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Portland’s regional government Metro on Thursday approved an ordinance that changes how the region plans for growth inside the existing urban growth boundary as well as in future expansion areas.

The Metro Council passed its long-anticipated Capacity Ordinance at Thursday’s council meeting with a unanimous vote. The ordinance amends several regional policies to help guide more efficient growth over the next 20 years.

Some of the key components of the ordinance include prioritizing Metro investment to support development in town centers, employment areas and transportation corridors, as well strengthening the protection of industrial lands from being converted to nonindustrial uses. It also includes amendments that aim to make town centers and areas along major streets more walkable, and make more thorough planning required for future expansions areas.

The most controversial aspect of the ordinance surrounds Title 11, which lays out in detail what kind of planning towns and counties have to do before bringing a new area into the urban growth boundary. Specifically, several trade organizations didn’t like the amount of detail that was required in relationship to affordable housing in future expansion areas. Both the Portland Metropolitan Association of Realtors and the Home Builders Association of Metropolitan Portland submitted testimony in opposition to the ordinance at Thursday’s meeting.

But the Metro Council felt the increased requirements would be beneficial in the future.

“This ordinance is about reaching a better clarity for our region,” said Metro Councilor Robert Liberty, who helped draft the ordinance. “We need growth to occur the right way, even if it takes more time.”