Bruce & Sandy Soli

Dear Friends in Washoe County District 1:

On October 27, the Washoe County Board of County Commissioners reviewed a county-wide Nuisance Ordinance. Due to the high level of public interest, I'm dedicating my monthly commissioner update to this topic.

This proposed ordinance would amend Washoe County Code, Chapter 50 by regulating 'community nuisances' in order to protect our neighborhoods by focusing on the health, safety and welfare of our residents. An example of regulated activities in the new ordinance includes operation of off-road vehicles and storage of junk cars. Over the last few months I have developed a deep appreciation for a wide variety of citizen concerns as well as the legal issues with constitutional ramifications associated with the Nuisance Ordinance.

I want to highlight the language within Chapter 8 of the ordinance which created the opportunity for future area-specific nuisance modifiers.

Part of the modifier section applied only to the area of Washoe county lying within the Tahoe Basin. After listening to numerous statements for support or opposition, having discussions with legal counsel and planning staff and the public comments made at the hearing, I determined that it was in all of our best interests for the Nuisance Ordinance to pertain to all residents in Washoe County equally. At the October 27, Board of County Commissioners meeting, Chapter 8 of the proposed nuisance ordinance was removed with my support.

This may be a disappointment to the Lake Tahoe Working Group. This group of citizens has been working diligently to identify potential community nuisances that pertain to their area. While I believe that the nuisance ordinance is not an appropriate venue to pursue regulations that pertain to only one community, I feel a more appropriate and defensible vehicle exists in the form of local area and community plans.

And, the timing could not be more perfect.

Very broad-based local support for specific regulations in an updated local area and community plans could achieve the results the nuisance committee is pursuing. An update of the Incline Village and Crystal Bay community and area plans is tentatively scheduled to begin in the spring of 2010. The first in a series of community meetings on these plans was hosted by Incline Village resident Guy Burge on October 26. Completing updates of plans generally takes 18-24 months. This coincides with the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency's goal to finish their regional plan update within the next two years. I will support modifications to the plans that are broadly supported in their respective communities.

Citizen response and participation in the process is crucial to our success. I appreciate the dedication and energy Washoe County residents have committed to this process. At the October 27 meeting the Commission directed staff to further revise the ordinance for reconsideration on December 8. The updated ordinance will be posted online at www.washoecounty.us/nuisances about the first of December.

Please feel free to contact me regarding this and other issues pertaining to Washoe County. If you prefer a face to face meeting, please feel free to join me at my regularly scheduled Tahoe Commissioner Conversation or call me to arrange a time. The Commissioner Conversation event is held at 5:00 PM just prior to citizen advisory board meetings in Incline Village (fourth Monday of the month).

Very Sincerely,

John Breternitz

Washoe County Commissioner

District 1

Office: 775-328-6110

E-mail: jbreternitz@washoecounty.us

Direct Link to District Webpage:

http://www.washoecounty.us/bcc/district.html~choice=district&district=1&color=blue&text_version=.

Did you know that Incline Village Foreclosure are at a current high of 139 homes? This, with an estimated total home count of 3465. Of these homes 598 are in pre-forclosures, 90 are in default, 51 are at Trustee Sale level, 72 are already bank owned or REO (Real Estate Owned) and total resale properties are at 374 and 11 For Sale By Owners. This data is collected from the number one website for foreclosures...Realty Trac as of November 6, 2009.

Foreclosure Heat Rate Map September 2009

Foreclosure Activity & Home Price Index for 89451

Geographical Comparison for the Area and State of Nevada

Foreclosure Activity By Month

Washoe County Activity Map

So, What happened in Incline Village this week...

Removedfrom list - Cancellation of default

945 Harold Dr. - Chateau Apt. #6

Removed from list - SOLD

321 Ski Way - Mtn. Shadows #181

861 Jeffrey - SOLD FOR $338,000

820 Oriole Way - Royal Pines #84- SOLD FOR $335,000

702 College Dr. - Incline Crest #76 - SOLD FOR $215,000

NEW NODs:

820 Oriole - Royal Pines #66

NEW NOTICES OF SALE:

28 Somers Loop

719 James Ln.- NOTICE OF SALE on 11/18/09

807 Snead Ct.- NOTICE OF SALE on 11/30/09

972 Fairway View Ct. - NOTICE OF SALE on 10/19/09

Click here for a complete list of distress properties, short sales, foreclosures and bank owned homes in Incline Village.

