Central Oregon LandWatch v. Deschutes County

396 P.3d 968, 285 Or. App. 267, 2017 Ore. App. LEXIS 564
CourtCourt of Appeals of Oregon
DecidedMay 3, 2017
Docket2016065; A163908
StatusPublished
Cited by14 cases

This text of 396 P.3d 968 (Central Oregon LandWatch v. Deschutes County) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Oregon primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Central Oregon LandWatch v. Deschutes County, 396 P.3d 968, 285 Or. App. 267, 2017 Ore. App. LEXIS 564 (Or. Ct. App. 2017).

Opinion

LAGESEN, J.

Petitioner Pine Forest Development, LLC (Pine Forest) seeks judicial review, and respondent Central Oregon LandWatch (LandWatch) cross-petitions for review, of an order of the Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) that remands to respondent Deschutes County (the county)1 its decision approving Pine Forest’s proposal to expand the Caldera Springs destination resort. The resort was approved in 2006 under the destination-resort land use statutes, ORS 197.435 to 197.467, which were promulgated in accordance with Statewide Planning Goal 8. Pine Forest raises two assignments of error, arguing that (1) LUBA’s order was an impermissible collateral attack on prior county decisions concerning the resort and (2) LUBA erred in concluding that certain individual bedrooms in 38 of the resort’s vacation homes—which we shall refer to as the “lock-off rooms”— which have full bathrooms and lockable interior and exterior doors, are not overnight lodging units, as defined in ORS 197.435(5)(b), for purposes of meeting the criteria for a destination resort under ORS 197.445(4)(b). LandWatch, in its cross-petition, contends that an expansion of a destination resort is not allowed under ORS 197.445 unless the proposed expansion area meets all of the criteria as a standalone resort and that LUBA erred in concluding otherwise.

On review to determine whether LUBA’s order is unlawful in substance, ORS 197.850(9)(a), we conclude that LUBA correctly determined that ORS 197.445 does not prohibit the approval of a proposed expansion of a destination resort provided either that the proposed expanded resort, as a whole, satisfies all applicable statutory requirements for the siting of a destination report, or the expanded area, [270]*270on its own, meets all applicable requirements. We therefore affirm on the cross-petition. As to LUBA’s conclusion that that the lock-off rooms do not qualify as overnight lodging under ORS 197.435(5)(b), we agree with Pine Forest that LUBA misconstrued the statute in reaching that conclusion. We disagree, however, with Pine Forest’s assertion that the lock-off rooms qualify as “overnight lodgings” as a matter of law under a correct interpretation of the statute and, for that reason, remand to LUBA to consider the matter in the first instance. We therefore reverse and remand on the petition.

I. BACKGROUND AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

A. Legal Framework

To provide context, we first summarize the state and local law applicable to the siting of a destination resort in Deschutes County. Statewide Planning Goal 8 speaks to the siting of destination resorts in Oregon. The purpose of Goal 8 is to “‘satisfy the recreational needs of the citizens of the state and visitors and, where appropriate, to provide for the siting of necessary recreational facilities including destination resorts’” without the need for an exception to the resource goals if certain criteria are met. Friends of Marion County v. Marion County, 233 Or App 488, 494-95, 227 P3d 198 (2010) (quoting Goal 8).

To implement Goal 8’s objectives regarding the siting of destination resorts, the legislature enacted ORS 197.435 through 197.467. Those statutes set forth the criteria that a proposed resort must meet to be approved as a destination resort. The statutes define a destination resort as “a self-contained development that provides for visitor-oriented accommodations and developed recreational facilities in a setting with high natural amenities.” ORS 197.445. Further, the legislature has found that destination resorts are intended “to promote Oregon as a vacation destination and to encourage tourism as a valuable segment of our state’s economy,” that Oregon has “a growing need to provide year-round destination resort accommodations to attract visitors and encourage them to stay longer,” and that it is a “difficult and costly process to site and establish destination resorts in rural areas of this state.” ORS 197.440.

[271]*271For destination resorts sited in “eastern Oregon,”2 ORS 197.445 sets forth a number of criteria for “proposed developments.” A proposed development must have at least 160 acres with half of the site reserved for permanent open space and must include a $7 million expenditure3 on recreational facilities and visitor-oriented accommodations. Residential homes can be included in a destination resort, but the resort must have at least 150 overnight lodging units and the ratio of residential homes to overnight lodging units cannot exceed 2.5 to 1. ORS 197.445(4)(b)(A), (E). Under ORS 197.435(5)(b), “overnight lodgings” for destination resorts located in eastern Oregon are defined as:

“permanent, separately rentable accommodations that are not available for residential use, including hotel or motel rooms, cabins and time-share units. Individually owned units may be considered overnight lodgings if they are available for overnight rental use by the general public for at least 38 weeks per calendar year through a central reservation system operated by the destination resort or by a real estate property manager, as defined in ORS 696.010. Tent sites, recreational vehicle parks, manufactured dwellings, dormitory rooms and similar accommodations do not qualify as overnight lodgings for the purpose of this definition.”

Deschutes County, in turn, has enacted its own ordinances to govern the approval of destination resorts proposed to be sited in the county. Pertinent to the issues in this proceeding, Deschutes County Code (DCC) 18.113.0254 [272]*272authorizes the county to approve an expansion of an existing resort if either (1) the proposed expanded resort, viewed as a whole, satisfies the criteria for approval as a destination resort; or (2) the expanded portion, standing alone, meets the criteria for approval as a destination resort.

B. The Proposed Expansion of the Caldera Springs Destination Resort

We turn to the particulars of this case.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
396 P.3d 968, 285 Or. App. 267, 2017 Ore. App. LEXIS 564, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/central-oregon-landwatch-v-deschutes-county-orctapp-2017.