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This week, Wilsonville became the first city within Metro’s Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) to adopt comprehensive Middle Housing development code changes pursuant to House Bill 2001 (passed 2019) and Senate Bill 458 (passed 2021)-- eight months ahead of the state’s required deadline! Notably, Wilsonville’s code now allows for Accessory Dwelling Units to be processed under an expedited land division. HBA applauds Wilsonville’s swift Middle Housing Project adoption. In a letter to the City regarding its Middle Housing code, HBA encourages the City to use the land division terms ‘lot’ and ‘parcel’, terminology consistent with ORS 92.010, when referring to any unit of land resulting from any type of land division. Consistent terminology is important for the legal acquisition, financing, and development of land for middle housing. Additionally, HBA urges the city to allow all qualifying middle housing to be processed under an expedited land division. Currently, the City’s adopted code excludes two, three and four unit detached cluster proposals from this process, risking longer timelines and increased potential for project appeals. HB 2001 defines Wilsonville, along with all other cities over 1,000 population within Metro’s UGB, as a ‘large city’. Large cities are required to allow duplexes, triplexes and quadplexes, along with cottage clusters and townhomes in all areas that allow for the development of single dwelling detached homes. The state’s deadline for large cities’ local Middle Housing implementation is June 30, 2022, and Wilsonville’s new code becomes effective November 18, 2021. To learn more about HBA involvement in Wilsonville, contact Roseann Johnson, roseannj@hbapdx.org.