Still Working To “Stop Metro Creep”

Clackamas County Commission Chair John Ludlow
Clackamas County Commission Chair John Ludlow

As I campaign for re-election, I occasionally hear about how some folks misrepresented the disagreements between Clackamas County and Metro. My opponents were not helping as they would have voters falsely presume our county commission just can’t get along with the regional government.
To give you a clearer picture…
No one at Metro has been or is representing Clackamas County interests…not with land use, transportation planning, or growth management.
The reality is our regional planners and Metro councilors have hurt our county.
On land use, it all comes down to how Metro has purposefully over-restricted the county’s buildable land supply for housing, industry, and jobs.
Metro’s 2002 Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) expansion in Clackamas County falsely labeled the 10,000 acre Damascus expansion as buildable land. It was not; and remains unbuildable today, 14 years later. With the recent disincorporation of Damascus, where will growth occur in Clackamas County in the next 20 years or even the next 50 years? Should Clackamas County simply accept the loss of this potential growth area for the sake of being agreeable?
Metro’s attempt to label 50-year Urban and Rural Reserves promises to be equally harmful to Clackamas County. With apparently deliberate intentions to constrain common sense growth, they have labeled land far out in Boring for future urban development, while prohibiting development on land next to I-5 by giving it a 50-year Rural designation.
Guided by a chronic desire to force more infill and higher densities into existing neighborhoods, Metro has botched both the UGB and Reserves processes. To date, the adverse effects have produced the region-wide housing and rent crisis. Going forward, their mismanagement will harm the region even more.
I believe your Clackamas County Commission should object and do everything they can to reverse Metro’s mismanagement and stand up for your interests.
On transportation, Metro has been making mistake after mistake in directing and misappropriating vast sums of our gas tax dollars while preparing to advance even more incorrect decisions. Metro shared much of the blame for the $200 million CRC bridge debacle. They are now preparing to push through an anticipated Light Rail expansion in the SW Corridor and a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) project from Portland to Gresham. The SW Corridor MAX will devour billions, take lanes away from Barbur Blvd., and carve up the communities along the way.
The east side BRT will be a costly way to produce transit that is slower than the current bus service. Worse yet, neither of these projects should be priorities for the region. They are not on the list of the choke points identified in a recent study.
I-205 in Clackamas County has been identified as a “high priority” corridor by the Federal Government — specifically, the section of I-205 including the Abernethy Bridge to Stafford (5.9 miles). The Sunrise Corridor to Hwy 26 is another vital need for our county.
I believe the Board of Clackamas County Commissioners should be aggressive in pursuing Clackamas County’s interests. If this means disagreeing with and vigorously objecting to Metro’s plans, then so be it.
Metro is wrong and unrelenting in their insistence that the region accept more density and congestion and become more like Portland. As your County Chair, I will continue to work with Metro, when possible, while always placing Clackamas County’s needs and priorities first.

(Unless otherwise noted, the opinions expressed are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Northwest Connection.)

 

Comments to: Still Working To “Stop Metro Creep”

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *