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Private Ownership - Conservation Easements and Enforcement Authority <br /> Private ownership offers options which would provide limited control over the use of the parcel. <br /> The parcel could be owned privately by an individual with a conservation easement granted to <br /> the City which would control the use of the natural area. A conservation easement could also be <br /> obtained for a parcel which is a common area owned by a homeowner association. A third way <br /> could be to incorporate use restrictions into CC &R's for a common area of a subdivision. The <br /> easement description would specify the area covered and the type of use restrictions. <br /> The disadvantage of private ownership is that enforcement of the conservation provisions would <br /> be up to private parties who may not share the same goals as the City for preservation and <br /> management of these areas. A way around this limitation would be for the City to adopt <br /> ordinance provisions or zoning changes which would provide the necessary City enforcement <br /> authority. An example would be to expand the proposed ordinances currently being developed to <br /> provide for buffers and stream -side protection zones iri the West Eugene Wetlands to include all <br /> areas of the City. <br /> 5. OTHER RELATED ISSUES <br /> Relationship to West Eugene Wetlands Mitigation Bank <br /> The parcel may be suitable for enhancement and restoration as part of the West Eugene Wetland <br /> Mitigation Bank. Such an acquisition may be used to offset development on another "wetland <br /> parcel and help provide additional acreage to the Bank. <br /> Relationship to Other Development Requirements (setbacks) <br /> One method to obtain preservation of land which is well suited for conservation, but is in private <br /> ownership and subject to development, would be to require development setbacks. These <br /> setback requirements would prevent development within a specified distance from an identified <br /> conservation feature, such as a creek. A drawback is that property owners may violate the <br /> setback requirements. Thus, some form of City enforcement authority would be needed to ensure <br /> compliance with any use restrictions on privately owned land for the purpose of natural area <br /> protection. <br /> An additional drawback of attempting to protect natural resource areas through private ownership <br /> is that public access may be limited. As this may reduce a site's educational and recreational <br /> opportunities, it may be desirable to obtain public access easements for these areas. <br /> 7 <br />