Livability and Land Use Committee

Written By Meg Merrick

News!

On Wednesday, May 31st, the City of Portland Independent District Commission (IDC) voted to submit 3 maps to the public for comment during July 2023. Click here for the calendar of events including the upcoming public hearings. The IDC is charged with establishing the boundaries for the 4 new voting districts in Portland. The IDC is charged with establishing the boundaries for the 4 new voting districts for Portland.

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Purpose

The Eastmoreland Neighborhood Association (ENA) Land Use Committee assists the ENA Board of Directors by informing, advising, developing policy positions, and advancing land use policies and environmental initiatives adopted by the ENA Board. The Committee is the primary contact for Portland’s Bureau of Development Services (BDS) for enforcement related notices and the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability for comment on land use policies.

The Committee researches, analyzes, and develops informed recommendations at many scales from individual properties, to areas within the ENA boundaries, along with questions with city wide implications such as Portland’s Comprehensive Plan which addresses an extensive array of goals and policies guiding future growth. The Committee develops and presents public testimony in accordance with positions adopted by the ENA Board of Directors and may act as spokesperson(s) for the Board in these matters.

Policies

Land Use Committees are a core charter function of all Portland neighborhood associations. Ours acts in an advisory role and lacks executive authority. Requests for comment or formal position from BDS such as zoning code variances or special use permits are channeled through the Committee and are reported the ENA Board for possible action.  ENA bylaws require that the chair and or co-chair of the Land Use Committee also serve on the ENA Board of Directors.

Participation on the Land Use team is open to all neighbors. Interest in and knowledge of design especially city planning, architectural and landscape design, historic preservation, law especially zoning code, real estate, construction and related fields is certainly helpful but not required to participate. The Land Use Committee helps to educate the neighborhood about land use and environmental issues by providing articles for the ENA newsletter, social media, and by holding community–wide meetings where appropriate. 

Note: Currently, the ENA Land Use issues are included as a portion of the agenda of the monthly ENA Board meetings.

Coordination

No neighborhood is an island. The neighborhoods adjacent to Eastmoreland typically have a land use chair if not a land use committee. Woodstock , SMILE, and Brooklyn have distinct and generally more complicated land use issues because they include significant areas of commercial and multifamily zoning. Ardenwald-Johnson Creek extends into Milwaukie. We have much in common with Laurelhurst, Ladd’s Addition, and Irvington in our concerns for protecting historical resources and characteristics. Fostering contact with these and other neighborhoods to share expertise and common interests is very important if not always achievable.

Southeast Uplift (SEUL) includes on staff a land use specialist to provide basic technical support and training for the 20 southeast coalition of neighborhoods. SEUL usually conducts monthly Land Use and Transportation (LUT) Committee meetings. The Committee should have representation at these meetings in order to stay current with the myriad of policies and code changes generated by the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability (BPS). BPS has (at times) provided a SE District Liaison to meet with and advise neighborhood land use committees and often presents at SEUL LUT meetings.

Projects supported by the Land Use Committee include:

Useful links:

Meg Merrick
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