Letter to the Editor: Council Ignoring Costs of CAO

To the Editor:

The San Juan County Council is proposing new rules and restrictions on property owners in the county under what they are calling the Critical Areas Ordinance.  The current draft has evolved into a complex document listing sets of new restrictions encumbering both existing homes and undeveloped properties.  Portions of nearly all private property in the islands will be restricted under a system of critical area designations and critical area buffers.

Unfortunately, the Council is proposing rules and restrictions without identifying an environmental need or any analysis as to the cost of compliance for the property owners or cost and difficulty of administration by the County.

The Council majority has shown no interest in reporting how the new restrictions will affect the value of the newly restricted private property.  Also not addressed is the cost to the local economy, island businesses or jobs for working families.

The Council majority appears to view private property rights as an arcane historical footnote that is simply a small obstacle to be overcome.

I am puzzled as to how some members of the County Council we elected to represent the interests and well being of the citizens of our community could have strayed so far from what our citizens elected to do.

Craig & Jill Dorsey
San Juan Island