Metro Declares War On Troutdale Property Rights

Joseph Stalin, the first Metro Chair.

Metro Councilors recently voted unanimously to "proceed with enforcement action" against the City of Troutdale.  According to a story on Metro's web site by Metro Chief Propagandist (ok, ok, he's officially known as a Metro staffer) Nick Christensen, the Metro Council decided to punish the City after the Troutdale City Council voted unanimously in November, 2011 to reject changes to the city's code that would have placed extensive restrictions on property that Metro considers "environmentally sensitive". ((You can read a transcript of the November 8, 2011 City Council meeting here- it's agenda item 7).

Barbara Roberts, former Oregon Governor and current Metro Spitter-In-Chief

Christensen's article included a quote by Current Metro Councilor and former Oregon Governor Barbara Roberts, who said of Troutdale's refusal to limit property rights, "This is really a spit in your face kind of thing,"

The Troutdale City Council determined that its codes were already compliant with state land use rules.   If Metro has its way, many property owners in Troutdale would lose significant parts of their land for no good reason and without any compensation. That's not good policy except for the Stalinists on NE Grand Ave.

I agree with the Troutdale City Council. Metro is not Troutdale's friend. Want examples? Read these articles:

Land Use Regulation: don't call defenders of property rights zealots 

Metro's Fear And Loathing of Troutdale and Suburbia 

Troutdalians: Bear any Burden, Pay Any Price

Metro Tells Troutdale Where To Shove Its Quality of Life



  Troutdalians have the right to decide how we want our city to look fifty years from now. Not Metro's new urbanist dreamers. Therefore, (to borrow from John F. Kennedy's inaugural address), let every new urbanist know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of Troutdale's high quality of life.
  
Had enough? TAKE ACTION NOW!!! Call or e-mail  Metro NOW and tell them to stop violating your property rights:

Metro Council office
503-797-1540 | 503-797-1793 fax
metrocouncil@oregonmetro.gov

Light Rail Roadhouse: Enter At Your Own Risk.

Another stabbing on the Light Rail Roadhouse this weekend.  From Oregonlive: 

"At 12:10 a.m. Sunday, police arrived at the 1000 block of North Interstate Avenue near the Rose Quarter and found Andy Bloomstrom, 30, lying on the ground with stab wounds. He told police he was riding MAX with several friends when Poston held the door open, waiting for someone. An argument between the two turned physical and Poston allegedly stabbed Bloomstrom three times: twice in the chest and once in the left forearm."

  TriMet was right on top of things with Mary Fetch, their black belt PR mouthpiece. Fetch was convincing with her tough talk:

"Obviously we take every incident seriously," said TriMet spokeswoman Mary Fetsch. "We want to send the message that TriMet is a safe system. We want to send the message that we have the additional personnel to prevent (these incidents) this from happening."

 TriMet probably has more PR flacks than transit cops. Wouldn't it be great if instead of saying "we want to send the message that TriMet is a safe system. . .", Fetch said something that Roadhouse cooler Dalton (played by the late, great Patrick Swayze) would have said:

" People who really want to have a good time won't come to a MAX train. And we've got entirely too many troublemakers here. Too many 40-year-old adolescents, felons, power drinkers and trustees of modern chemistry.

If somebody gets in your face  I want you to be nice. Ask him to walk. Be nice. If he won't walk, walk him. But be nice. If you can't walk him, one of the others will help you, and you'll both be nice. I want you to remember that it's a job. It's nothing personal.... I want you to be nice until it's time to not be nice."

We need more transit cops on MAX and less PR flacks in TriMet offices. It's time to not be nice.

Rockwood's "Image" was RUINED by light rail

From the DJC online: "MAX improvements could help improve Rockwood's image".

"Some hope that these improvements will finally jump-start development at a former Fred Meyer site across from the MAX station. The city purchased the site in 2005, and has since created a public art plaza, Plaza del Sol, at the site of the area’s future town center. But no private development has occurred there yet.
“The idea with this project is to leverage investment in transit into nearby development opportunities,” said Mary Fetsch, a TriMet spokeswoman. “By making the transit area safer and more visible, it will lend a sense of place to the whole area.”

Obviously, Tri-Met lives in backwards world.

Troutdalians: Bear Any Burden, Pay Any Price

That's what Troutdale and the other east county cities need to do by fighting Metro's "up, not out" urban growth strategy. Metro's rejection of Troutdale's request to add 775 acres to its urban reserve is just the latest slap in the face to local government control of its own land use decisions. Tom McCall himself would reject Metro's draconian one size fits all urban growth boundary decisions.

