CCIPRA
June 13, 2010
Cochise County
Individual
& Property Rights
Association
For more info,
email HERE
and put "CCIPRA" in the subject line
or phone Helene Jackson
642-1760
This page is currently being
reformatted into a source for articles about political life in Cochise
County. Please bear with us for a couple more weeks while this is
finished.
* * * * *
A SAMPLE OF WHAT CCIPRA IS
ABOUT
CCIPRA exists to
oppose realtors
and developers, and their government enablers, who want to make money
by taking away your individual and property rights.
Big subdivision
developers claim
the public can't stop big subdivisions. But citizens defeated
the
giant Smith Ranch in 2006, and in April 2007 the developers pulled the
plug on the Anthem project near Benson. The Bachmann Springs
project has evaporated, and the developer's plans for Sunsites have
dried up. Artificial injection of population into rural areas
is
not inevitable. Rural people can stop big developers if we
organize and fight back.
In Cochise County's
Zoning
Regulations, Article 3 Section 307 says "Any use not permitted in a
district ... is specifically prohibited from a zoning
district."
"Whatever isn't permitted is prohibited" doesn't sound like America.
When government officials
believe
that
if they don't allow it, you can't do it,
and
that you shouldn't mind bad laws being passed,
because
the present officials aren't really bad guys,
then
the officials should be pulled away from the public trough,
and
the laws they pass should be rewritten,
to
follow American ideals and the Constitution.
* * * * *
LINKS TO OTHER CCIPRA PAGES
about a miscellany of topics
Bachmann Springs, nka Green Life Springs
Financial
problems dog this plan to put a walled sanctuary for the very rich in
the middle of Cochise County. Is the project worth the time
the County Supervisor keep giving it? See
http://littlebigdog.net/BachmannSprings.htm
Supervisor Searle thinks illegal aliens aren't a big problem
Cochise County's "Envisioning 2020" project
was a wasteful boondoggle
Problems with New Tribes as a neighbor
New
Tribes airport in McNeal, Arizona, has a history of problematic
behavior; and a report about allegations of New Tribes child abuse at
boarding schools abroad is due out soon. See
http://littlebigdog.net/NewTribesMcNealAZExpansion.htm
* * * * *
To get on the list for the CCIPRA email updates, published once a week or more, email
mpj@vtc.net
and put "CCIPRA email" in the subject line. Thanks.
More citizen-based websites are springing up.
It's getting harder and harder for the old "back-room boys" to keep a lid on popular government. For instance:
-- CHARLES TIDD IS ONLINE IN SUNSITES with
http://sunsitessun.com
The
paper is already posting stories. Absolute best of luck to Charles
Tidd! (Disclaimer: The site has a link to "Mike Jackson" -- this
writer. I have no legal interest in the site. I'm recommending it
because that paper is the wave of the future, and can do good things.)
-- JOY BANKS WRITES FOR
http://www.examiner.com
You can go to that site and search for "joy banks" in quotes, or you can subscribe to all of her articles by going to
http://www.examiner.com/x-44832-Cochise-County-Political-Buzz-Examiner?cid=ff_subscription_44832#fragment-3
-- A HARDER LINE ON ZONING, FROM "ARIZONA FACEOFF"
There's a very very very very very very very very interesting website at
http://arizonafaceoff.blogspot.com
An interesting look at the openness of different Arizona county governments is at
http://sunshinereview.org/index.php/Evaluation_of_Arizona_county_websites
Cochise County shows up sucky as to audits, contracts, lobbying, and
public records in general. By far the best county is Pinal; the
worst is La Paz.
Every county is good with information about
meetings, but bad with information about lobbying. More openness
about lobbying would make Cochise County a standout.
Next to lobbying, counties do worst on
contracts. Only Pima and Pinal do well on contracts. More
openness here would make Cochise County stand out.
One thing for the Supes to consider: making
gummint more open is a lot easier than fighting to keep the old "back
room" system.
PARTICIPATING
IN COCHISE COUNTY PUBLIC LIFE
A link
to Arizona statutes about counties in general:
http://www.azleg.gov/ArizonaRevisedStatutes.asp?Title=11
A link to Cochise
County government in general:
http://cochise.az.gov/
A link to the Board Of
Supervisors (BOS) general page:
http://cochise.az.gov/cochise_board_supervisors.aspx?id=224
Contact information
for the BOS
physical address: Bldg. G, 1415 Melody Lane, Bisbee AZ 85603
phone: 432 9200
email addresses:
Pat Call (Dist. 1) - pcall@cochise.az.gov
Ann English (Dist. 2; Chair) - aenglish@cochise.az.gov
Richard Searle (Dist. 3) - rsearle@cochise.az.gov
If you aren't sure who your supervisor is, here are links to maps of their districts:
District 1,
http://cochise.az.gov/cochise_board_supervisors.aspx?id=922&ekmensel=c580fa7b_154_330_922_1
District 2,
http://cochise.az.gov/cochise_board_supervisors.aspx?id=926&ekmensel=c580fa7b_154_330_926_2
District 3,
http://cochise.az.gov/cochise_board_supervisors.aspx?id=930&ekmensel=c580fa7b_154_330_930_3
Unfortunately, the BOS
online "Calendar" at
http://www.co.cochise.az.us/ccwebsite/Calendar.asp
can't be
trusted. Here's a screenshot of how it looked on Friday
morning. October 9
http://littlebigdog.net/CalendarSeptemberDeceptive.jpg
showing its failure to
list a very important meeting that day, to discuss hiring the next
Planning Department Director. The County page at
http://www.co.cochise.az.us/ccwebsite/PublicNotice.asp
did list the meeting,
so the lesson
is, don't believe the labels, just check both sites. The
County
does double the work on calendars, citizens do double the work on
calendars -- why is this necessary?
