Residents of single-family zones in Portland have been concerned for years about the frequent demolition of viable single-family houses and replacement with large, expensive houses. In Beaumont-Wilshire the new houses are over twice as large and twice as expensive as the houses they replace.
In response to these concerns the mayor established the Residential Infill Project to examine scale of houses, use of lot splitting, and the potential use of alternative housing types in single-family residential zones. The Residential Infill Project Stakeholder Advisory Committee has been meeting for nine months. The product of this work is the city’s newly released draft proposal for code changes in residential zones. This proposal has the potential to make great changes in what is allowed in R2.5 (2500 sq. ft. lot) and R5 (5000 sq. ft. lot) residential zones. Now is the time for Portland residents to weigh in on this proposal.
Highlights of a few of the draft proposals include:
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Scale: reduce the size of new houses to approximately 2500 square feet on a 5000 square feet lot.
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Height: measure the height of houses from the lowest point of the lot five feet from the foundation. Continue to allow houses 30 feet high, measured to the midpoint of pitched roofs.
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Setbacks: increase minimum front setbacks by five feet with exceptions for matching front setbacks of adjacent houses.
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Allow more units in the same form as a house: allow an ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit) with a duplex; allow duplexes on all lots and triplexes on corners; provide a bonus unit for an affordable unit, an accessible unit, or internally converting an existing house.
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Narrow Lots: allow new houses on historically narrow lots “near centers and corridors”; do not allow new houses on historically narrow lots outside the areas labeled “near centers and corridors.” Do not require off street parking or garages for houses on narrow lots.
The proposal in its entirety is online on the Residential Infill Project website: http://www.portlandoregon.gov/bps/infill.
The City is actively seeking input from residents. This is your chance to have a direct impact on these proposals. Several open houses and BPS district liaison drop-in hours are scheduled around the city. The entire schedule is on the Residential Infill Project website—http://www.portlandoregon.gov/bps/infill—with the last open house (hosted by the Beaumont-Wilshire-inspired United Neighborhoods for Reform) listed in this newsletter’s Calendar column. The open house closest to our neighborhood is below.
Residential Infill Project Open House, Thursday, July 14 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the German American Society, 5626 N.E. Alameda (at Sandy Blvd). Accessible by Tri-Met Bus #12 and #71
BWNA encourages you to attend at least one of these public meetings and take the opportunity to provide input. Have a voice in the future of our neighborhood!
Barbara Strunk is the United Neighborhoods for Reform delegate to the City of Portland’s Residential Infill Project Stakeholder Advisory Committee.