Urban Growth Boundary Expansion

Each city in Oregon is surrounded by an urban growth boundary. Urban growth boundaries manage how communities develop and grow, while still preserving open space and farmland beyond the city. On planning maps, it’s a literal line drawn to show where a city expects to grow over a 20-year period.

Managing urban growth has many benefits:

  • It helps growing cities to plan for a more efficient use of land.

  • It reduces the distance Oregonians must travel in their communities.

  • It gives people more transportation options.

All three benefits reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation. 

Urban growth boundaries can be seen in real life, too. You may notice that many major roads in Oregon have long stretches of undeveloped land between communities. That’s often because of urban growth boundaries.

Urban growth boundaries aren’t locked in place. As Oregon’s city populations and economies grow, so do the urban growth boundaries. The key is to manage boundary expansion for an efficient use of land that connects people and goods via short distances and many travel options.

Urban growth boundary expansion: emissions reduction vision

 

  • Urban growth boundary expansion will be limited to 15% of the rate at which a metropolitan area’s population expands.

How Oregon is doing

 
 

Oregon’s land use planning system has managed urban growth for decades. Under these laws, metropolitan-area urban growth boundary expansions remain on track with population growth per state government’s emission reduction vision.

How Oregon can improve

 

The state will continue to apply its land use planning system to accommodate future growth in Oregon’s population. The state can also work with cities to develop unused land into mixed-use areas (via zoning plans and codes), and address barriers to developing multi-family homes and mixed-use buildings.