Development News for Wilsonville, Oregon

Wilsonville City Council Extends City Attorney Contract, Discusses Performance Evaluation

The Wilsonville City Council discussed and approved extending the contract for the City Attorney. The council agreed to use the existing evaluation form, with a note that goals were not set at the beginning of the performance period. Mayor O'Neil volunteered to be part of the negotiation committee for a successor contract, along with Councilors Cunningham and Shadlin (who will attend remotely for one meeting). The contract extension is for two months, through the end of August, to allow time for evaluation and contract negotiation. Council members acknowledged the City Attorney's strong performance and expressed support for her continuing in the role, with suggestions for goals including managing workload and self-care.

Metro Provides Update on Regional Parks, Housing, Economic Development, and Visitor Venues

Metro Counselor Garrett Rosenthal and Metro Investment Strategy Manager Michelle Ruffin provided an update on Metro's activities. Key points included the opening of the Voella housing facility, ongoing work on the Ice Age Tonquin Trail and Coffee Creek Wetlands, and updates to fire prevention processes at Graham Oaks Nature Park due to dry summer concerns. Metro is developing a new future vision for the region (for 2050), involving community engagement through surveys, a future vision commission, and a youth cohort. Parks and Nature core services focus on protecting/restoring lands, regional parks, and community grants, funded by bonds and local option levies, with the current bond halfway through expenditures and the levy up for renewal discussion around 2028. Housing initiatives, funded by the 2018 affordable housing bond and 2020 supportive housing services measure, are on track to create thousands of affordable homes and prevent homelessness, with a high retention rate. They are exploring extending the supportive services tax levy (set to expire 2030/2031) and potentially expanding the housing bond. Metro is also developing a lands inventory for economic development strategy and managing visitor venues, including transitioning management of the Keller, Schnitzer, and Winning Stadium back to the city of Portland by next July, developing the Expo Future site, and managing the Convention Center.

Wilsonville Adopts Housing Code Amendments to Streamline Development Reviews

The Wilsonville City Council held a public hearing and considered Ordinance 9003 on first reading, adopting amendments to city code chapters related to the housing statutory compliance project. These changes, driven by state mandates (SB 974 and HB 4037), aim to streamline residential development review by classifying certain housing-related applications as administrative (Class 2) reviews. This includes zone map amendments increasing density, planned development reviews, and variances/waivers for residential standards. The public notice period for these reviews will increase to 14 days. House Bill 4037 specifically makes all residential applications meeting clear and objective standards Class 2 administrative reviews, with appeals rights for applicants only. The council also discussed local adjustments like expedited annexation processes for residential development in master planned areas and raising the threshold for modifications eligible for administrative review from 1,250 sq ft to 10,000 sq ft. The Development Review Board will consolidate into a single seven-member panel in 2027. The ordinance passed on first reading.

Wilsonville URA Adopts FY 2026-27 Budget, Allocating $7.3 Million

The Urban Renewal Agency (URA) adopted its budget for fiscal year 2026-2027, totaling $7.3 million in resources and requirements. Only the 'Wind Program' (part of the Town Center urban renewal area) and 'Coffee Creek' urban renewal areas are collecting tax increment, totaling approximately $2 million. The largest requirement for the Wind Program is for CIP 4216 (Brown Road), and for Coffee Creek, it's CIP 2115 (Day Road sewer extension). The URA also approved its consent agenda, which included minutes from the April 20, 2026 meeting.