PROPOSED FINDINGS AND REASONS FOR DECISION
Based on the staff study and the public hearing the City Council found:
1. The territory to be annexed contains .31 acres, 1 single family dwelling, a population of 1 and has an assessed value of $84,750.
2. The property owner wants to annex to Portland to obtain City services to facilitate additional residential development.
3. The only criterion for deciding city boundary changes within the statutes is the territory must be contiguous to the City. However, the 1997 Legislature directed Metro to establish criteria that must be used by all cities within the Metro boundary and Metro has done so through adoption of Section 3.09 of the Metro Code.
The Metro Code states that a final decision shall be based on substantial evidence in the record of the hearing and that the written decision must include findings of fact and conclusions from those findings. The Code requires these findings and conclusions to address the following minimum criteria:
1. Consistency with directly applicable provisions in ORS 195 agreements or ORS 195 annexation plans. [ORS 195 agreements are agreements between various service providers about who will provide which services where. The agreements are mandated by ORS 195 but none are currently in place. Annexation plans are timelines for annexations that may only be done after all required 195 agreements are in place and that must have been voted on by the City residents and the residents of the area to be annexed.]
2. Consistency with directly applicable provisions of urban planning area agreements between the annexing entity and a necessary party.
3. Consistency with directly applicable standards for boundary changes contained in Comprehensive land use plans and public facility plans.
4. Consistency with directly applicable standards for boundary changes contained in the Regional framework or any functional plans.
5. Whether the proposed boundary change will promote or not interfere with the timely, orderly and economic provision of public facilities and services.
6. If the boundary change is to Metro, determination by Metro Council that territory should be inside the UGB shall be the primary criteria.
7. Consistency with other applicable criteria for the boundary change in question under state and local law.
Each of these factors is addressed below. The Metro Code also contains a second set of 10 factors which are to be considered where: 1) no ORS 195 agreements have been adopted, and 2) a necessary party is contesting the boundary change. Those 10 factors are not applicable at this time to this annexation because no necessary party has contested the proposed annexation.
4. The territory is within the regional Urban Growth Boundary and the jurisdictional boundary of Metro.
The law that requires Metro to adopt criteria for boundary changes specifically states that those criteria shall include " . . . compliance with adopted regional urban growth goals and objectives, functional plans . . . and the regional framework plan of the district [Metro]." In fact, while the first two mentioned items were adopted independently, they are now part of Metro's Regional Framework Plan. The Regional Framework Plan also includes the 2040 Growth Concept. Metro is authorized to adopt functional plans which are limited purpose plans addressing designated areas and activities of metropolitan concern and which mandate local plan changes. Metro has adopted two functional plans - the Urban Growth Management Functional Plan and the Regional Transportation Plan.
The Urban Growth Management Functional Plan requires cities and counties to amend their comprehensive plans and implementing ordinances to accord with elements in the Functional Plan. Included in these requirements are such items as minimum density standards, limitations on parking standards, mandated adoption of water quality standards and rules relating to Urban Growth Boundary expansion into Urban Reserve areas. None of these requirements relate directly to the issue of annexation to a city. The Regional Transportation Plan was examined and no specific criteria applicable to boundary changes were discovered.
The Regional Framework Plan was reviewed and found not to contain specific criteria applicable to boundary changes.
5. The territory is designated by Multnomah County as Multnomah County adopted City Code R-7 zoning, which permits residential development with a minimum lot size of 7,000 square feet.
The county’s utilities and facilities policies (policies 37 and 38) apply to development approvals by Multnomah County. They are not directly applicable to annexations. No criteria in the County’s Plan are directly applicable to a City annexation decision.
6. In 1983, the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners passed Resolution A. Resolution A stated the County's policy that its revenues should be spent for County-wide services available to all residents of the County and announced that it's resources were insufficient to continue current municipal service levels. It is the County's Policy that urban areas should be provided urban level public services and facilities by municipalities.
7. State law (ORS 215.130) provides that "land use and zoning designations on areas annexed to cities will continue in effect unless or until the city has by ordinance or provision provided otherwise."
