Starting tonight, the Metro Council begins a series of public hearings on its proposed capacity ordinance. Here's a snapshot of that ordinance, and answers to some of the more frequently asked questions about what the council is considering.
What's the point of a public hearing?
This is your turn. Stakeholders, elected officials and others have had their shot to get their opinions into the ears of elected officials. The hearings are your three minutes to tell the Metro Council what you think about the direction of the region.
So why does this one matter?
Metro is considering some changes to how it approaches growth and development management in the Portland area. Notable among them are options for affordable housing and an "outcomes-based approach" – planning decisions from here on out will have to further one (or more) of six outcomes the council is being asked to identify. All of these changes are part of Metro's Community Investment Strategy, and will be adopted in the proposed capacity ordinance.
What exactly is the Community Investment Strategy?
It's Metro's acknowledgment that the region needs to take a different approach to infrastructure and land use planning, one that looks more holistically at what the region needs rather than focusing on cities achieving their individual aspirations. With billions of dollars in infrastructure projects necessary in the coming decades, Metro is telling its partner jurisdictions that outlays for capital projects need to be focused, efficient and get the greatest return on investments.
And the capacity ordinance?
The proposed capacity ordinance is a set of policies that Metro thinks will focus growth and investment in specific areas inside the urban growth boundary, and make the most of investments companies and taxpayers have made in those areas. The capacity ordinance says Metro doesn't need to expand the urban growth boundary this year – but might next year.
Wait, the UGB isn't part of the discussion?
Probably not. When the Land Conservation and Development Commission remanded Washington County's rural reserves, Metro's only realistic choice for an urban growth boundary expansion was urban reserves in Clackamas or Multnomah counties. Metro staff has recommended the boundary be expanded only around Hillsboro, and the council seems likely to agree with that premise.
So they're just going to expand it next year anyway.
Maybe. The council will decide how many new residences the region will need in the next 20 years, and if land for all of those residences isn't in the boundary, the boundary will have to expand to accommodate that need.
But this capacity ordinance isn't just about the next urban growth boundary expansion – it's about trying to minimize future boundary adjustments by drawing private-sector investors to focus areas within the boundary, specifically in areas called centers.
It's just about developers then?
Investors aren't just developers. When we buy a house or choose where to rent an apartment, aren't we also investing in a community? The goal is to make those centers attractive to business owners, tenants and homeowners, so that a variety of housing and employment options exist in areas that are easy to walk within and connect between.
Why not just put it off until next year?
Last year, the Metro Council finished a state mandate to forecast how much housing and employment growth will come to the region by 2030, and analyzed whether the current urban growth boundary can handle that growth. The report indicated there while there might be enough "zoned capacity" in the boundary to handle all the growth, market conditions don't make developing to that capacity feasible.
State law allows for a two year, two-step process to match the demand with the supply. First, the Metro Council has a year to accommodate half of "the gap" – the difference between what the region has in its 20 year supply and what Metro's growth report says the region needs. That's what this capacity ordinance is trying to address. The state then gives Metro another year to figure out how to address the remainder of its residential and employment needs.
What's a center?
It's Metro-speak for an area of focused development that's kind of like a small town within the region. It's an area that should be relatively self-sufficient, with enough jobs, retail and housing choices that residents can conduct most of their business within a few dozen blocks. But it's also a priority for transportation funding, with Metro trying to ensure that all of its centers are connected to each other.
There are two types of centers – town centers (localized areas of concentration, like the Hollywood District) and regional centers (mid-range areas of economic and cultural activity, like downtown Oregon City).
Part of the capacity ordinance is to designate downtown Cornelius as a town center, designate the AmberGlen/Tanasbourne area of Hillsboro as a regional center and to move the Happy Valley town center a few miles southwest of its current location.
What else?
Some changes to industrial land policy are part of this package. Primarily, Metro will take some of the heat off of cities that are being pressured to allow non-industrial development in industrial areas. When a big, flat parcel of land, designated as an employment site, sits vacant for awhile, cities feel pressure to convert those industrial areas to more traditional suburban development, like big box stores, large parks, churches and schools. The new capacity ordinance prohibits this conversion, helping to ensure a diverse supply of development-ready land for potential industrial/large employers.
Incidentally, the decision about a large-lot industrial site replenishment system has been put off until 2011.
Is there anything controversial in this?
Probably the most controversial aspect of it is a requirement that areas brought into the urban growth boundary for residential development include affordable housing. A subcommittee developed the proposed requirements, but some jurisdictions are pushing back against the notion. There's also an Oregon law that prohibits so-called inclusionary zoning, but Metro believes the new ordinance complies with the law.
Where is the hearing?
There are a few hearings scheduled. For the full schedule, click here. If you feel like you need more than three minutes to get your thoughts out, you can also write to the Metro Council. Find out how by visiting this website.