Troutdale needs a 50 year supply of land according to state law. But without land for new housing and the anticipated new jobs coming to Troutdale over the next 50 years, Troutdale's future job holders would have no choice but to commute 20 or more miles to their jobs in Troutdale. Sure, Metro would like to force Troutdale to resort to more density via multi-story apartments and condo towers, skinny houses, light rail, the works. But Troutdalians must fight Metro's high density plans for Troutdale.

We value our high quality of life. We value our 30 foot height restrictions. We love our homes on family friendly large lots with big backyards. We know from experience that Metro-mandated high density"mixed use" was a failure in Fairview- its Fairview Village business strip is business ghost town. And it certainly doesn't work in Troutdale. We don't want high density. We don't want crime-ridden light rail and all of the tax abated crackerbox apartments that could be forced on us. We're not Portland. We're not Hillsboro. We're not Gresham. Not that there's anything wrong with those places.

Troutdalians have the right to decide how we want our city to look fifty years from now. Not Metro's new urbanist dreamers. Therefore, (to borrow from John F. Kennedy's inaugural address), let every new urbanist know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of Troutdale's high quality of life.

Metro Tells Troutdale Where To Shove Its Quality Of Life

Michael Jordan, chief operating officer of Metro regional government, is recommending that Metro Council reject the city’s request for urban reserves, effectively thwarting development of the area for a 50-year period. Read about it at the Outlook online.

Tualatin's 80% Minimum Density Requirement: Bye-Bye

The November 20 Tigard/Tualatin/Sherwood Times reports that the City of Tualatin rescinded its 80% minimum density requirement. According to the article,

"This has the potential of creating bigger lot sizes and bigger homes in Tualatin, says Development Director Doug Rux. The repeal pushes the city’s minimum density requirements for medium-to-high density, high density and high density high rise back to the city requirements from the 1997/1998 timeframe."

Good for Tualatin.

Troutdale 2007 Population: 15,430

Troutdale welcomed 320 new residents in 2007, according to the latest Certified Population Estimate by Portland State University's Population Research Center .

Troutdale is now ranked 34th out of 242 Oregon cities, up from #35 in 2006.

Here are the 2007 population estimates for other east Multnomah County cities:

Gresham	99,225
Fairview	9,695
Wood Village	3,100

Condo Capitalism- Sucks To Be You, Huh?

From the Washington Post: "Glut of Condos Pits Private Sellers Against Developers."

Metro's Fear and Loathing of Troutdale and Suburbia

Portland Transport: Height Limits: Another Zoning Decision that Causes Sprawl
In his post, Metro councilor Rex Burkholder wrote:
Troutdale, like Lake Oswego, Wilsonville and other suburbs, have very low height limits for buildings even in their "downtowns." Height limits are intended to maintain a "village" feel, even if these "villages" are part of a bustling metropolis and the "villagers" mostly commute to the high density towers of the city to make their livings while the wife and kids are safely ensconced in Pleasantville. This is an example of citizens using zoning codes to enforce a particular lifestyle and class structure on their communities. (See previous post on Sprawl and Zoning).
Technorati tags: Rex Burkholder, height limits, sprawl, City of Troutdale, Pleasantville, zoning codes

March 2, 2006 10:06 PM
rex Burkholder Says:

"Government didn't create zoning; special interests used government to create value for themselves and to protect that value. Zoning was created to separate the bourguosie from the lower elements (most zoning is exclusionary--large lots, minimum housing values--designed to keep the low income populations away.)

Of course, when the real estate development industry persuaded Congress to grant deductions for home mortgage interest, enact the Veterans home purchase program, as well as the federal home mortgage guarantee, even working class folks could afford a ranch house on a cul-de-sac. Unfortunately, like the popularization of the automobile, what started as a high value luxury for the rich (country life and mobility) ends up being devalued as it is over-built. Result: congestion and sprawl."

Just so folks in Troutdale know what your elected Metro officials think of our community.

Elected Official's Winter Wish Comes True!

Remember last winter, when it was cold and snowy and icy? Boy, I do. I remember specifically wishing would it PLEEZ be summer already, for crying out loud, as I lay on the snowy street after I slipped and sprained my wrist in January.

So you're thinking to yourself. What does a stupid wish have to do with Troutdale politics? It supports the statement, "Be careful what you wish for. You just might get it.". I'm so thrilled with proof that this wishing stuff really works, that my next wish is NOT for world peace (I think the beauty pageant people have a lock on that one), but for my fellow Troutdale city councilors to agree wholeheartedly with everything I propose for the rest of the year.

