Measure 37 Projects Up In Air After Passage Of Measure 49

With the passage of Oregon's Measure 49, some development projects already approved under the now-overturned Measure 37 may be in limbo as the courts determine whether they can be completed.

1 minute read

November 11, 2007, 1:00 PM PST

By Nate Berg


"Developers who have already obtained permits to build on property affected by voter approval of Measure 49 changes in land use law may have to turn to the courts to decide whether they have gotten far enough to keep building."

"Determining whether rights have been vested will mostly be up to the courts, according to state officials and various groups involved in the property rights battle."

"'If people come to us and say, ‘Give us your stamp saying we're vested,'' they will end up going to their county government or the courts to get an answer because the state does not make that determination, said Michael Morrissey, the Measure 37 division manager for the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development."

"Morrissey said only about 500 property owners of the 7,500 who have filed Measure 37 claims have qualified for the necessary permits so far, and there was no way to determine how many of those 500 had moved forward enough to be considered 'vested,' but he suspected it was a relatively small number."

Friday, November 9, 2007 in Associated Press via Worldlink

Lake Powell with much of the water evaporated.

Desperate measures: Advocates weigh draining Lake Powell to fill Colorado River

Draining the reservoir could reduce evaporation losses by a couple hundred thousand acre-feet.

October 30, 2026 - Yale Environment 360

A road in north eastern Nebraska with power lines on either side, and grassy fields.

Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity

Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.

November 6, 2026 - Grist

A rendering of a mall turned living space. People walk around a green space surrounded by apartments.

Malls are becoming the midtowns of the future

Mall and office park redevelopments are a generational opportunity to create new nodes of urbanity.

October 29, 2026 - Ben Schneider

A car drives through a puddle in NYC

NYC breaks ground on anti-flooding infrastructure project

New York City's new system will reduce stormwater flows to local sewers by 90%.

November 9 - Smart Cities Dive

Members of the Smoketown CLT gather for a photo

One Kentucky town’s secret to affordable housing

The Smoketown Community Land Trust has already built seven affordable homes for community members.

November 9 - Reasons to Be Cheerful

Two people stand under mesh coverings shaped like petals

Houston gains petal-shaped cooling infrastructure to make streets more ‘delightful’

The city has installed the pavilions along 15 blocks in Houston.

November 9 - De Zeen

FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?

After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.

Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold

The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.