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The objection period is over for an application by the city of Scappoose to expand its urban growth boundary by approximately 379 acres, but the proposal did not emerge unscathed before heading to the state for approval.

Anne Debbaut, a regional representative, said the city’s proposal drew three main objections: one from , another from 35 property owners supporting 1000 Friends’ complaints, and one from an individual.

The UGB expansion would include 339 acres of vacant land east of the Scappoose Industrial Airpark. Jon Hanken, Scappoose city manager, said the land’s proximity to the airport makes it a valuable resource for future growth.

鈥淲e have identified this as an opportunity for Scappoose,鈥� Hanken said. 鈥淚f you look at how Portland’s growing, how Hillsboro airport is growing 鈥� as Portland grows and some of those smaller businesses get relocated to Hillsboro, some of those Hillsboro businesses are going to get relocated and Scappoose is a good place for them to go.鈥�

Scappoose anticipates adding 8,068 jobs by the year 2030, according to the Columbia County Planning Commission staff report, which recommends expanding the UGB. Professional and business services, manufacturing and retail trade are expected to account for 67 percent of that growth.

Hanken said hundreds of thousands of dollars have been spent on lawsuits over the past 30 years protecting that land for industrial purposes 鈥� the land’s rich aggregate content attracted a mining company in years past. He added that the land could suit a new Portland Community College campus, which it is seeking, and that now is the time to realize the land’s industrial value.

But 1000 Friends of Oregon questions the employment numbers the city is projecting.

鈥淭his site might be justifiable, but this document they’re using is so out of whack with what you’d need to justify that site and with commonly accepted methods of projecting employment need, that we can’t let it go unanswered because it will set a precedent in other areas,鈥� Mary Kyle McCurdy, a 1000 Friends staff attorney, said of the economic opportunities analysis prepared by John Reid LLC.

In its written objection to the DLCD, 1000 Friends stated that because Scappoose expects to gain only 3,421 residents over the next 20 years, its employment projections would result in 2.4 jobs for every new resident, child, aged and disabled person in the community.

The document goes on to point out that Scappoose’s proposed growth rate is 543 percent of the actual 1990 to 2010 Portland metropolitan statistical area’s total jobs growth rate, 640 percent of Scappoose’s MSA total jobs capture rate, and 3,650 percent of Scappoose’s MSA manufacturing capture rate.

鈥�1000 Friends of Oregon objects to everyone’s UGB expansion applications and they always use that as the factor 鈥� they don’t believe the projections,鈥� Hanken said. 鈥淭he consultants that we hired did the analysis. We looked at it, we went through public hearings, it was presented to the City Council, it was presented to the Columbia County commissioners 鈥� all of them listened to the information in the testimony and believed it was reasonable.鈥�

Debbaut said the DLCD plans to make a director’s decision on the application rather than refer it to the Land Conservation and Development Commission, and that the decision must be made by June 8. Groups that disagree with the DLCD’s determination would then be able to appeal to the LCDC.

Hanken said it’s anyone’s guess how long that process would take.

鈥淩ealistically, any time you have a UGB application and it has appeals, and the objection to appeals, and by the time it goes to court, it can be anywhere from two to 10 years,鈥� he said. 鈥淲oodburn has been at theirs for 10 years.鈥