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Date ArticleType
9/11/2024 Member News

North Plains Initiating UGB Expansion “Re-Look”, Litigation Gives Mixed Outcome


Following the voter-rejected UGB expansion previously approved by North Plains City Council, the city is moving forward with what’s being called an expansion “Re-Look”. This summer, North Plains City Council deliberated and approved a new plan that will establish an Advisory Committee to help advise and develop a new approach to growth. This “relook” will focus on creating greater opportunities for public involvement to determine a new development plan for the expansion planning efforts. HBA and our partners are meeting with Council and City leadership to ensure that any planning body considers the desperate regional need for new housing and employment opportunities.

Additionally, and concurrently with the plan being developed by City Council, HBA’s involvement in a city-led legal challenge defending its expansion process (prior to May’s vote to reject it outright) ultimately failed. Washington County Circuit Court judge issued a ruling that decided against reject May’s election results, and limiting the constitutionality of HB 4026, a bill HBA and our partners across the state championed last session. HBA joined the case via an amicus brief, arguing that the court should also weigh in by deciding that cities’ UGBs land-use decisions are in their very nature administrative (rather than legislative), and therefore not allowed to be put to a referendum. While the judge did not weigh in on that particular issue, he did effectively end any hope that North Plains’ initial work to expand their UGB would stand on its own legal merits. It also appears uncertain whether he addressed the state legislature’s authority to apply HB 4026 to future UGB decision-making processes, which would effectively prevent UGB votes from being put to a vote via local referendum or petition.