Property Rights

Practical local government should solve real problems without imposing unnecessary burdens on property owners.

East Bethel includes large rural properties, older homes, businesses, agricultural uses, septic systems, and long-established uses that do not always fit neatly into one rule. Jim has repeatedly focused on whether local regulations are necessary, proportionate, and workable in the real world.

A Documented Regulatory Reform Effort

April 3, 2023. City records identify a package of ordinance amendments proposed by Jim involving substandard sewage-treatment systems, architectural standards, detached accessory structures, and exterior-storage rules in business and light-industrial districts. Council discussion included reducing restrictions, clarifying requirements, and examining grants or alternatives that could lessen burdens on property owners.

View the April 3, 2023 public record →

Individual Circumstances Matter

Variances and interim-use permits exist because unusual properties and long-standing uses cannot always be handled fairly through a one-size-fits-all rule. Jim’s approach has been to understand the actual property, the surrounding impacts, and the options available under city law.

June 2025. When a resident raised concerns involving a horse Interim Use Permit, Jim asked the city attorney to clarify the status of the earlier permit and what process remained available to the property owner.

View the June 2025 public record →

Business Property Is Property Too

Outside storage, equipment, accessory structures, and work areas are normal parts of many rural and trades-based businesses. Jim’s record on exterior-storage rules reflects the same principle he applies to residential property: regulations should address an identifiable public concern without creating cost or restriction that serves no clear purpose.

Good regulation should be understandable, solve a real problem, and impose no more burden than necessary.