Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development representative to the committee. May's land is inside Central Point's urban growth boundary, but still in the county. Land on two sides was taken into the city to allow development. Construction started two years ago. May's site has been used as an orchard since the 1920s. There are pear trees on 15 of his 29 acres. He replanted six rows of trees adjacent to the new development four years ago. He took out one of the rows when he saw how close the houses were. "May's orchard is not typical. You don't see working farms inside urban growth boundaries," said Matt Samitore, Central Point community planner. "Probably in the foreseeable future it's going to be developed." The Beebe and Gebhard farms are in the same situation, said Samitore. Elsewhere, the city has developers create larger lots and may recommend fencing and trees. "The smaller growers and Hillcrest Orchards seem to be sitting directly in line with the urban sprawl," said Dennis Hofer, executive director of the Fruit Growers League. Buffer issues also affect larger growers like Bear Creek Corp., he added. "We should have a firm standard of at least 100 feet throughout the county," said Hofer. "You can't farm if you have a 50-foot setback." Senior planner Mark Gallagher said buffers in Medford are negotiated, but are usually 100 feet. But a development just east of Hillcrest has a 75-foot buffer to homes. Trees planted in a 35-foot area next to the property line by the developer, nonagricultural trees on Hillcrest's side and the presence of a fence allowed for a smaller buffer, said Gallagher. "We really would have preferred more, but the city doesn't have a uniform buffering law," said Jon Meadors, Hillcrest superintendent. "It makes it hard to negotiate these things." Trees along Hillcrest and Foothill roads are natural buffers to urban development on the orchard's south and west sides, said Meadors. The orchard is in the county, but surrounded by the city on three sides. "(A regulation) will probably be more stringent than our 100 feet. Two-hundred feet or more might be where we end up," said Gallagher. Medford planners will attempt to keep further growth areas away from orchards, he said. Reach Ashland bureau reporter Tony Boom at 482-4651, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.