Four UGB expansions approved in Portland-metro area – DJC Oregon


The Metro Council voted unanimously Thursday to approve four urban growth boundary expansions and open up 2,181 acres of land for future development.

The expansions will take place in the cities of Wilsonville, Beaverton, Hillsboro and King City, although Metro councilors and staffers reportedly have concerns over the latter’s ability to guide large developments through to completion. Proposals in the cities call for development of a total of 9,200 new housing units.

Wilsonville was granted a 271-acre expansion that will allow construction of at least 1,325 homes near the city’s northeastern edge, including the large Frog Pond development that has been under way for several years. Hillsboro’s 150-acre expansion near Witch Hazel Road will allow the addition of at least 850 housing units, while Beaverton’s 1,232-acre expansion near the southwest side of Cooper Mountain will allow construction of at least 3,760 housing units.

King City had asked for 528 acres to build a new town center. But because it would be the small city’s first large development in many years, the council encouraged city officials to apply for grants to pay for additional staff, consulting and engineering needed to make the plan happen.

“We try to get better at this every single time, but one of the clear reasons this process is different is because all of us in the region invested time, energy and compassion into defining the urban and rural reserves that that map illustrates,” Metro Councilor Kathryn Harrington stated.

Metro is required by law to ensure the Portland tri-county area has enough buildable land within the UGB to accommodate 20 years of growth. Metro normally reviews the boundary every six years. The 2018 process is different from the 2004 UGB review process, which saw the Metro Council expand the boundary in the Damascus area. That decision ultimately did not lead to significant development, and Damascus ultimately voted to end city incorporation and return land use authority to Clackamas County.

Article by: Josh Kulla | December 17, 2018
Daily Journal of Commerce
jkulla@djcoregon.com