On the other hand, by Mary Psenak

Contrary to what a small, extreme environmentalist group who call themselves Friends of Mat-Su (FoMS) would have you believe, Mat-Su Property Owners Association (MSPOA) is not against sensible, well-thought-out land use regulations.

There is a problem, though. Since the first zoning plan was written in 1984, the borough has never proposed a plan that didn't control every facet of our lives. In the 1984 plan, developers were told where a new subdivision would be allowed, then had to donate 25 percent of their property to the public for parks and open space. If the area they were developing didn't need parks, they could buy this land back at market value.

Flex zoning was next, and was performance based. This was followed by the Euclidean zoning. Both plans focused on government control of your property, and both were written by staff without meaningful public input.

MSPOA asked that the public be allowed to add their input as the plan was written. This never happened. These plans were written by the Planning Department and Planning Commission without help from the general public, other than input from FoMS.

The borough has successfully used Conditional Use Permits (CUP) to control the 'Big Uglies.' These have been used for tall towers, salvage yards and trailer parks, etc. This regulation is standards based and treats everyone equally -- anyone putting in these kinds of facilities has to meet the same standards. No favoritism.

MSPOA asked that this system be enlarged by adding five or six more permits that would let companies know what was needed if they wanted to put in a box store, an incinerator or perhaps a halfway house.

Instead, the Planning Commission has now come out with a set of performance based CUPs instead of standards based CUPs. The Planning Department and the Planning Commission have total discretion to issue these permits. With today's Planning Commission, no permits would be issued.

People resist zoning because of what has happened in other places. The environmentalists are not happy with zoning. They want more and more control. Now we are hearing about Smart Growth, a program that forces more people onto less land. This is not right for Alaska.

MSPOA is not against a minimal amount of sensible, reasonable regulations we can live with in the future. We stand ready, individually and as a group, to assist the borough in coming to a consensus on this issue.

Mary Psenak is a Palmer resident.