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SUNNY Temp: 62 °F Wind: NW at 4 mph Wednesday, October 9, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend September 22, 2002 Ashland seeks to balance parks, housing needs By TONY BOOM Mail Tribune ASHLAND — The City Council hopes to avoid a feud over using available land for affordable housing versus city parks. Councilwoman Cate Hartzell said last week she would circulate her own proposal at a future meeting for a unified approach to city land sales and acquisitions. The council on Tuesday delayed consideration of staff recommendations on property sales until Oct. 15 due to time constraints. Calls for a unified approach came after the Ashland Parks and Recreation Commission created a committee in July to recommend funding sources for open space, trails and parks purchases. The city’s housing commission asked for an integrated approach that also would include land for affordable housing, something Ashland is sorely lacking. Several council members indicated support for the strategy at Wednesday’s meeting. But Councilman Don Laws said a unified approach would be difficult politically. Parks committee members subsequently determined they did not have authority to consider land buys for affordable housing. "I can’t lead a committee that’s doing something outside my responsibility," said Rick Landt, a committee member and chair of the parks commission. "My hope is that we can have a coherent discussion around our need and values and priorities," said Hartzell. Hartzell hopes there would not be a tradeoff between acquiring sites for affordable housing and those for parks and open space. Councilman John Morrison has said tension may result when land needs for the two goals are set against each other. A review of city lands is one of the council’s goals for this year. The council earlier requested information on specific sites with sales potential after a review of 32 city properties. The sites include: Approximately 840 acres of farmland east of Interstate 5. The land was acquired for a wastewater spray irrigation system that was never built. It is outside the city’s urban growth boundary. Sale is recommended. A 66-acre site on Emigrant Creek Road that includes Lithia Springs and the Ashland Gun Club. The site is under lease until 2009. No action is recommended. A 6,000-square-foot, single-family lot next to the Oak Knoll golf course. Sale was recommended. A 21,000-square-foot lot on Nevada Street that could be used for two or three homes. The city stores utility poles at the site. Retention is recommend until a better storage site is found. A 2.1-acre site where Westwood Street meets Strawberry Lane. Four homesites could be developed. Sale is recommended. Public hearings would be required before any parcel could be sold. County assessors do not determine values for lands held by public agencies. The farmland was acquired for $950,338 in 1996. The springs and gun club site was acquired in the 1920s for $7,000. Other site prices and acquisition dates were not immediately available. Farmland east of I-5 should not be sold, said Councilman Don Laws. With southern exposure, the property would be ideal for a solar farm that would generate power for the city’s electric utility, he said. A list of priorities should be established before properties are sold, said Hartzell. "When the money is in hand, things happen very fast," she said. Reach Ashland bureau reporter Tony Boom at 482-4651, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy webmaster feedback A D V E R T I S E R S