Most BOS time, by far,
is spent on
Planning issues. Most people just refer to "Planning
&
Zoning," or "P&Z," or some days "Fines&Fees."
There's a P&Z
Department, which is administrative, and a P&Z Commission,
whose job it is to advise the BOS.
A link to the
Department main page:
http://cochise.az.gov/cochise_planning_zoning.aspx?id=302
A link to agendas for
a P&Z Commission meeting:
http://www.co.cochise.az.us/ccwebsite/PNZCalendar.asp
Contact info for the
P&Z Commission
physical address: Bldg. E, 1415 Melody Lane, Bisbee AZ 85603
phone: 432 9240
email adddresses:
the Commission
itself, pnz@cochise.az.gov
Commissioners - COUNTY & private addresses if
available
Lee Basnar (Chair) - dist1b@cochise.az.gov
- basnar@cox.net
Ron Bemis - dist2a@cochise.az.gov
Gary Brauchla - dist3b@cochise.az.gov
Duane Brofer - dist1c@cochise.az.gov
- brabec@cox.net
Pat Edie - dist2c@cochise.az.gov
- p_edie_99@yahoo.com
Rusty Harguess - dist3c@cochise.az.gov
- jtauto@vtc.net
Jim Lynch - dist1a@cochise.az.gov
Jim Martzke - dist3a@cochise.az.gov
Cruz Silva - dist2b@cochise.az.gov
- cruz@cox.net
Much of the work of
P&Z, both
the Department and the Commission, is about variances from zoning
requirements. Arizona's Commerce Department puts out a
"Planning
& Zoning Handbook," whose Chapter 8 concerns zoning.
See
http://www.commerce.state.az.us/doclib/smartgrowth/handbook/p&zchapter8.pdf
"Purposes And
Objectives Of Zoning" is the beginning of Chapter 8. It
includes:
"... Overall,
zoning seeks to preserve the planned character of a neighborhood by
excluding uses and structures inappropriate to the area and eliminating
non-conforming uses....
"Zoning should not be used to
"Provide economic opportunity or advantage to one parcel of
property without extending that opportunity to all property similarly
situated
"Artificially increase the
value of land ...."
Variances in
particular are discussed in section 4 of chapter 8, "Legal
Uses." Here's that section, every word of it:
"In Arizona,
variances from the terms of the zoning ordinance are heard and granted
by a board of adjustment. Variances are to be granted only if
special circumstances exist relative to the property's size, shape,
topography, location or if the strict application of the zoning
ordinance would deprive the property owner of privileges enjoyed by
other property of the same classification in the same zoning district.
"Statutes
require that any variance granted is subject to such conditions as will
ensure that the adjustment authorized shall not constitute a grant of
special privileges inconsistent with the limitations upon other
properties in the vicinity and zone in which such property is
located. Variances may be granted when the property owner
demonstrates that the application of the zoning ordinance to the
property will create a special property hardship. Both
Arizona
case law (Nicola v. Board of Adjustment, 101 P.2d 199 [1940]), and the
present statute, A.R.S. [Section] 9-462.06(H)(1), prohibit the granting
of "use variances" because they are, in effect, rezonings.
(See
Chapter 5 for a discussion on the role and responsibility of the board
of adjustment).
"The book,
Arizona Land Use Law, concludes that the statutory and case law in
Arizona have established these standards:
"1, A variance may be granted only where there are special
circumstances applicable to the property.
"2, Any hardship that would justify the granting of a
variance
must relate to the use of the land as opposed to the owner. A
personal hardship does not justify a variance.
"3, A hardship which [h]as
been ... intentionally created does not justify a variance.
"4, Need for an 'adequate
financial return' is not a legitimate basis for a variance.
"For cities and
towns, these standards are either in the statutes or have been
established by judicial interpretations. The county enabling
laws
are not as detailed and there is little or no case law in Arizona to
amplify them. But, the four standards listed above have been
solidly established across the country and it is likely that the
actions of county boards of adjustment would be subject to them if
taken to court. Requests for variances that do not meet all
these
standards should be denied."
This writer has been
to many County meetings about variances, but has never heard those
standards considered in the discussion.
>>>
A link to a page with
legal notices from different County departments, including items for
meetings weeks away:
http://www.co.cochise.az.us/ccwebsite/LegalNotices.asp
Ways to avoid the
spirit of the
Open Meeting Law: publish notice in a place that a reasonable
person shouldn't have to look.
