Elections are here and there were many candidates who ran in the primary. One must consider the most important thing that local and state legislators do that affects us all. Policies that protect and affect private property rights and land rights should be on the top of the list. Whether one owns a home on a small city lot or large rural acreage, owns bare land, or wants to own land, the policies that control that land and control everything, should be foremost on voters’ minds.
Costs continue to rise. Congested streets, high density housing, expensive homes and housing, high taxes, unreasonable, costly regulation and homelessness is a direct result of land use policies that local and state officials have made. Improper restrictive zoning negatively impacts the land and our people in all areas of the county and state. But how can we change it?
One must ask candidates these questions. Do they support private property rights and land rights? Do they support single family home ownership and will they work to preserve it? Do they believe landowners should help determine what’s best for their city lot or country acreage and support policies protecting this right? Will they work to reduce unnecessary and costly regulations that affect these lands? What policies will they put in place to reduce high density and high taxation? How will they eliminate unreasonable land use policies? Will they create policies that allow a variety of affordable housing in both rural and urban lands countywide? Voting for candidates who support and embrace private property rights and land rights is the only way to assure that affordable, livable communities are available to all of us throughout Clark County. That is where it all begins.
Carol Levanen,
Yacolt
