Court Ruling Reverses and Remands Land Use Board’s Decision on 2012 Aurora State Airport Master Plan
June 16, 2021 — The Court of Appeals ruled today that the Oregon Department of Aviation misapplied state land-use laws in approving the contentious 2012 Aurora State Airport Master Plan. The Court reversed and remanded the Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) decision on the master plan, finding that LUBA erred in excluding the prior critical 2011 master plan work from the record; in erroneously finding that the master plan did not propose airport development on Exclusive Farm Use (EFU) land; and also erroneously finding that any proposed new uses at the Aurora Airport are considered rural uses for land-use purposes.
The City of Wilsonville together with the City of Aurora, 1000 Friends of Oregon, Friends of French Prairie and Aurora Planning Commission Chair Joseph Schaefer filed an appeal with the court in March 2021 regarding a LUBA decision that dismissed their appeal challenging the legality of the 2012 master plan. LUBA ruled in December 2020 that it did not have jurisdiction to hear the appeal as land-use decisions of the Department of Aviation’s adoption of ‘findings of compatibility’ and approval of the 2012 Master Plan.
The 10-year-long controversy over the 2012 Aurora State Airport Master Plan originated with a confusing, convoluted process over several years, resulting in an invalid master plan that ignored Oregon public-process and land-use laws. Rather than seek to work with the impacted local communities adjacent to the airport, the Department of Aviation pressed forward with airport expansion efforts contrary to state law.
Wilsonville Mayor Julie Fitzgerald said, “The Court of Appeals decision validates the City of Wilsonville’s long-stated concerns that the controversial 2012 Aurora State Airport Master Plan does not comply with state land-use laws. This ruling mandates that the state aviation agency should seek to pilot for a pending new 2021-22 Aurora State Airport master plan update a transparent, fair and equitable public process in accordance with Oregon land-use laws. The City looks forward to the Department of Aviation balancing the new master plan advisory committee with representatives of local-area community planning organizations (CPOs), homeowners associations and other conservation/public-interest organizations so as to avoid having a majority of vested airport financial interests.”
To read the Court of Appeals opinion, Schaefer v. Oregon Aviation Board, 312 Or App 316 (2021), click here.
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