Here's my wish list. Let's get rid of all A-2 and R-4 zoning, replacing it with minimum R-5. Let's get the urban renewal project finished. Let's start some neighborhood associations. Let's stop paying unnecessary legal fees of $300k to developers. Let's have our city council meetings end at 10pm instead of midnight or 1am. Let's pressure ODOT to fix the Frontage Road/ I-84 Troutdale exit vortex of pain. Let's urge Multnomah County to put their new library at the old Thriftway store on Stark, and not in downtown Troutdale. Let's make sure we solve the loose trash problem before winter winds kick in.

And finally, let's make sure that trams made from recycled 737 fuselages never see the light of day Troutdale.

Troutdale Home Appreciation Rate: 16.3%

Troutdale and Gresham had the highest appreciation rates for the last 12 months, according to RMLS and the Portland, Oregon Real Estate Blog. Appreciation percents are based on a comparison of average price for the last 12 months with 12 months before.

Here are the current appreciation rates for the region:
Rate - Area

16.3% - Gresham, Troutdale
13.3% - Lake Oswego, West Linn
13.1% - Hillsboro, Forest Grove
11.5% - Southeast Portland
11.5% - North Portland
11.2% - Milwaukie, Clackamas
9.4% - Northeast Portland
9.1% - Oregon City, Canby
6.4% - Beaverton, Aloha
6.1% - Northwest Washington County
5.2% - West Portland
3.8% - Tigard, Tualatin, Sherwood, Wilsonville

The Portland, Oregon Real Estate blog also says Troutdale and Gresham homes are more affordable than most of the region:

Average - Median = Area

$550,400 - $462,500 = Lake Oswego, West Linn
$464,100 - $377,000 = West Portland
$399,600 - $369,000 = Northwest Washington County
$375,600 - $335,000 = Tigard, Tualatin, Sherwood, Wilsonville
$345,000 - $307,700 = Milwaukie, Clackamas, Happy Valley, Damascus
$320,300 - $299,900 = Oregon City, Canby
$312,900 - $274,500 = Northeast Portland
$298,100 - $270,000 = Hillsboro, Forest Grove
$285,200 - $260,000 = Beaverton, Aloha
$282,400 - $260,000 = Gresham, Troutdale
$281,700 - $248,000 = Southeast Portland
$264,000 - $248,500 = North Portland

OR Dems: Let Cities, Metro Set House Prices

Oregon State Rep. Buckley, Senator Bates, and Representative Shields have co-sponsored
HB 3284, would allow local governments to establish sales prices for housing units or residential lots as a condition of approval in a land use application.

HB 3284 would also allow local governments to limit the availability of some housing units or residential lots to a class or group of purchasers, also as a condition of approval.
(A tip of the hat to fellow Troutdale City Councilor Barbara Kyle for this information).

What's next, just forcing landowners to build homes, then turn them over at no cost to government? Why don't we all just give all of our land and our money to government now, and get it over with?

Sedona Park Residents Ask For Parking Permits

At tonight's Troutdale City Council work session, residents of the Sedona Park neighborhood asked for a resident parking permit program. They wanted the city to issue parking permits for Sedona Park residents and guests.

In a staff report, Troutdale Police Chief David Nelson pointed out the problems with such a request. First of all, enforcement would be problematic. There would be costs to the city to administer and enforce. In addition, there didn't seem to be a need for such a program in this neighborhood. Other cities have residential permit programs in areas where parking is hard to come by, such as in a downtown area, or near a stadium or other high demand venue. These conditions don't exist in tucked-away, residential Sedona Park.

The city council reached a consensus of "not at this time" for this proposal.

On the short term, Sedona Park residents also asked that construction workers and vehicles be kept out of the Sedona Park neighborhood during construction of the 9 new single family homes in the Tyson's Place subdivision next to Sedona Park. (In case you're not familiar with the history of Sedona Park and Tyson's Place, click here.)

At my suggestion, the city council and Sedona Park residents who attended the work session agreed to attempt a low-key, informal problem solving meeting with Sedona Park residents, city staff, representatives from Tyson's Place builder D.A. Grey and Multnomah County. I thought that instead of the city making new laws or requirements it would be better for the neighbors and the builder to tell each other what their needs were and work together to solve a mutual problem. So thats what everyone agreed to do.

We're a small town, everyone is usually open minded and friendly. A policy of live and let live is much better than heavy handed government dictated rules and regulations.