A link about
requesting documents from the County, with a form for making document
requests:
http://littlebigdog.net/DocsFromCounty.htm
A link about speaking
at a Call To the Public:
http://littlebigdog.net/calltopublic.htm
The "CODE OF THE WEST" about life in no-man's-land is on the Cochise County website at
http://cochise.az.gov/Default.aspx?id=4104
Good to read before trying to lay city rules on rural areas.
The County Supervisors Association's webpage at
http://www.countysupervisors.org
is always worth a look.
>>
A COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR, WHAT IS IT?
Cochise County posts the County Administrator's duties at
http://www.co.cochise.az.us/BOS/resolution.htm
A plain-text version, as of April 22, 2010, is at
http://littlebigdog.net/CountyAdministratorResolution.htm
Even quicker, here are the County Administrator's duties, which are all "shall"s unless "may" is specified:
2. subject only to the direction
of the [BOS] ... be responsible for the administrative oversight of ...
County government functions ... within the jurisdiction of the [BOS].
7. devote such time and effort as
may be required to properly discharge the duties of the position and
... not engage in personal or professional activities which conflict
with the proper performance of such duties.
8. be responsible for the
appointment, promotion, supervision, management, oversight, discipline
and removal of those persons ... reporting directly to the County
Administrator [and] comply with all applicable Merit System rules and
all other applicable laws, regulations, and Board policies in
performing these responsibilities.
9. at the direction of the [BOS]
... evaluate the performance of all department heads and other persons
reporting directly to the [BOS] and ... make recommendations to the
[BOS] as to appointment, promotion, discipline, salary increases or
decreases, and/or removal of such persons.
10. [for] persons specified in
paragraph 9 above (but not including elected officials or judicial
branch personnel) ... serve as the primary point of contact for
communications [with] the [BOS]....
12. review and evaluate the budget
... prepared by the Finance Director, and ... make fiscal and policy
recommendations to the [BOS] as appropriate.
13. present the budget for
adoption and submit such other reports regarding the financial and
administrative operations as the Board may direct.
14. as appropriate, recommend
changes in organization within and among County departments [to]
enhance the efficiency and/or effectiveness of County government.
15. act as liaison between elected
County officials, their deputies and the Board, and ... coordinate
matters pertaining to these officials relating to budget, finance,
personnel and other County-wide Policies; provide[d] that any elected
official or department head who wishes to meet with the Board shall
advise either the Clerk of the Board, County Administrator, or any
Board member of the topic or topics to be discussed and this request
shall be placed before the Board.
16. provide such information and
recommendations to the Board as may be necessary to permit the Board to
effectively [oversee] County operations.
17. attend meetings of the Board as required.
18. may promulgate and implement
such rules, regulations and procedures as are consistent with the
policy determinations and directives of the Board, and conducive to or
required for the effective conduct of County operations subject to the
[BOS].
19. at the request and direction
of the [BOS], acting in its capacity as the Board of Directors for a
political subdivision, such as the Flood Control District or the
Library District, perform administrative, liaison, or such other duties
as may be directed by these Boards.
20. subject to general direction
from the [BOS] ... oversee and direct work involving multiple
departments or issues of countywide interest.
21. act as a liaison to department
heads and elected officials and ... mediate inter-departmental disputes
in accordance with the [BOS]'[s] direction or approved policies.
22. identify, analyze and make recommendations on policy issues for the [BOS].
23. serve as the designated public lobbyist for Cochise County ....
25. execute the County's annual
application for Emergency Management Assistance funds and [oversee] the
preparation and execution of routine Emergency Management Assistance
documents.
Public
inspection of county documents just became easier
Citizens now are guaranteed
access to public electronic records,
such
as email and files on computers,
including
the "metadata" showing when the document was edited, accessed, etc.
A recent Arizona Supreme Court case guarantees citizens access to
"metadata" in electronic documents, and suggests that the easiest way
for counties to provide this information is to provide a requestor with
a copy of the record in its native format. The case is Lake
v.
Phoenix, and the full opinion is online at
http://littlebigdog.net/MetadataRecordsRequest.pdf
The metadata in an electronic document is part of the document; it does
not stand on its own; it is as much a part of the document as the words
on the page. So when a public entity maintains a public
record in
an electronic format, the electronic version of the record, including
any embedded metadata, is subject to disclosure under our public
records law.
Here's a fuller discussion about getting public records:
http://littlebigdog.net/DocsFromCounty.htm
The lesson for citizens' public records requests is clear:
when
you request electronic documents, add a specification that you also are
requesting all metadata about the documents. Here's a form
for a
public records request incorporating that lesson:
http://littlebigdog.net/DocRQ3.txt
ACIPRA, the Apache
County counterpart of CCIPRA, now has a website at
http://acipra.wordpress.com/
It certainly is a lot
better
looking than this site! George Walsh, its proprietor, is a
fireball, and has provided much useful information to CCIPRA.
Both CCIPRA and ACIPRA are more effective because the other exists.