By RAELYNN RICARTE
News staff writer
June 5, 2007

Three Benton brothers have filed two multi-million dollar lawsuits against Hood River County and four state agencies that regulate land use.

Charles “Terry” King Benton III, John Benton and Robert “Steve” Benton are dissatisfied with the processing of their Measure 37 claims. They contend the local and state government withheld development rights that should have been restored.

“The county and state didn’t remove all of the land-use restrictions. So we are asking for the compensation that Measure 37 allows,” said Kristian Roggendorf, attorney for the plaintiffs.

The Portland-based law firm of O’Donnell and Clark LLC filed the suit in Hood River County Circuit Court on behalf of the Bentons this week.

The following monetary amounts are being sought in the actions regarding individual properties and a dissolved corporation:

n John Benton and his wife, Julie, want $11.5 million for down-zoning of 53 acres along Nunamaker Road. The land is now designated exclusively for agricultural use.

n Steve Benton has petitioned for $2.7 million to make up for the restricting of his 19-acre Orchard Road property.

n Compensation of $33 million is sought for 151 acres once folded into BLM Inc. The shareholders, who still retain title to the property, include the three brothers, their mother Frances Yordy Benton, sister Catherine Benton Hamada and fourth brother Paul Benton.

At the heart of the Benton’s legal argument is an “oral trust” that was established between the parents and children. The brothers contend that they might not have received their respective deeds until the 1970s — but their workable interest in the land went back another decade. The Benton family had begun acquiring its holdings in 1919. The three brothers concur that, as they all entered adulthood, their parents forged a plan to transfer ownership to the next generation.

Charles King Benton Jr. and Frances wanted to keep the properties in the family, so they gained an agreement from the brothers to work — and live on — the land.

In exchange for that commitment, the parents arranged for the majority of the property to be split amongst the three siblings. The remaining land was placed in a corporation during the 1980s. That entity dissolved several years ago but each family member is still listed as a shareholder.

Roggendorf said Measure 37 grants landowners the right to seek compensation when regulations have down-zoned their property. In lieu of making that payment, the government agency can remove the “offending” restriction.

The owner can only regain development rights that were permissible when the land was acquired. Hood River County has interpreted the date of ownership to mean the date a deed was signed. In cases where a corporation was formed by a family, local officials use the later date to determine the allowable zoning.