Graphs and Data provided by Realtytrac.

Don't be fooled the Incline Village Real Estate Market is not immune to distressed properties including foreclosures and short sales. In fact, this week, the activity seems to be heating up and the forecast is calling for more of these properties to hit the market after the first of the year. Read More...

From the Incline Board of Realtors...

As some of you experienced, Commissioner Breternitz responded to our original call to action on the proposed nuisance ordinance, stating that our information was not correct. He specifically states that our comments are "erroneous" because the ordinance does "not contain any Tahoe specific modifiers."

We have been purposeful to comment on what is actually written in the ordinance language. Because the ordinance does not have specific modifiers in its language at this point, we can only comment on the stated intent of Section 8.

The proposed "Intent" states:

"The public nuisances at issue focus generally on the consequences of intense vacation home and rental land uses as well as abuses produced at times by the entertainment and recreation industries."

IVBOR has responded to Commissioner Breternitz to address his comments and reinforce our position on this issue. Below is a copy of the correspondence all Washoe County Commissioners received this morning from IVBOR's Washoe County Government Affairs Director Jim Nadeau:

Commissioner Breternitz:

We understand that Adrian does not necessarily see the implications of this language.

Because the ordinance does not have specific modifiers in its language at this point, I can only comment on the stated intent of section 8.

The proposed Washoe County Nuisance ordinance Section 50.310 Modifications to Public Nuisances includes the following language:

"The public nuisances at issue focus generally on the consequences of intense vacation home and rental land uses as well as abuses produced at times by the entertainment and recreation industries."

On its face the ordinance does not establish standards for vacation rental or rentals land uses in general, but just the inclusion of these terms within the context of the modifier section opens the door for classifying rentals and vacation rentals as nuisances at a later date. If there is no intent in capturing vacation rentals and rentals in the nuisance ordinance; then there is no rational reason to include that reference. As resolved as we are on the inclusion of rentals in the ordinance, we are equally concerned with the implications of section 8 as a whole. You and I have discussed this individually.

That said, Washoe County Community Development staff created a Lake Tahoe Nuisance group that has been meeting at Incline Village since earlier this year specifically to address the Lake Tahoe modifiers. This group was appointed prior to any approval of the ordinance by the County Commissioners. Some of the members of this Lake Tahoe Nuisance group have very specifically expressed their interest, if not their intent, to include vacation rentals and rentals in general. This has generated considerable discussion regarding vacation rentals and rentals along with other areas of interest. Again, the mere inclusion of this language within the "Intent" section opens this door and suggests that vacation rental and rental land uses could be construed to be nuisances. Under no circumstances should vacation rental and rental land uses be included in a nuisance reference.

Because of the potential broad application of the modifier section, we agree with Washoe County staff's option of dropping section 8 completely. Designer ordinances or "modifiers", in general, are just a bad idea.

Incline Village Board of Realtors

924 Incline Way, Suite 1

Incline Village, NV. 89451

(775) 831-3777 Fax: (775) 831-1386

It's almost Halloween and with the holiday comes a tradition in Incline for all youngsters (well some older too). The Trail of Treats and Terror is calling all Incline Trick-or-Treators and their parents to join the quest by parking their mere mortal vehicles at the Incline Middle School (IMS) parking lot or Sierra Nevada College Parking lot before entering the haunted trail.

Stops include: the Donald W. Reynolds Community Non-Profit Center, the "Fantasy Forest," "R.I.P." (Recreation in Peace) at the Recreation Center, the LakeTahoe School, the "Talking Tree Forest" and "The Haunted Halls" of SNC. The Spooky Shuttle will return any survivors to their cars parked at either lot.

This event really is a fun one for the whole family and multiple stops along the way keep everyone curious. Beware, the closer to SNC the scarier things become. If you have little ones you may want to stear clear of there! Come join the fun...they are dying to see you! Don't forget your flashlight.

See you on October 29 at 4:00 pm (goes til about 8:00pm)!