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The Department of Land Conservation and Development has given a vote of confidence to Washington County and its retooled map of where it can expand its urban growth boundary in the coming 50 years.

DLCD last week released a 60-page report that addressed concerns outlined by the Land Conservation and Development Commission when it remanded Washington County’s urban and rural reserves map last year. In conclusion, DLCD believes the changes made by Washington County officials are sufficient enough and recommended that the commission approve the map next week.

鈥淭he department has carefully reviewed each of the objections from each of the parties who filed in response to the Metro and county re-designation submittal,鈥� acting DLCD Director Jim Rue wrote in the report. 鈥溾��As a result, and for the reasons set out in below in more detail, the department recommends that the commission approve the designations of urban and rural reserves as submitted.

Washington, Multnomah and Clackamas counties were required last year to develop urban and rural reserves maps, which outline what land could and what land couldn’t be brought into the UGB during the next 50 years. While the maps proposed by Multnomah and Clackamas counties were approved, the Washington County map was remanded back to county officials because of concerns over two pieces of land: a 624-acre parcel north of Cornelius and a 508-acre parcel north of Forest Grove.

The county and Metro went to work retooling the map and decided to change a portion of the Cornelius urban reserve to undesignated, meaning it could still be brought in, and change the rest to rural. They also decided to replace the Forest Grove parcel with a 352-acre urban reserve north of U.S. Route 26 in Helvetia.

While the retooled map has received criticism from some land-use activists, it was approved earlier this year by both the Washington County Board of Commissioners and the Metro Council. But in order to be implemented it must be approved by LCDC.

LCDC will take the issue up at a public hearing starting at 8:30 a.m., on Thursday Aug. 18, and will run through Friday Aug. 19 if a conclusion isn’t reached by the end of the day on Thursday. The public hearing and vote will take place at the Metro Regional Center, 600 N.E. Grand Ave., in Portland.