Published: 02.28.2004
By Howard Fischer
CAPITOL MEDIA SERVICES
PHOENIX - A coalition delivered a comprehensive plan to lawmakers Friday designed
to preserve more state trust land and better plan for the development of the
rest of it.
The proposal, if approved by voters, would protect about 280,000 acres from
development. Another 400,000 acres would be given special protection, and could
become open space if the state was paid the value of the property.
The coalition includes ranchers, developers, educators and some conservation
groups.
But 15 conservation groups object to one key provision that would give ranchers
a legal leg-up in getting long-term leases of state land. And that, in turn,
could pull the entire deal apart because ranchers occupy the largest part of
the 9.3 million acres of state trust lands.
There have been prior efforts to protect state lands, including the 1995 Arizona
Preserve Initiative and the 1998 voter-approved Growing Smarter plan, which
set aside $20 million a year for 11 years to buy open lands for preservation.
But these resulted in a patchwork of sometimes conflicting laws that often didn't
work, according to Ed Fox, an executive with Arizona Public Service who organized
the coalition.
This plan, which needs legislative as well as voter approval this year, sets
aside 280,000 acres of "special value" land the state could never
sell it for development. But it also allows hundreds of thousands of acres of
other lands to be set aside for open space if the state obtains full value.
Communities would not need to use tax dollars.
For example, Fox said the state may have a 1,000-acre parcel now zoned for one
home per acre. He said the plan would let a city have half that land for free
if it rezones the balance for two or more homes - in essence, increasing the
value of that part so the state, when it sells the land, loses nothing.
The issue of money is crucial: Proceeds from the sale or lease of state land
help pay for education.