Who'd ever think that all four Republicans on the House State, Veterans, and Military Affairs committee would vote NO on a bill to support the military, and that all seven Democrats would vote YES. A unanimous YES vote surely, but all four Republicans as a NO?

HB10-1205 gives military land use protections
HB10-1205, sponsored by Representative Su Ryden, D-Aurora, and Senator Nancy Spence, R-Centennial, requires counties and municipalities to involve military bases within two miles of the county or municipality in their land use planning. Cities and counties must notify military base leadership of changes in zoning or land use that may affect the base in some way.

For example, a city would need to notify the base commander if it changed zoning to allow for a large housing development within two miles of a designated base. The bill particularly affects Buckley Air Force facility in Aurora, which wants to add an F-35 mission. The noise from the mission will affect land within the two-mile radius, and the Air Force wants to make sure that it will not face problems from land development in the area.

Military bases will work with cities and counties
"What the military wants is predictability," said Ryden. "It wants to know the rules of the game. Local leadership comes and goes," she added. "The military wants relationships to be more than a handshake. It wants good relationships to continue."

Waller wants Pinon Canyon added to the military list
Representative Mark Waller, R-CO Spgs, has serious objections to the bill, even though he was a JAG officer in the Air Force and spent time in the military in Iraq. He voted against HB09-1317 in the last session that took state lands out of the Pinon Canyon military training program.

The current bill has a list of military bases affected by the bill. An amendment to the bill removes the possibility of including Pinon Canyon in HB10-1205's scope, substituting a list of specific military bases, including Buckley Air Base.

Colorado needs to show military the love
The military affairs representative at the Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce, Larry Fortner, supports the bill as a signal to the Department of Defense that Colorado does support the military and wants its men and women stationed here. The military currently employs 67,000 people in Colorado, bringing $5.6 billion to the state.

Waller didn't buy it. "I'm sensitive that we didn't send a message to DC last year that we love the military here. I understand that we have to do all we can to protect military assets. So why aren't we protecting the air strip and rail heads in Pinon Canyon?"

Private property owners lose out, says Waller
Waller also cited the "1041 powers" issue. HB-1041, passed in 1973, enables the state to delegate land use powers to counties and municipalities to identify lands as critical for state protection. HB10-1205 adds military bases to this designation.

Waller believes this designation gives military interests a higher priority than those of the private property owner. "This is a property rights issue. 1041 powers can have an adverse impact on property. It's the military v. the private property owner, and with this bill, the military interest will always outweigh the private property owner's interest."

Ryden countered that the military mission is important in Colorado. "We want to protect its growth and assets. The military is a magnet for growth and success." Her fellow Democrats agreed, with the bill passing on a 7-4 party-line vote.PEN CCW

 

 

This post was published on March 3, 2010. Permalink »