Tahoe property owners sue regulatory agency

Sunday, Jan. 9, 2000 | 8:42 a.m.

The Tahoe-Sierra Preservation Council filed the lawsuit on behalf of the landowners Friday in federal court. Because it involves property on both sides of Lake Tahoe, the lawsuit was filed in Reno and Sacramento.

The lawsuit, which seeks unspecified damages, alleges the agency's system for rating the environmental sensitivity of vacant lots illegally robbed landowners of any ability to build on their land.

"We think we've exhausted every possibility of getting them to change the system," said Larry Hoffman, attorney for the council. "There just aren't the votes to (do away with the system)."

The bulk of the plaintiffs - 243 of them - own property on Tahoe's California side. Nine owners on the Nevada side also are plaintiffs.

To protect Tahoe's fragile environment, TRPA came up with a land-use regulation called the Individual Parcel Evaluation System in 1987.

Lots are given a numerical rating based on such factors as slope, soil type and proximity to streams, and those rated below a certain level are not eligible for construction.

The system was supposed to free some less sensitive lots for construction as the most sensitive ones were protected through public acquisition.

Landowners contend that hasn't happened quickly enough - particularly in California - leaving thousands of owners unable to build.

"Our view is this does not pass constitutional muster, nor is there anything showing that construction on these lots would have any effect on Lake Tahoe," Hoffman said.

The suit doesn't list a dollar amount, but Hoffman estimated the property values involved total at least $9 million.

John Marshall, general counsel for TRPA, said the agency is disappointed with the lawsuit. TRPA is making major changes to the system that would give many affected landowners the ability to build, he said.

"I think we're making real progress and it's on a real fast track," he said. "It's a shame things are now kind of turning towards war rather than cooperation."

The dispute is the latest in a long-running war between the Tahoe-Sierra Preservation Council and TRPA.

The council also represented more than 400 property owners in a lawsuit alleging TRPA illegally robbed them of property rights with separate regulations in the early 1980s.

Last year, U.S. District Court Judge Edward Reed ruled TRPA's actions took away property rights without required compensation and that the agency should pay damages.

That decision is on appeal to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco.