Proposed urban and rural reserves

About the area

This area serves as the northeastern boundary of the region, stretching from near the Columbia River on the north, across the Multnomah-Clackamas county line to Sandy and Tickle Creek to the south. It is bounded on the east by the Sandy River and on the west by the urban growth boundary and serves as the rural edge of the cities of Troutdale and Gresham. Currently it supports a mix of rural residential development and active agriculture, primarily nurseries. The topography is varied from rolling farmland to river ravines and buttes. The area includes the rural communities of Boring and Orient and extends to the eastern edge of Sandy's urban reserve.

Proposed reserves

Areas proposed for either urban or rural designation by Metro and Clackamas, Multnomah and Washington counties

1A urban

This 186-acre area southeast of Troutdale has been identified as most suitable to accommodate the city's anticipated need for housing and complement the city's future industrial development. The City of Troutdale has expressed a desire for the area and has the capacity to provide future urban services. This area has been identified as foundation agricultural land.

1B rural

Lands in Multnomah County outside of 1A urban and 1C urban from the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area south, extending east of the urban growth boundary for three miles are being proposed for rural reserve designation. For the most part, these are foundation agricultural lands that are used as working farms and small woodlots.

The Sandy River Canyon is an important natural landscape feature that is a natural eastern boundary of the Portland metropolitan area. It contains areas designated as foundation and important agricultural land. The steep slopes of the canyon and uplands that are part of the river system and its tributaries are not suitable for urbanization and therefore form an effective barrier to eastward urban expansion. Given these edge-defining characteristics and agricultural lands designations, portions of the area within three miles of the urban growth boundary are proposed for designation as a rural reserve.

To the north in the Columbia River, Government, McGuire and Lemon islands are low lying lands made up of interior fields, forested fringe and extensive wetland areas. The area is unprotected floodplain with high wildlife habitat and recreation value and low suitability for urbanization. Parts of the islands are owned by the Port of Portland and others are publicly owned and managed by Metro. Interstate 205 crosses Government Island in a narrow corridor that is within the urban growth boundary and Portland and is managed by Oregon Department of Transportation. Landscape features are adequately protected by a long term lease between the Port and the Oregon Parks and Recreation District. This area is proposed to remain undesignated.

1C urban

This 855-acre area lies east of and adjacent to Gresham's recently-planned Springwater employment area. It contains three public schools built by the Gresham Barlow School District prior to adoption of statewide land use planning goals. It is the most suitable area to accommodate additional expansion of the Springwater employment area and, along with area 1D described below, is the only land on the northeast side of the region with appropriate characteristics for industrial use. The City of Gresham has indicated an interest in providing future urban services to this area. The area is identified as foundation agricultural land.

1D urban

This 3,170-acre area lies south of Gresham and east of Damascus along Highway 26 and encompasses the rural community of Boring. It is bordered by Southeast Rugg Road on the north and Highway 26 on the east. Its topography and access to Highway 26 make it suitable as an employment and industrial area. Highway 26 provides a route for transporting manufactured goods. It would complement the Springwater employment area to the north and Damascus and Clackamas employment areas to the west.

Two buttes in the area are significant natural features with limited development potential. These identified and inventoried natural features might have served as a suitable edge for long-term urbanization and they meet the factors for designation as a rural reserve. However, in order to support extension of urban services such as water, sewer service and roads to the proposed urban reserve lands farther east, the buttes are included as part of the proposed urban reserve. A concept plan will be developed before new areas are brought into the urban growth boundary. At that time, the methods for protecting these natural features will be determined. Planning should also provide for the preservation of a view corridor along Highway 26 as contemplated in the Green Corridor Agreement between Metro, Clackamas County and Sandy. The area includes both conflicted and foundation agricultural land.

1E rural

This proposed rural reserve is south of the Multnomah/Clackamas county line and southeast of Gresham. It is east of 1D urban and extends out three miles except where it meets the outer boundary of Sandy's urban reserve. The area is identified as foundation and important agricultural land. This large area is characterized by a mix of farms, woodlots and scattered rural residential development. A number of creeks pass through the area, some associated with steep canyons and bluffs that form natural boundaries to urbanization. This rural reserve extends to Sandy's urban growth boundary in order to protect important farmland and maintain a rural separation between the Portland metropolitan area and Sandy.

1F options

This area lies east of Southeast 282nd Avenue, south and west of Highway 26 and north of Highway 212. It is one of the few areas in Clackamas County identified as suitable for employment. It also is identified as foundation agricultural land, but several significant non-farm uses occupy portions of the area. Clackamas County and Sandy believe that a rural reserve designation is the best way to achieve a separation between Sandy and the Portland metropolitan area. The area is being considered for designation as an urban reserve to provide additional employment land for Clackamas County and to take advantage of large, flat parcels and the Highway 212/Highway 26 transportation corridor. This would allow the community of Boring to evolve into a commercial center or small city over the next 40 to 50 years.

Alternatively, this area could be designated rural reserve to maintain a significant separation between the Portland metropolitan urban area and Sandy.