Welcome to Chapter 2 – Urban, Rural and Resource Planning. The Oregon planning program relies on cities and counties to prepare and implement their local comprehensive plans and land use regulations. Oregon’s planning law requires local plans and regulations to be consistent with state law and the Statewide Planning Goals, including applicable rules adopted by the Land Conservation and Development Commission or LCDC.
Cities have the primary responsibility to plan for and manage urban-scale development and provide appropriate services for areas within their urban growth boundaries or UGBs. This concept is covered in more detail later in this chapter. Cities and counties jointly manage unincorporated areas within urban growth boundaries and urban reserve areas that may eventually be added to an urban growth boundary.
Cities and counties must maintain a 20-year supply of land within an urban growth boundary to meet projected needs. This includes vacant and re-developable land with the topography and infrastructure to support residential, commercial and industrial uses. Goal 10, the state’s Housing Goal and administrative rules, provide specific guidance for preparing a housing needs analysis and buildable lands inventory. Goal 9, the Economic Development Goal, provides help for preparing an Economic Opportunities Analysis* to ensure an adequate supply of suitable sites for growth.
This statewide goal requires cities to maintain an adequate supply of suitable sites that meet their community’s economic development needs, policies and objectives. This includes an adequate supply of sites of suitable sizes, types, locations and service levels for a variety of industrial and commercial uses. Local plans must include an Economic Opportunities Analysis of factors related to local, state and national trends and policies that support current and projected economic development for the next 20 years.
This goal requires cities to assure adequate opportunities for a variety of housing types, locations and densities that meet the community’s housing needs. These are based on coordinated population projections and other factors related to local housing and employment trends. Land use regulations governing review and approval of needed housing must be clear and objective and may not be used to deny an application or reduce density. LCDC administrative rules provide guidance on how to conduct a buildable lands inventory. Within the Portland metropolitan region, housing rules specify requirements for each jurisdiction, based on its size and contribution to meeting regional housing needs.
This goal requires cities and counties to plan for and develop timely, orderly and efficient sewer, water, transportation and other infrastructure that support existing and proposed land uses. Planning for these services is a principal means by which a city can affect the location, scale, and pace of development. Other public services and facilities such as law enforcement and fire protection also should be considered. Transportation planning is explained in more detail in the urban growth section.
Each local government with more than 2,500 people must adopt a Public Facilities Plan for water, sewer and transportation facilities. These plans include an inventory of existing and needed future facilities, an estimate of the general timing, costs and potential funding sources.
In Oregon, counties are required to coordinate planning of all jurisdictions within their boundaries and undertake primary planning responsibility for areas outside cities. They are responsible for protecting natural resources and economic resource lands, and providing a framework for rural residential, commercial and industrial development. All this must be consistent with the Statewide Planning Goals. Counties typically protect agricultural and forest lands for uses that are compatible with a resource-based economy. County plans may allow limited rural development in unincorporated communities and on resource lands, using planning processes set out in state administrative rules. Planning for rural development on farm and forest lands often requires an "exception" to the statewide planning goals.
As we just noted, counties are required to plan to conserve natural resources while supporting local and state agricultural and forest economies. Plan policies and land use designations protect farm and forest land. Exclusive Farm Use and Forest zoning regulations limit uses on agricultural and forest lands based on LCDC rules. These zones also include minimum lot sizes to preserve land in blocks large enough to maintain commercial-scale farming and forestry.
Goal 5 applies to cities and counties and is designed to protect and conserve a wide range of natural resources, including riparian areas; wetlands; fish and wildlife habitat; wild and scenic rivers; wilderness areas; mineral and aggregate resources; energy sources; groundwater; natural areas; historic and cultural resources; scenic views and sites; and open space. Local governments are required to follow a specific planning process for resource protection. They must inventory resources and determine their significance; identify conflicting uses; evaluate the economic, social, environmental and energy consequences of allowing conflicting uses; and develop programs that protect each resource. LCDC administrative rules provide detailed guidance for each of the Goal 5 resource categories. The rules describe specific "safe harbor" resource protection programs a local government can choose to meet goal requirements without challenge.
The State has a process for identifying "exception areas" and to enable counties to plan and manage land use in unincorporated communities with residential, commercial and industrial development that may be situated in or near resource areas. The process allows such uses to continue and in some cases, expand. Counties are required to identify and designate these rural centers, plan for permitted and prohibited uses and anticipate current and future facilities needs.
These designations allow for different intensities of development:
A destination resort is a self-contained development that provides for visitor-oriented accommodations and developed recreational facilities in a setting with high natural amenities. In accordance with state law, counties may allow destination resorts on certain rural lands to help create or strengthen the local tourism economy. To retain natural features and minimize adverse environmental impacts, including any effects on farming operations, the resort must be compatible with the site and adjacent land uses. Destination resort planning is complex and may be controversial. It is a substantial planning effort that may take considerable time and staff resources to complete.
This goal requires cities to project future growth and identify areas that may accommodate this growth in an orderly and efficient manner. Those areas slated for urban growth are identified after assessments of public facilities and services; environmental, energy, economic, and social consequences; and the compatibility of urban uses with nearby agricultural and forest activities. They are then included within the UGB, a key feature of Oregon’s land use planning system.
This goal calls for each city and the surrounding county to establish a UGB. UGBs separate urbanizable land from rural land, identifying the extent of urban growth planned for the next 20 years. Urbanizable land is the area within the UGB outside developed areas suitable and available for future planned urban development and services. Annexation to a city is typically expected, but not always required as services are extended and development occurs.
