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East Portland already feels growing pains

Team assembles to tackle issues relating to livability impacts

By Jim Redden

The Portland Tribune, Sep 21, 2007, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (12 Reader comments)

JIM CLARK / TRIBUNE PHOTO

Unlike many of the new developments going into east Portland, Hazelwood Station at Northeast 148th Avenue and Burnside Street is located near mass transit, in this case a MAX light-rail line.

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Many Portlanders are worried that population growth is ruining the city’s livability, according to a poll commissioned by the community visioning project.

Mayor Tom Potter initiated the project, also called VisionPDX, in large part to learn what Portlanders believe should be done to accommodate the projected growth.

“The forecasted trends predict that the Portland region will grow by an additional million people in the next 25 years,” reads the vision report accepted by the City Council on Wednesday evening. “How can we ensure that we maintain the aspects of this city that we hold dear while planning for the future?”

The poll was presented to the council by project staff members during the hearing. It found that a slight majority of residents — 54 percent — believe that Portland will be a better city in the year 2030.

The poll also found that a sizable minority — 38 percent — believe Portland will be a worse city within 25 years. A majority of those worried about the future cite growth-related issues as the reasons for their concerns.

According to the poll, 66 percent of those who think Portland is moving in the wrong direction are worried about population growth, overcrowding, traffic congestion and safety.

While developing the vision, project staff and volunteers identified outer east Portland as a major battleground over the city’s future. They repeatedly heard that the area east of 82nd Avenue already is undergoing tremendous growth but is lagging behind in streets, parks, schools, community centers and other improvements necessary to accommodate the additional people.

“We’re getting a lot more people and a lot more traffic,” said Louise Cody, president of the Centennial Community Association, which borders Gresham, “but not getting new or better streets. We’re losing a lot of trees, and parents with small children aren’t getting new parks to take them to.”

Action planning kicks in

According to Cody and others, some of the most visible problems are the numerous large new housing projects being squeezed into quiet residential neighborhoods of small houses on large lots.

They include rows of town homes and apartment complexes built off of Southeast 122nd Avenue and other streets throughout the area.

“What can happen is, you have one house on an acre. It gets sold and torn down and replaced with 22 new units without any other improvements,” she said.

Such issues already have drawn the attention of regional officials.

As discussed at Wednesday’s hearing, Mayor Tom Potter, Multnomah County Chairman Ted Wheeler and area state Rep. Jeff Merkley have launched a project called the East Portland Action Plan, which will take a look at development and livability issues in the city’s eastern neighborhoods. The goal is to develop a series of short- and long-term solutions by March.

When the council accepted the vision report, it directed that the project staff share their work with those who will develop the plan.

Easing the neighborhood density and other growth concerns may be difficult, however, if the poll is any indication.

For example, Portlanders are almost evenly split on a solution favored by urban planners. According to the survey, although 49 percent of Portlanders support building taller buildings along major transportation corridors, 46 percent oppose it.

The opposition can be eased by adding public transportation, pedestrian paths, bike lanes and sidewalks nearby. Up to 35 percent of the opponents to taller buildings are willing to support them if such amenities are included, the survey found.

Cody praises some of the projects being built along the MAX light-rail line, including Hazelwood Station, a 60-unit affordable housing project designed for people with disabilities at Northeast 148th Avenue and Burnside Street.