According to the Spokesman Review, J.D. Honore and Shira Rauh both native Californians, are planning to turn 40 acres northwest of Portland, Oregon into the “Town of Taylor” – a living history museum, set in 16th-century Europe. The project could takes as along as 20 years to complete and plans include a two-story inn, farming, merchants, and craftspeople who would sell their wares at a Renaissance fair that never ends. Some of the locals living in the area are already concerned about traffic problems. “None of us want partying going on for a month long with people dressed up and having sword fights and whatever else they do,” Willette told the Daily News.
Willette also said her neighbors are concerned about decreased property value and extra traffic on the two-lane country road leading to their neighborhood. Willette and her husband have already considered that they might eventually sell their home if the Town of Taylor brings in enough visitors.
Willette said she and nine of her neighbors have brought their concerns to county commissioners, but the county doesn’t have zoning laws, meaning that Rauh and Honore can use their property as they’d like provided they follow county and environmental codes.
Brady said the couple is doing just that, and he feels “quite certain” they will stick to guidelines, and they’ve completed an environmental review to give them a better idea of what their farm land could be used for.
“As long as they’re following the rules, I have no problem with it,” Brady said. “They have a beautiful farm. They want to raise stock and create an atmosphere of an earlier time. It sounds rather exciting.”
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