Residents of North Plains will apparently get to vote on the city’s contentious expansion plans after all.
The Oregon Legislature passed a bill this month blocking public referendums on whether cities can expand their urban growth boundaries. Lawmakers made House Bill 4026 retroactive, hoping to stop a referendum in North Plains already scheduled for May 21. Gov. Tina Kotek signed the bill Wednesday.
Late Thursday, though, a Washington County judge said he will sign a temporary restraining order directing election officials to keep the referendum on the city’s May 21 ballot. Judge Andrew Erwin ruled that expansion opponents have a good chance of prevailing in a lawsuit filed this week that argues voters have the right to be heard.
Washington County wants to finalize its ballots this week, giving North Plains little or no time to appeal the restraining order. So residents likely will get to weigh in on whether the small bedroom community west of Portland should add 855 acres, more than doubling in size.
It’s not clear, though, whether the vote will ultimately have any legal weight. State attorneys say cities’ expansions aren’t subject to referendums, and Oregon courts don’t appear to have ever taken up the issue.
That’s because, before now, it doesn’t appear anyone has ever sought to force an urban growth boundary onto the ballot.
North Plains officials spent years planning the city’s expansion. The affluent suburb of 3,400 residents has a much lower property tax rate than neighboring communities, and its elected officials want to add commercial and industrial activity so taxes generated by their operations can fund more city services.
Opponents say the proposed expansion is too large and would replace farmland with data centers and warehouses.
The issue has stirred passions among North Plains’ 3,400 residents and those living in the small agricultural communities around the city. It has major implications for the rest of the state, too.
HB 4026 passed the Legislature with broad, bipartisan support. Lawmakers said that allowing a public vote at the end of several years of careful planning for cities’ urban growth boundary expansions could upend the process, and perhaps discourage cities from even attempting to expand.
They warned locking in present-day boundaries could impede economic growth and imperil the state’s plan to address Oregon’s housing shortage by adding urban land.
The bill’s opponents contend that the North Plains referendum is unusual simply because it’s an unusual case. They maintain the city’s expansion plans are too large and weren’t properly vetted with North Plains residents and nearby farmers. Future referendums are likely to be rare, opponents say.
Ultimately, it’s a constitutional question: Is a city’s expansion of an urban growth boundary a legislative decision, or is it an administrative action undertaken to comply with Oregon land-use law?
The Oregon Constitution mandates that voters be allowed to refer legislative decisions to the ballot. It prohibits referendums on administrative actions.
State courts may have the final say on the issue, which means the May referendum in North Plains might end up being merely advisory.
Regardless, supporters and opponents of North Plains’ expansion are beginning to gear up for the election.
“Expect to see a lot of signs around town, bumper stickers, and hear the talk in town,” said Aaron Nichols, a farmer living near North Plains who opposes the expansion.
North Plains City Manager Andy Varner said the city is still determining its next steps but indicated that officials there believe they made a strong case for expansion during years of planning.
“I know there are plenty of (North Plains) residents that are going to defend the city’s work and do the voter education necessary,” Varner wrote in an email Thursday night.
-- Mike Rogoway covers Oregon technology and the state economy. Reach him at mrogoway@oregonian.com
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