| Groups file suit seeking limits on growth |
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A coalition of groups advocating controlled growth has filed a lawsuit in
Washoe District Court seeking to overturn Reno's designation of 29,000 acres north of Reno in its annexation area as a "special planning
area" under its master plan.
Reno Gazette-Journal: PLAN Executive Director Bob Fulkerson says Reno needs real planning, not a "scheme" to grease leapfrog development.
SUSAN VOYLES
A coalition of groups
advocating controlled growth has filed a lawsuit in Washoe District Court
seeking to overturn Reno's designation of
29,000 acres north of Reno
in its annexation area as a "special planning area" under its master
plan.
The lawsuit filed Monday
seeks to overturn the Regional Planning Commission's decision Feb. 13 that the
"special planning area" designation complies with the regional plan.
Plaintiffs are Rancho Haven Residents for Sensible Planning, Rancho resident
Sandy McGill, activist Erik Holland, the Progressive Leadership Alliance of
Nevada, Citizens for Cold Springs and Cold Springs resident Frank Schenk.
"It's not like
planning. It's a scheme," said Bob Fulkerson, PLAN executive director.
"We want them to go back to the drawing board."
Rosanna Coombes, Truckee
Meadows Regional Planning Agency executive director, said she couldn't comment
until she reads the case and consults with the agency's attorney.
During county commission
discussion Tuesday night, Coombes described the special planning area.
"The SPA is not the end
of the road," she said. "It's the beginning of the planning
process."
John Hester, Reno community
development director, could not be reached for comment. Marilyn Craig,
assistant deputy district attorney for planning, declined to comment.
Hester has said the special
planning area designation was sought because it would allow for Planned Unit
Development handbooks, usually used for large master-planned projects with
mixed uses.
Commissioner Jim Galloway
wanted the commission to intervene because he considers the planning area is
too broad.
In the residents' lawsuit,
Reno lawyer John Marshall questions how Reno can exercise planning control over
lands it cannot reasonably expect to annex. Reno and other municipalities asked
the Nevada Legislature last year to clarify state law and give them the right
to annex lands not touching their borders. Their bill was rejected.
Reno planners are reviewing plans for building 12,500 homes in Winnemucca Ranch even though it's 12 miles north from the city's nearest edge in Cold Springs.
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