Kjell Stoknes cites the threat to local environmental protections.

A city councilor is urging the city to take a stand against a state ballot initiative aimed at compensating land owners for environmental protections.

Councilman Kjell Stoknes on Monday submitted a draft resolution that, if approved, would express the council’s opposition to Initiative 933 and urge voters to reject it in November’s general election.

Dubbed the “Property Fairness” initiative by supporters and patterned after Oregon’s Measure 37, I-933 would require cities and counties to pay land owners for regulations that adversely impact the use or value of private property.

Without the financial means to compensate landowners for land use regulations, the city would likely be forced to waive many environmental protections, according to Stoknes.

“(I-933) sets us back 100 years in the collective growth of society,” Stoknes said. “It focuses on the rights of individuals to do with the land that which may not be in the interests of the community.”

Stoknes’ proposed resolution also warns that I-933 could endanger the city’s ability to provide basic services if large pay-outs are given to property owners. In addition, Stoknes contends that claims brought by property owners may entangle the city in expensive and lengthy litigation.

“It isn’t as though this doesn’t affect us as a city,” he said. “It does affect us, (and) I think it’s irresponsible for us not to debate this publicly.”

Eight other city governments have taken a stand against I-933, including Mercer Island, Puyallup and Auburn. The City of Olympia’s resolution in opposition to I-933 states that the initiative would “dismantle” a decade’s worth of development, supplant “the will of the local community,” and deprive the city of its “constitutional authority” to adopt and enforce “sound land use” rules affecting water quality, wildlife habitat, growth management and zoning.

The State of Washington has also issued dire warnings of I-933’s possible impact. The state Office of Financial Management estimates I-933 could cost the state over $2 billion over the next six years. The cost to cities is even greater, with the OFM projecting between $3.8 to $5.3 billion during the same period.

The OFM bases its estimates on the fallout after Oregon passed Measure 37 two years ago. As of August 2004, Oregon has received almost 3,000 claims from land owners, affecting 168,677 acres worth $4 billion. Since I-933 is broader in scope than Measure 37, the OFM anticipates higher compensation values in Washington state.

But island property rights activist and I-933 supporter Gary Tripp said the high cost of potential claims will likely dissuade the city from spending money to uphold land use rules.

“There’s no evidence Oregon has spent one dime to pay fines on Measure 37,” he said. “If experience is any teacher, the same will be true here.

“If taking land is free, (the city) will take it. If they have to pay for it, they won’t (take) it.”

It’s this line of thinking that has Bob Burkholder of Bainbridge Conservation Voters worried. BCV and other environmental groups were joined this week by the Bainbridge Land Trust in opposing I-933.

“Bottom line: (I-933) is the destruction of government,” Burkholder said. “The developers will say, ‘By God, this land is mine and to hell with the community.”

Burkholder praised Stoknes’ stand against I-933 and urged the council to support the resolution.

“I’m delighted Kjell is going ahead with this,” he said. “I plan to support it. We as a community have to stand for what we believe in.”

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Land Trust: Vote No

The Bainbridge Island Land Trust took an uncharacteristically political stand Monday in expressing opposition to Initiative 933.

“(I-933) will cost the state and local government millions of dollars to pay landowners who claim any regulation will reduce the value of their property,” stated BILT’s board in a press release opposing the November ballot initiative. “The measure does not provide funding to compensate these landowners. The Bainbridge Island Land Trust urges a “no” vote on I-933.”

I-933, according to its supporters, is a necessary step to compensate landowners for the growing number of environmental and development regulations that restrict use or dampen property values.

But BILT Board President Katya Bridwell warns that I-933 could undermine the terms of conservation easements her organization holds. Conservation easements are legal agreements, recorded with the deed to a property, that protect the land in perpetuity. BILT currently protects over 700 acres on Bainbridge Island through conservation easements.

Additionally, BILT contends that I-933 could endanger many other environmentally sensitive areas, including aquifers, lakes, streams and forests.

– Tristan Baurick