Neighborhoods now changing

SHOULD a property owner be able to rely on an existing community development plan for the future enjoyment of their neighborhood? Should someone buying into an area zoned residential have a right to expect it to remain residential forever?

Some residents of Dunbar Cove bought their property many years ago, never imagining that one day someone else would try to establish a commercial enterprise in their secluded area.

But recently, Mark and Kelly Watson bought a 23-acre parcel of Dunbar Cove and obtained a conditional use permit that altered the Gig Harbor Community Plan to allow a wedding business in a large building erected on their property. And now, the Watsons want another exception to the community plan to hold outdoor weddings.

Some neighbors don’t like it.

There are several interesting aspects to this story. The Gig Harbor Community Plan may be the only one in Pierce County that prohibits outdoor weddings. Families have been holding weddings in their back yards for years, of course, and no one has filed a complaint.

But then, no one has tried to make it a commercial enterprise until now. And a concerned neighbor of Dunbar Cove isn’t a Johnny-come-lately. They were there before the Watsons.

People who buy homes next to a railroad track and then complain about trains don’t get much sympathy. But how about those who buy homes in quiet, rural areas? Do they have a right to expect their neighborhoods to remain that way?

Nothing stays the same forever. Given the desirability of the Gig Harbor area and the improved access via a new bridge, our community may be only beginning to feel the effects of considerable change. And that raises a weighty issue that sits at the core of the conflict at Dunbar Cove: What is the true value of a community development plan?

If people can change a community plan easily and often, how can someone purchase property today with any assurance for the future?

That, we thought, was the purpose of a community plan.