“Oregon is for dreamers,” or so the state slogan goes, but for residents of our state’s largest urban region, the American dream of home ownership may soon become more elusive than ever before.

Later this month, the Metro Council will decide whether the Urban Growth Boundary should be expanded to accommodate future growth of our tri-county region. 

The Westside is where Metro is focusing most of its attention for expansion, including: 310 acres north of Hillsboro for employment land, 1,063 acres in south Hillsboro, and 543 acres along Scholls Ferry Road west of Beaverton for future residential development.  With the exception of 316 acres near Wilsonville, no expansions are planned in Multnomah or Clackamas counties.

Last Thursday, about 100 people attended an open house at the Beaverton City Library with approximately 40 people testifying in front of the Metro Council, including Westside Economic Alliance executive director Jonathan Schlueter.

Schlueter’s testimony, outlined the policy goals WEA applied in support of this regional process.  These include:

1. Provide choices and diversity, in both housing and employment opportunities
2. Promote regional equity for our residents and businesses to grow
3. Support healthy communities by creating sustainable local tax bases

While supportive of the proposed expansions on the Westside, WEA believes the UGB expansion under consideration is not enough to accommodate the rate of growth throughout the region. 

“These recommendations simply don’t go far enough,” said Schlueter, “While Metro has forecasted our regional population to grow by a million more residents in the next 20 years, the total number of acres being proposed ….represents a barely-perceptible increase of 1.25 percent in the current UGB.”

Back in August, Metro Policy Advisory Committee agreed to support a UGB expansion north of Hillsboro for industrial land.  Mayors Jerry Willey of Hillsboro and Keith Mays of Sherwood were the only dissenting votes, saying it was not enough land to accommodate job opportunities in the tri-county region.  

In his testimony last Thursday, Schlueter said, “Councilors, this is not the time to be cautious or timid.  If our local and state economies are going to be allowed to recover, we must provide choices and find options to accommodate future growth and economic development opportunities. We cannot short-change the economic opportunities of future generations.

“Westside Economic Alliance remains concerned that Metro---and its advisory committees--have set our regional sights too low.  By confining future expansion areas for employment in Hillsboro, and future residential development in Aloha and South Cooper Mountain, we limit choices, deny access, and restrict economic opportunities in Multnomah / Clackamas counties for generations.” 

Metro is required by law to evaluate the UGB every five years, although it was given a two-year extension on this current time frame while the regional government designated Urban and Rural Reserves.  By state law, Metro is required to maintain a 20-year land supply for housing and jobs.

The last significant expansion of more than 20 acres was back in 2002 when the boundary was widely expanded in Damascus, which remains undeveloped today.   When Damascus was brought into the UGB, it was not planned, nor had the infrastructure nearby to support it.  The process today is looking at areas where the cities are willing to annex and serve the growth that occurs there.

Metro will have one last public meeting and will make a decision about UGB expansion at its headquarters on Thursday, October 20.