Exactions as Takings Tactics for Dealing with Dolan

Abstract

In Dolan v. City of Tigard, No. 93-518, (1994), 46 ZD 232/ the United States Supreme Court announced a sweeping new federal takings standard that is receiving much attention from attorneys and planners across America. In Dolan, the Court ruled that a condition requiring the landowner to dedicate the floodplain and an adjacent IS-foot strip of land for flood control and a pedestrian/bicycle pathway consti-tuted a regulatory taking without payment of just compen-sation. In reversing the decision of the Oregon Supreme Courtupholdingthe city's conditions, the Courtcreated new land-use takings lawthatpromises to significantly alter local government practices in imposing traditional development exactions and in attaching conditions to development ap-provals. This article describes the Court's decision, the new takings test for development exactions, the general and spe-cific impacts of the new takings law/ and municipal strate-gies for dealing with them.