Commission Dashes Plans for Couple’s Dream House

A couple’s dream home overlooking the scenic Columbia River Gorge is caught in the middle of a fight between local planners and the agency created to protect the area’s natural beauty.

Brian and Jody Bea began building their 4,000-square-foot home in 1997 on their 20-acre parcel of land, atop a bluff overlooking the tree-lined gorge that separates Oregon from Washington state.

County planners had approved the couple’s plan for the three-story cabin.

However, the Columbia River Gorge Commission, a joint Oregon-Washington agency charged with protecting the area, got complaints that the house was clearly visible from the Oregon side of the gorge. There are other homes in the area, but they aren’t as prominent as the Bea home.

The commission shut down construction more than a year after the frame started going up.

On Monday, Judge James Ladley sided with the commission, saying its decision was correct although he sympathized with the Beas--who have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal bills fighting to keep the house where it is.

The Beas plan to appeal.

Attorneys for Skamania County had argued that its land-use decisions should not be subject to review by the commission, especially when a structure is so near completion.

“Yes, the house sticks out like a sore thumb, but the gorge commission’s objections came too late in the land-use permitting process,” said attorney Brad Andersen. “If they can come in and invalidate the permit, no decision of the county is ever permanent, and every landowner is always at risk.”

The commission argues that it is entirely within the powers granted it by Congress.

Skamania County had given the Beas a list of 33 conditions they had to meet to comply with the federal act that created the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area and set guidelines for limited development.

In January, the commission ordered the Beas to move the house to a less visible location. A conservation group even offered to pay the $35,000 to $45,000 cost of moving the home.

But the Beas, living for now in a rented house in nearby Washougal, Wash., still want to move into their dream cabin.