COLUMBIA COUNTY, Update, Oct. 29: Ahead of the hearing, county commissioners approved an urban reserve management agreement with the City of Scappoose (contract C128-2026) on their consent agenda Oct. 28, according to the meeting video. The agreement, presented to the board Oct. 21, sets out how the city and county will manage land inside the proposed reserves. The Nov. 4 hearing is still scheduled.
The Columbia County Board of Commissioners will hold a public hearing Wednesday, Nov. 4, on a proposal to add 64 acres to the City of Scappoose’s urban growth boundary and to establish 480 acres of urban reserves, according to a public notice from the county.
The proposed boundary expansion would provide a 20-year supply of buildable land for the 2023 to 2043 planning period, the notice says. The proposed urban reserves identify land suitable for possible inclusion in the boundary from 2043 to 2073, to meet longer-term residential, employment and public land needs.
If approved, they would be the first acknowledged urban reserve areas in Columbia County, according to the notice. The board will also consider an amendment to the county’s Comprehensive Plan that would add a definition of “Urban Reserves” to the plan’s urbanization section. The county file numbers are PA 26-187 and TA 26-187.
The notice is addressed to owners of property in the affected areas. It says the proposed expansion area includes 28 tax lots and the proposed urban reserve area includes 117 tax lots.
The hearing will begin at or after 10 a.m. at the John Gumm Building and Civic Center, 251 St. Helens St. in St. Helens. It is a hybrid meeting, so people may also attend online through Teams; the Teams Meeting ID: 290 449 999 593 68 Passcode: ac3tW2Yt
The board is the final local decision-maker for county Comprehensive Plan map and text amendments. People are welcome to give oral or written testimony at the hearing and all testimony and evidence must be directed toward the decision criteria.
Written testimony may be submitted before the hearing by email to Jacyn Normine, the board’s administrator at jacyn.normine@columbiacountyor.gov or by first-class mail to the Columbia County Board of Commissioners, c/o Jacyn Normine, 230 Strand St., St. Helens, OR 97051.
The application, the staff report and related documents will be available for inspection at no cost at least seven days before the hearing at the county’s Land Development Services office, 445 Port Ave. in St. Helens, and on the county’s website, according to the notice.
Questions about access to the meeting or requests for accommodation go to Normine at 503-397-4322. The notice says the proposed changes may be amended at the hearing and the board may continue the hearing to another date and time without further public notice.