Cities are required to estimate their needs for a 20-year supply of land to accommodate housing, employment and other urban uses. Public facilities, streets and roads, schools, parks, and open space also must be included in this 20-year estimate. Forecasts estimate the future population of a given area, based on historic growth and assumptions about future trends. All counties in Oregon must coordinate with their cities to develop, adopt, and maintain population forecasts for land use planning, including determining the size of UGBs. Within the Portland metropolitan region, the Metropolitan Service District, or Metro, is responsible for planning coordination and establishing the region’s UGB.
If the 20-year land supply within a UGB is considered insufficient, cities are required to amend their comprehensive plans by any or all of the following:
State rules set priorities for the types of land that can be added to an UGB. The first priority is land designated as urban reserves; areas that the city and county agree could be future urban areas. This is followed by the exception areas we just talked about and "marginal lands." Marginal lands apply only to Washington and Lane counties. If none of these areas are adequate to meet the projected 20-year land need, less productive farm or forest lands may be considered. Highly productive farm and forest lands are the last priority. Other matters to consider when contemplating a UGB expansion include the availability of urban services, the most efficient use for the land and constraints such as wetlands and steep slopes.
The quality of life in cities depends in part on how urbanizable lands are managed so they remain suitable for eventual urban development. The key document for coordinating these efforts is the urban growth management agreement signed by each county and city.
This goal guides transportation planning in the state. It requires many communities to adopt a Transportation System Plan, or TSP, and coordinate land use decisions and local transportation planning with the Oregon Department of Transportation, or ODOT. The goal of a TSP is to plan for a safe, convenient and economical network of transportation facilities for a broad range of types of travel. The TSP is a major tool for guiding the location, timing and scale of development in existing and newly urbanizing areas.
Transportation facilities have far-reaching effects on the economy, land use patterns, air quality and quality of life. The most effective regional transportation systems include a mixture of transportation modes, including automobile, truck, air, rail, mass transit, boat, pedestrian and bicycle.
The Transportation Planning Rule* implements Goal 12 by integrating decisions about land use and transportation. Local governments must ensure that their comprehensive plans and land use regulations are consistent with and support their TSPs. They also must take appropriate action to resolve any transportation impacts of new development.
The purpose of this goal is to protect people and property from natural disasters and hazards, such as floods, landslides, earthquakes, tsunamis, coastal erosion and wildfires. There is some overlap between the provisions of Goal 7 and the hazard provisions of Goal 17, Coastal Shorelands, and Goal 18, Beaches and Dunes. While all these goals have a shared purpose of limiting or prohibiting certain developments in hazard areas, development in coastal shorelands or beach and dune areas must be consistent with their more specific requirements.
As components of their comprehensive plans, local governments are required to include inventories, policies and implementing measures to reduce risks to people and property due to natural hazards and disasters. The following are three options for developing a natural hazards inventory: Community-Wide Hazard Identification; Community-Wide Vulnerability Assessment; and Risk Analysis.
A Community-Wide Hazard Identification is included in most comprehensive plans. A hazard map is created after estimating the extent of the hazard, intensity and probability of occurrence. They provide a general outline of areas where a more thorough review of any proposed development should occur. Overlay zones indicate where specific development review standards are needed.
A Community-Wide Vulnerability Assessment combines the hazard identification information noted previously with an inventory of the existing or estimated property and population exposed to a hazard. Many local comprehensive plans do not contain a vulnerability assessment.
A Risk Analysis estimates the damage, injuries and costs likely to be experienced in a geographical area over a period of time. Although there are few examples at the present time, this level of hazard assessment is becoming more prevalent.
In addition to these three levels of these hazard assessments, communities should require a site evaluation report when considering approving new development in known or potential hazard areas. Most inventories conducted at community and/or regional scale lack details about specific properties.
The goal of Floodplain Management is to reduce losses to people and property from floods while protecting the natural resources and functions of floodplains. Development within the floodway is prohibited, while development within the floodplain generally is allowed. Floodplain management involves regulatory, construction and public education measures to avoid and minimize potential risk to development from flood hazards. Local cities and counties can meet Goal 7 requirements for coastal and riverine flood hazards by adopting and implementing local floodplain regulations that meet National Flood Insurance Program or NFIP requirements.
Coastal areas are subject to unique hazards. Ocean waves, currents, tides and storms cause chronic hazards along the ocean shore, such as velocity flooding; beach, dune or bluff erosion; and landslides. Riverine flooding typically occurs within estuaries and in some low lying shore areas near the mouths of rivers. Coastal cities and counties have developed comprehensive plan provisions and zoning ordinances to address these hazards consistent with the State coastal goals. In addition, catastrophic hazards, such as earthquakes and tsunamis occur periodically. State laws place restrictions on the construction of certain types of facilities within tsunami inundation zones and require new buildings to withstand earthquakes. The State Department of Geology and Mineral Industries has produced inventory maps that show tsunami inundation and earthquake zones local communities can use to plan for these hazards.
The State Oregon Office of Emergency Management plans and prepares for prevention, mitigation and management of emergencies or disasters that present a threat to the lives and property of citizens and visitors to the state. The agency is responsible for coordinating and facilitating emergency planning, preparedness, response and recovery activities with state and local emergency services agencies and organizations. While not typically engaged in local land use planning or land use decisions, the Office of Emergency Management can be a valuable source of information for local governments on how land uses can affect emergency preparedness.