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In anticipation of an October decision on whether the Portland-metropolitan area urban growth boundary should be expanded, staff of regional government Metro have prepared recommendations for potential expansion areas.

Metro’s acting chief operation officer Dan Cooper on Tuesday presented the Metro Council with a staff recommendation to add 310 acres of land along Northwest Meek Road, south of U.S. Route 26 on the northern edge of Hillsboro, to be used for industrial employment growth. The staff also made seven other recommendations for the council to consider for projected housing needs over the next 20 years:

• 1063 new acres south of Hillsboro and Oregon Route 47 to support more than 7,000 new homes in an area that is already the subject of preliminary land-use planning by the city of Hillsboro
• 256 acres located around the intersection of Southwest Roy Rogers Road and Beef Bend Road, west of Tigard, to help complete planning and public services for the West Bull Mountain Plan area
• 543 acres south of Cooper Mountain and west of Beaverton to help meet anticipated demand for new housing in the area
• 210 acres in the southeastern corner of Cornelius, which would provide space for more residents in order to support economic activity in the city’s revitalized downtown area
• 496 acres west of Sherwood near Oregon Route 99W and Southwest Kruger Road to provide for new homes and neighborhoods
• 316 acres adjacent to the city of Wilsonville to the east, around Advance Road, which may help complete planning and services for an adjacent area near Frog Pond that is already inside the UGB
• 573 acres in the Maplelane area east of Oregon City, near a previous UGB expansion area that remains undeveloped

The last UGB expansion made by Metro was in 2002 and added 18,000 acres. All the areas proposed by staff this time only total 3,457 acres.

Metro will take the next several weeks to present these ideas to local leaders and interested citizens. An open house will take place July 28, from 5 to 8 p.m., at the Hillsboro Civic Center Auditorium.

After all the public input is acquired, the Metro Council will hold a public hearing on Oct. 6, beginning at 5 p.m. The council is then scheduled to vote on whether to expand the UGB – and if so, where – at 2 p.m. on Oct. 20.