NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

 

Boundary County Commissioners will hold public hearing at 9:30 a.m. Monday, August 24, 2009, in commission chambers at the Boundary County Courthouse to accept public comment on application 09-013 by Boundary County to amend the Boundary County Zoning and Subdivision Ordinance to increase the scope of simple subdivisions and to require that property taxes be paid and current prior to approving applications for simple subdivision.

 

Specifically, the proposal would delete Chapter 15, Section 1D6 (Exemptions): “Any division of land in which all lots or parcels created have legal access and are not less than 20-acres or a 1/32nd aliquot division of a section,” and amend Chapter 15, Section 2A, Boundary County Zoning and Subdivision Ordinance 99-06, to read: “Simple Subdivision: Applications for subdivisions of three or fewer parcels which require no change in zone district designation in order to be in compliance with the provisions of this ordinance, and when no shared infrastructure or improvements must be constructed to meet the requirements of Boundary County or other agencies, or any division of land in which all lots or parcels created have legal access and are not less than 20-acres or a 1/32nd aliquot division of a section, and with acknowledgement by the county treasurer or authorized assign that property taxes on the parcel being divided are current and paid for the year. Applications for simple subdivision shall be made on forms provided for the zoning administrator, who shall have the authority, without need of public hearing, to approve or deny such applications based solely on the standards established by this ordinance and the provisions of the zone district in which the subdivision is proposed. Applications shall include either a record of survey depicting the entire parcel being divided, depicting new property lines, roads and easements accessing each parcel, and the size, in acres, of each parcel created; or a legal description of each parcel proposed, to include easements and the size, in acres, of each parcel to be created.”

 

The Planning and Zoning Commission has recommended the application be denied.

 

The deadline for written comment and material is 5 p.m. Thursday, August 20, 2009. Written comment may be mailed to Boundary County Planning and Zoning, PO Box 419, Bonners Ferry, ID 83805, faxed to (208) 267-1205, or emailed to planning@boundarycountyid.org. Written comment will be accepted at public hearing provided the material is read into the record. There may be a five (5) minute limit per person on verbal testimony.

 

Further information on this application is available at the Planning and Zoning Office, Room 16 of the Courthouse, and the application is available for public review. Information is also available by calling (208) 267-7212.

 

Anyone requiring special accommodation due to handicap or disability should contact the planning office at least two (2) days prior to the hearing.

Boundary County Planning and Zoning Commission

Zone Ordinance Amendment Application 09-013

FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATION

 

Motion: Made by member Matt Cossalman to forward to county commissioners a recommendation that, because of the fact that the amendment proposed will create more problems than it would resolve, that application 09-013 be disapproved. Seconded by member Matt Morgan and carried unanimously, with three members absent.

 

Applicant: Boundary County

 

Purpose: To eliminate the subdivision exemption for parcels 20-acres in size and larger and to require that the County Treasurer sign off on all simple subdivision applications prior to final approval indicating that property taxes on the parcel being divided are current and paid for the year.

 

Legal notice was initially published on this application May 7, 2009, for hearing May 21, but due to the absence of the administrator the hearing was tabled until the regular June meeting. At the June 18 meeting, concerns were raised regarding insufficient notice, and the hearing was again tabled until the regular July meeting. Legal notice was re-published June 25, 2009, and, because the proposal was judicial and affected all Boundary County property owners, a second display ad was published July 2, 2009, and press releases sent to all local media outlets and published on the Boundary County website.

 

As a result of public notification, one letter in opposition to the proposal was received from Terry Capurso, Moyie Springs. At public hearing, Jeff Ennis, Terry Capurso and Steve Tanner spoke in opposition to the proposal, stating that the amendment would interfere with a property owner’s right to use their land in their own best interest and would preclude people who had fallen behind in their property taxes from being able to use their property for relief. They testified that Boundary County had at its disposal methods to insure that property taxes were paid, up to and including foreclosing on property; and that those who sold property would be guilty of fraud should they fail to disclose taxes owed, and subject to both civil and criminal action.

