An updated version of this story was published at 6 p.m. April 20.
State regulators are recommending the Oregon Land Conservation and Development Commission reject parts of Metro's 2011 urban growth boundary expansion because, they say, the supporting documentation for the expansion is insufficient.
In a report issued today by the state's Department of Land Conservation and Development, state planning staffers say Metro erred in using a range forecast to work its way toward a decision on how much to expand the urban growth boundary. State regulators also said Metro hadn't completed an inventory of the available land in the region for potential employers.
And, they said, Metro erred by only studying about 9,800 acres of the 28,256-acre urban reserves for a potential UGB expansion.
"If the commission partially remands the submittal as recommended, none of the urban growth boundary expansion areas will be approved," the report's cover letter said. "This is not because the department recommends that the commission find the amount or location of land included in the boundary is necessarily in conflict with applicable regulations, but rather because certain goal and rule provisions were applied in a manner that makes it impossible to determine compliance."
Metro planners and land use experts have 10 days to respond to the state report. The LCDC meets May 10 to decide whether to allow Metro's boundary expansion or send it back to the regional government for further study.
In October, the Metro Council voted unanimously to add close to 2,000 acres to the UGB in Washington County.