Council Work Session: Density, Zoning Change Rules

Last night's city council work session agenda addressed three topics.
1.Opportunities to downzone selected areas
2. General Procedures for claims against the city
3. Changes to notification procedures for Type 1 land use decisions & Zoning map changes.

I'll discuss topic #3 first. Based on criticism by Troutdale residents regarding lack of notice for a lot line adjustment and zoning map change on the Sedona Park case, the city council agreed to require notice to surrounding neighbors for future lot line adjustments. We also agreed that the Planning Director's discretion under current Development Code rules to determine the exact line between zones was too vague. So in the future, ANY change in the zoning map, whether 5 square feet or 5 square miles, would be considered a Type IV land use procedure, requiring the full meal deal of public process: Notification, Planning Commission hearing, City Council hearing.

Topic 1-opportunities to downzone selected areas: This was a continuation of the city council's goal to reduce overall density in Troutdale. At the work session, we discussed several different properties and how to approach the issue of downzoning with the respective property owners. We agreed that any downzoning of property would only be done with the express agreement of the property owner. I'll have more to report on this issue next month.

Topic 2- general procedures for claims against the city: city staff wanted a review of general procedures to follow when someone makes a claim against the city i.e. broken sidewalks, blocked sewer lines causing damages, slip and fall, etc. The current procedure is to refer all claims to our insurer, City County Insurance Services (CCIS) for disposition of all claims. If CCIS determines the city was negligent, it covers any claims. If the city determines the city was not negligent, it will deny the claim. City staff wanted to know what to do with claims when CCIS and city staff feel the city wasn't negligent. The city council agreed that the current system was working fine- for claims not covered by CCIS, we would defer to city staff for disposition of the claim unless the dollar amount reached a certain point, at which time staff should refer the issue to the city council. We didn't decide on the dollar amount last night but discussed small claims limits, potential legal fees, etc. City staff will bring us some options on a dollar amount threshhold at a future work session.

Finally, City Attorney Marnie Allen formally announced her resignation. She's going to work full time for school districts in Washington State. She's an expert on municipal law, always goes above and beyond the call of duty in anticipating and responding to city staff and council concerns, has a tremendous work ethic, and is a pleasure to work with. She will be sorely missed. Thanks for your many years of service, Marnie.

Troutdale City Council Goal Setting

Tuesday night, the city council held its annual goal setting session. It's my blog, so I'll brag about two new council goals for 2007-08 that I proposed.

First: We agreed that reduction of Troutdale's density should be a priority. (Kudos and many thanks to fellow councilor Barbara Kyle, who has also advocated the pursuit of lower density for the past year). The city council has already started this process. We'll be looking at potential areas to downzone in the next few weeks. City staff should also have some answers regarding my suggestion of a building moratorium in Troutdale.

I wrote about this idea on my blog last month. The Oregonian's Gosia Wozniacka discussed the issue further in her article, "Troutdale councilor challenges density" which ran January 25.

Second: we will create a city legislative agenda for county and state issues of interest to the city. Supporting the League of Oregon City's legislative agenda is fine in a generic sense, but I felt it was time we asked our local legislators to carry the water for issues that would be "Troutdale-specific".

Now I'll get back to the goal setting session in general. First, we reviewed the status of the 2006-2007 goals. For instance, our #1 priority has been completion of our Riverfront Renewal Plan (aka Troutdale's urban renewal district). Some progress has been made.

Negotiations for Disposition and Development Agreements are underway with Chelsea Group and Eastwind Development Group. City staff is also working on the RFP for redevelopment of the eastern portion of the site. This should be completed and out to the development world within 30-60 days. Approvals for the City of Troutdale and Union Pacific Railroad riverfront access road have cleared the Troutdale Planning Commission.

Another goal, "Encourage Economic Development", includes items such as "Continue membership and support for East Metro Economic Alliance", and "Continue to support Mt. Hood Community College "back forty" site. "

No matter what happens, we can say we worked on these goals! They're meaningless. Most of the items listed in our council goals are just as generic.

For the last two years, I have encouraged my fellow city councilors to be more specific with their goals. How about being specific, measurable, reachable, with accountability and due dates agreed upon? No such luck. As a matter of fact, two city councilors were quite vocal in opposition to any attempts at accountability or specificity. Nice. But a few councilors have come around. I would say 3 councilors wish accountability, 2 don't, and one will continue to duck and cover on this issue.