 

No member of the public spoke in favor of or uncommitted on the proposal.

 

In discussing the proposal, members of the Planning and Zoning Commission reached the following findings:

  1. Boundary County is currently in a recession with an unemployment rate at ten percent, meaning one in 10 Boundary County residents could face problems paying property taxes, and that this proposal placed unreasonable obstacles in the way of their being able to divide their land so as to alleviate financial distress.
  2. The amendment, as presented, would require all property owners within Boundary County to make application and gain approval prior to the partition of their land through the elimination of the exemption to subdivision requirements on partitions of land where all parcels created are 20-acres or more in size.
  3. Boundary County, as all other counties in Idaho, has ample laws relating to the collection of property taxes, up to and including foreclosure, to insure that assessed taxes are collected. It should not be the responsibility of the county to establish laws requiring payment of taxes prior to subdivision. This, requirement, if passed into law, would also impede an owner’s ability to sell.
  4. Based on testimony provided by the administrator, it appears that this proposed amendment was submitted based on the actions of a single property owner and developer, though the tax obligations fell upon several who purchased property from that developer. In failing to inform the buyers of tax obligations prior to the sale, the seller could be liable for fraud, and buyers could seek redress through civil legal action. In addition, those buyers who failed to check on liens outstanding on the property they purchased did not exhibit due diligence, either through obtaining title insurance or checking with the treasurer’s office personally. The exercise of due diligence belongs to the buyer, not the county.
  5. Approval of the amendment proposed would not protect the welfare of Boundary County from peril, but would instead inflict undue restrictions and requirements on the many so as to prevent potentially illegal actions by the few.

 

Based on the above, and by the motion cited above, the Boundary County Planning and Zoning Commission hereby recommends that application 09-013 be disapproved.

 

/s/

Doug Reoch                                                                 July 27, 2009

Chairman

ADDENDUM, P&Z APPLICATION 09-013

 

DELETE CHAPTER 15, SECTION 1D6 (Subdivision Exemptions):

“Any division of land in which all lots or parcels created have legal access and are not less than twenty (20) acres or a 1/32nd aliquot division of a section.”

 

TO AMEND CHAPTER 15, SECTION 2A

As currently reads:

Section 2: Types of Subdivision Procedures:

A.     Simple Subdivision: Applications for subdivisions three (3) or fewer parcels which requires no change in zone district in order to be in compliance with the provisions of this ordinance when no shared infrastructure or improvements must be constructed to meet the requirements of Boundary County or other agencies. Applications for simple subdivisions shall be made on forms provided by the Boundary County Zoning Administrator, who shall have the authority, without need of public hearing, to approve or deny the application based solely on the standards established by this ordinance and the provisions of the zone district in which the subdivision is proposed. Applications shall include either a record of survey depicting the entire parcel being divided, depicting new parcel lines, roads and easements accessing each parcel, and the size, in acres, of each parcel created; or a legal description of each parcel proposed, to include easements and the size, in acres, of each parcel to be created.

 

Amend to read (adding underlined):

Section 2: Types of Subdivision Procedures

  1. Simple Subdivision: Applications for subdivisions of three or fewer parcels which require no change in zone district designation in order to be in compliance with the provisions of this ordinance, and when no shared infrastructure or improvements must be constructed to meet the requirements of Boundary County or other agencies, or any division of land in which all lots or parcels created have legal access and are not less than twenty (20) acres or a 1/32nd aliquot division of a section; and with acknowledgement by the county treasurer or authorized assign that property taxes on the parcel being divided are current and paid for the year. Applications for simple subdivision shall be made on forms provided for the zoning administrator, who shall have the authority, without need of public hearing, to approve or deny such applications based solely on the standards established by this ordinance and the provisions of the zone district in which the subdivision is proposed. Applications shall include either a record of survey depicting the entire parcel being divided, depicting new property lines, roads and easements accessing each parcel, and the size, in acres, of each parcel created; or a legal description of each parcel proposed, to include easements and the size, in acres, of each parcel to be created.

