Robert Liberty

On Feb. 25, 2010 the Metro Council voted on proposed urban and rural reserves in the three-county Portland, Oregon metropolitan region. This vote is the culmination of three years of legislation, rule-making, analysis and negotiation. The new reserves process was intended to provide certainty by indicating the location for future urban growth for a period of not less than 40 years and not more than 50 years. But the new process has its flaws. Chief among them is that the analysis and consideration of potential urban growth boundary expansion areas was isolated from the discussion of the alternate strategy of reinvestment in existing developed areas. Another serious flaw was that the only parties to the agreement on reserves are the three counties and Metro; cities where most citizens live and which provide urban facilities and services, are not parties to the agreements. Now it is time to turn our attention to an equally important project, establishing a set of standards and procedures for making decisions on public investments in transportation, pipes, parks, schools and other investments to help existing areas and new areas thrive

Read more...

Over the last several months, I have listened to many hours of testimony about urban and rural reserves being proposed around our region. Much of the testimony focused on what lands to designate as urban reserves. But some of the most compelling testimony came from people asking for their lands to be designated as a rural reserve. 

Read more...

Updated designs for the next MAX line are presented for public review in TriMet's conceptual design report, available on TriMet's web site and at open houses in Southeast Portland on Feb. 22 and Milwaukie on Feb. 25.

Read more...

After more than two years of research, study and public input, Metro and the three counties in the Portland metropolitan region are nearing the end of an unprecedented process to agree on where and how our region will grow in the next several decades.The reserves process is unique in the nation - never before has a metropolitan area mapped out a decades-long plan that identifies areas for urban growth and lands that should be set aside as rural reserves.

Read more...

At its meeting Wednesday night the Metro Policy Advisory Committee recommended the Metro Council and the Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington county commissions adopt an urban and rural reserves map that reflects the suggestions made by MPAC at its Jan. 27 and Feb. 1 meetings.

Concerns were raised by several MPAC members that their committee's recommendations were not discussed by the Core 4 at its Feb. 8 meeting, and that MPAC's recommendations may have been ignored in the development of the final Core 4 consensus map.

Read more...