I will say this, though. We are extremely fortunate to have John Anderson as City Administrator. He has done his best to create specific and measurable tasks from our generic goals. Many thanks to John and the rest of the city staff for their hard work over the last year.

Tacoma City Council Votes Votes For Housing Moratorium

That's my kind of town. . .
From KOMO-TV's web site:
Tuesday night the Tacoma City Council agreed to place a six-month emergency moratorium on permit approval for major housing developments in the city

State of the *Yawn*ion

Who actually listens to the SOTU speech? I dare you. Admit it. You don't either. You're watching it, but you're not listening.One hour of platitudes, proposed programs, and promises that won't be fulfilled, rhetoric, empty words. The fake smiles and backslaps. I've heard it all before. Bush II. Clinton. Bush I. Reagan. etc. etc. It's not even good political theater.

It's sitting through another boring sermon of the Church of High Politics. You know what they're going to say. You know what the opposition is going to say. You know what David Gregory and O'Reilly are going to say. Snarky and smarmy. Know-it-alls getting it wrong again.

Come on. Admit it. You watched it, and you stopped paying attention after five minutes of Presidential droning. Your mind started wandering. You started thinking about those brownies the Mrs. put in the oven. Your mind meandered through visions containing tomorrow's to-do list, tomorrow morning's meeting, that blog entry you haven't quite finished, the clover you noticed growing in your backyard lawn, the blinking message waiting light on your phone (who called?), SOUND FAMILIAR?

I'm a political junkie. But the SOTU? I'm thinking more STFU.

Density Decrease Should Be Troutdale Goal

Based on current zoning, Troutdale's future housing mix opportunity for residential zones is 52.9 percent attached and multi-family dwellings, and 47.1 percent detached single family dwellings. Oregon land use statutes only require a 50 percent opportunity for construction of attached and multi family dwellings in Troutdale.

Troutdale has already blown right through Metro's required dwelling unit capacity by 248 units for the period ending in 2017. Unless Troutdale changes its current zoning, we're on track to be burdened with 1,538 existing and potential units in excess of Metro's Title 1 required allocation for 2017. That's unfair for current and future Troutdale residents. It's unfair to an already overcrowded Reynolds School District. It's unfair to the City of Troutdale's tight budget for police, fire, parks, streets, and other amenities.

That's why decreasing Troutdale's density while still meeting state mandated requirements should be a high priority goal for the Troutdale City Council in 2007. During an October, 2006 work session, the City Council agreed that our problem wasn't the specific location of high density zoning such as the condominiums proposed next to the Sedona Park neighborhood. The consensus was that our problem was density in general.

So how do we solve this problem of density in general? Do we amend portions of the Troutdale Development Code? Or do we amend the zoning map and comprehensive plan to decrease the amount of higher density zoned land? How can we solve our density problem and still meet state mandated density requirements?

During Tuesday's Troutdale City Council meeting, I asked city staff to look into methods to implement a moratorium on the issuance of building permits for construction of attached and multi family dwellings in Troutdale. Other steps the city should consider are negotiating with property owners for voluntary rezone of existing A2 attached and multiple family zoning to single family attached zoning. Although it may seem farfetched, the city should also explore a bond levy to raise funds dedicated to the purchase of development rights for property owners unwilling to voluntarily rezone their property.

Enough is enough. Troutdale has already exceeded its share of required housing. For livability's sake, let's stop this madness now.

Autumn On Steens Mountain

Steens Mountain, near Fish Lake. Taken during a camping trip, September 2000.

Troutdale's Population Passes 15,000

15,110. That's Troutdale's population as of July, 2006. This ranks Troutdale at 35th out of 242 Oregon cities.

Portland State University's Population Research Center recently released its 2006 Certified Population Estimates for Oregon's counties, cities, and towns.

You can download the Excel version here,or the Incorporated Cities and Towns PDF here.

According to their 2005 Annual Oregon Population Report, here's a selected history of Troutdale's population:

2003: 14,880
2002: 14,380
2001: 14,300
2000: 14,240
1990: 7,852


Other east county cities new totals are:

Fairview: 9,585
Wood Village: 2,965
Gresham: 97,745

Other nearby cities:
Damascus: 9,670
Estacada: 2,580
Happy Valley: 9,210
Molalla: 6,830
Sandy: 7,070

Oregon's Top Ten Cities, by 2006 population:
Portland: 562,690
Salem: 149,305
Eugene: 148,595
Gresham: 97,745
Hillsboro: 84,445
Beaverton: 84,270
Bend: 75,290
Medford: 73,960
Springfield: 57,065