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Oregon’s Land Conservation and Development Commission is taking the city of Damascus to task for failing to create a state-mandated comprehensive plan.

The seven-member group has voted to initiate enforcement proceedings before a hearings officer in response to the city’s failure to make progress toward adoption of a comprehensive plan, and related land use regulations. All cities within the metro area are required by state law to adopt such plans, but Damascus has struggled to do so since Metro brought it inside the urban growth boundary in 2002.

Damascus became a city in 2004, in part because some residents sought to gain more control over the planning process. Oregon law requires cities to adopt a comprehensive plan at least four years after incorporation; however, following a series of political battles, Damascus has made little progress. The most recent political bout came in the form of a measure to disincorporate; that effort ultimately failed in November because of insufficient voter turnout.

Now, the LCDC has scheduled a hearing for Dec. 20. Following that meeting, the hearings officer will issue proposed orders and recommended actions for the commission to take. Parties will have the opportunity to object to those recommendations, but the LCDC will render the final order. Any appeals would go directly to the Oregon Court of Appeals.