    PROPOSED ORDINANCE

     

    AN ORDINANCE OF BOUNDARY COUNTY, IDAHO, AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 99-06, BOUNDARY COUNTY ZONING AND SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE, TO REDEFINE SIMPLE SUBDIVISION AND TO REQUIRE THAT PROPERTY TAXES FOR THE YEAR BE PAID PRIOR TO DIVISION OF PROPERTY BY SIMPLE SUBDIVISION.

     

                WHEREAS, Section 67-6511, Idaho Code, does require that governing boards adopt zoning and subdivision ordinances and to establish standards and procedures for the division of property; and

     

                WHEREAS, the current Boundary County Zoning and Subdivision Ordinance does not specifically require that property taxes be brought up to date prior to the division of properties by the established process for simple subdivision; and

     

                WHEREAS, failure to require that year to date property taxes be paid prior to the division of parcels by simple subdivision does greatly complicate the assessment and collection of those property taxes, with the potential and realized consequence of purchasers of properties so divided being subject to collection actions up to and including foreclosure due to property taxes unpaid prior to division by simple subdivision; and

     

                WHEREAS, establishing the standard that property taxes for the year be paid prior to the division of properties within Boundary County would eliminate undue complications in the assessment and collection of property taxes and would protect the purchasers of such properties from unforeseen expense; and

     

                WHEREAS, the Board of Commissioners of Boundary County find that failure to adopt a standard requiring the payment of year to date property taxes prior to the division of properties by simple subdivision does constitute peril to the welfare of the citizens of Boundary County; and

     

                WHEREAS, the Board of County Commissioners did hold public hearing on application _________ on ___________________, 2009; and

     

                NOW, THEREFORE BE IT ORDAINED by the Board of County Commissioners of Boundary, that Chapter 15, Section 1D6, Boundary County Zoning and Subdivision Ordinance, be hereby deleted, and Chapter 15, Section 2A, of the Boundary County Zoning and Subdivision Ordinance be hereby amended to read as follows:

     

    Section 2: Types of Subdivision Procedures

    A.     Simple Subdivision: Applications for subdivisions of three or fewer parcels which require no change in zone district designation in order to be in compliance with the provisions of this ordinance, and when no shared infrastructure or improvements must be constructed to meet the requirements of Boundary County or other agencies, or any division of land in which all lots or parcels created have legal access and are not less than twenty (20) acres or a 1/32nd aliquot division of a section; and with acknowledgement by the county treasurer or authorized assign that property taxes on the parcel being divided are current and paid for the year. Applications for simple subdivision shall be made on forms provided for the zoning administrator, who shall have the authority, without need of public hearing, to approve or deny such applications based solely on the standards established by this ordinance and the provisions of the zone district in which the subdivision is proposed. Applications shall include either a record of survey depicting the entire parcel being divided, depicting new property lines, roads and easements accessing each parcel, and the size, in acres, of each parcel created; or a legal description of each parcel proposed, to include easements and the size, in acres, of each parcel to be created.

     

    Regularly passed and approved as an Ordinance of Boundary County, Idaho, done this ____ day of ____, 2009, upon the following roll call vote:

     

    Chairman Smith: ________

     

    Commissioner Dinning: _________

     

    Commissioner Kirby: _________

     

                                                                COUNTY OF BOUNDARY

                                                                BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS

     

     

     

     

                                                                __________________________________________

                                                                RON SMITH, CHAIR

     

     

     

     

                                                                __________________________________________

                                                                DAN DINNING, COMMISSIONER

     

     

     

     

                                                                __________________________________________

                                                                WALT KIRBY, COMMISSIONER

     

    ATTEST

     

     

    _________________________________________

    GLENDA POSTON

    Clerk of the Board of County Commissioners