Landwatch Lane County v. Lane County

The owners of two parcels applied for a legal lot verification and property line adjustment to adjust the boundary between the parcels. Under Lane Code (LC) 13.140(3)(n), a “lawfully established unit of land” is a lot or parcel created (1) by filing a final subdivision or partition plat, (2) in compliance with applicable zoning and subdivision regulations, or (3) by deed if no zoning or subdivision regulations applied. A hearings officer concluded that no subdivision regulations applied to the two parcels when they were created by deed, so they were lawfully established units of land. The hearings officer therefore approved the applications. This appeal followed.

Petitioner argued that the hearings officer erred in concluding that one of the two parcels was a legal lot because its creation by deed in 1970 did not comply with the applicable 1962 subdivision ordinance. Under section III(E)(3) of the 1962 ordinance, a “minor subdivision” is a division of land in an urban area that, among other things, the planning commission concludes “[d]oes not impede the future highest and best use of the remainder of the tract.” Under section III(G)(4) of the 1962 ordinance, a “subdivision” is a division of land. However, a division of land is not a “subdivision” if (1) no new street is created and (2) the subdivision would have been a minor subdivision if it were in an urban area. Petitioner argued that the 1962 subdivision ordinance applied to the creation of the relevant parcel in 1970 because the grantor did not seek a determination from the planning commission that it would not impede the future use of the remainder and it therefore did not fall under the exception to the definition of “subdivision” in section III(G)(4). Under petitioner’s interpretation of the 1962 ordinance, all land divisions at that time required planning commission approval, even if just to determine that they were not a subdivision subject to the 1962 ordinance. LUBA concluded that that interpretation did not give any meaning to the 1962 ordinance’s intent to treat land inside urban areas different from land outside urban areas. The county’s decision was therefore AFFIRMED.