Where's the ranch?
LUBA rules in favor of LandWatch on abandoned use
Central Oregon LandWatch recently celebrated a win at the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA). In February, LUBA ruled in LandWatch’s favor in our appeal of Deschutes County’s decision to restart a decades-old guest ranch on land outside Sisters.
What is a guest ranch?
In Oregon, a guest ranch is a working ranch that provides additional overnight lodging and food services for guests.
LUBA agreed with LandWatch that the County erred by allowing the guest ranch to restart, and sent the decision back to the County to consider whether the use has been abandoned and may not be continued.
This win sets an important precedent by invalidating a misinterpretation of state and local land use law and will help prevent fragmentation of the agricultural land base in Deschutes County.
The problem of resurfacing void land use permits
In Oregon, land use permits are valid for two years with extensions. The limited duration of land use permits is important to ensure that development occurs in accordance with current laws that reflect current conditions.
In 2002, Deschutes County approved a guest ranch outside of Sisters. The approval was highly controversial. Neighbors testified the property had never been a ranch. As such, there was no ranch to become a guest ranch.
In Oregon, a working ranch is a prerequisite to becoming a guest ranch to ensure that agricultural land remains primarily used for farming purposes and not sprawling development. Nevertheless, the County approved the use.
The original applicant began work on a guest ranch in 2002, then stopped work for many years. In the twenty years that followed, the guest ranch laws changed significantly. The new laws clarify that guest ranches are a means of supplementing ranch income and are not permitted except in conjunction with a working ranch.
The property was sold in 2021. When the new owner applied to continue the guest ranch, LandWatch argued to Deschutes County that a new application was required because the permit had been void for approximately 15 years, and was abandoned. Neighbors of the property testified there has never been a ranch on the property, so there is no ranch to become a guest ranch. Deschutes County did not consider whether the use had been abandoned and approved a continuation of the 2002 permit.
LandWatch appealed this decision to the Deschutes County Board of Commissioners, but the board decided not to review the application. LandWatch took the position that the right to develop had been lost by abandonment and appealed this decision to the Land Use Board of Appeals.
The LUBA decision
On February 3, the Land Use Board of Appeals agreed with us; we prevailed on the issue that the County must address the question of abandonment of the land use.
This was an important case regarding a common misinterpretation of the law when applications are renewed even after becoming void years prior.
In the twenty years since the use was first approved, Deschutes County has seen many changes, including a historic drought and a change in development pressure on its farm and forest lands.
LandWatch is glad to have won on the issue of abandonment at LUBA on behalf of its members and will continue to litigate this issue to ensure permit approvals are in accordance with current laws. In this case, no commercial uses are permitted on agricultural lands in the guise of a guest ranch except as a means to supplement income on a working ranch.
Ponderosas between Sisters and Black Butte: Bob Pool
A Watchdog for Central Oregon
With increased pressure to develop our farms and forests, we continue to review proposed development applications in Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson Counties. Our legal team challenges those proposed developments that would fragment intact rural lands and violate Oregon’s land use policies. On our watch, we will keep proposed development accountable to the law.
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