Multnomah County's urban planning area agreement with the City of Portland contains the following pertinent provisions:
I. Boundaries.
A. Urban Planning Area Boundary. The urban Planning Area of the City shall be defined to include the area designated on Exhibit “A” of this agreement. The Urban Planning Area Boundary identifies those unincorporated areas where the City will accept responsibility for providing Planning Services pursuant to the terms of this agreement. Urban Planning Area boundaries may be amended at any time by consent of both parties.
B. Urban Service Boundary. The City and County have agreed on the location of an Urban Services Boundary suitable and appropriate for provision of future City services and eventual annexation to the City. .
The territory to be annexed is within both the urban planning area boundary and urban services boundary of the City of Portland. The agreement recognizes that Portland will eventually annex and service the area.
8. The City of Portland has recently agreed to take over the County’s permitting and zoning review process for urban unincorporated areas such as this. As a part of that agreement, the County has adopted City planning and zoning designations for these areas. Thus when this area is annexed it will already have a City zoning designation of R-7.
The Portland Comprehensive Plan contains the following Urban Development Policies & Objectives:
2.3 Annexation
Phase the annexation program of the City to allow for the incorporation of urban and urbanizable land in a manner that is consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and the Urban Growth Boundary as administered by the Metropolitan Service District, provides smooth transition in urban improvements programming. Annex land within the Urban Services Boundary in accordance with this Policy and Policy 11.1. Annexations outside the Urban Services Boundary will not be accepted.
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The Comprehensive Plan contains the following public facilities Goal and policies and objectives:
GOAL 11A Provide a timely, orderly and efficient arrangement of public facilities and services that support existing and planned land use patterns and densities.
POLICIES & OBJECTIVES
11.1 Service Responsibility
C. Outside its boundaries of incorporation, the City of Portland shall:
(3) Consider requests for delivery of services within the Urban Services Boundary wherever the following conditions exist:
• Residents or property owners within an area to be served desire delivery of services by the City of Portland.
• The City can meet the new demands without diminishing its ability to serve existing City of Portland residents and businesses.
• The City can supply the needed services most effectively and efficiently.
• The City can expect to recapture its service investment.
(4) Deliver services within the Urban Services Boundary by means of annexation to Portland . . .
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11.2 Orderly Land Development
Urban development should occur only when urban public facilities and services exist or can be reasonably made available.
11.3 Orderly Service Extension
The improvement and expansion of one urban public facility or service should not stimulate development that significantly precedes the City’s, or other appropriate jurisdiction’s ability to provide all other necessary urban public facilities and services at uniform levels.
As discussed in the Findings below, urban services are already being provided to the site. There is no evidence that serving the area would diminish the City’s ability to serve existing residents and businesses.
The urban service policy found that a full-service city government can provide urban services most cost-effectively. The City of Portland is the only available city to provide services to this area.
9. ORS 195 requires agreements between providers of urban services. Urban services are defined as: sanitary sewers, water, fire protection, parks, open space, recreation and streets, roads and mass transit. These agreements are to specify which governmental entity will provide which service to which area in the long term. The counties are responsible for facilitating the creation of these agreements. The statute was enacted in 1993 but no urban service agreements have yet been adopted in this part of Multnomah County.
10. Sanitary sewer service is already being provided by a City 8-inch sewer line in SE Clatsop Street. Any additional development could be served by this line.
11. The territory to be annexed is currently served water by a City 12-inch water line in SE Clatsop Street. Any additional development could be served by this line.
12. Upon annexation the territory would receive police protection from the City of Portland.
13. The territory is within the Clackamas County Rural Fire Protection District #1.
ORS 222.120(4) provides that the City may declare in its ordinance annexing territory that the territory will be withdrawn from a fire protection district. The effective date of a withdrawal from a fire protection district is the effective date of the annexation. Because Portland provides fire protection to City properties from City general funds the City should withdraw the territory from the District to prevent the property from being subject to duplicate property taxation by the Fire District.
14. Harney Park is located several blocks to the west of the property to be annexed.
15. The territory is within the boundary of the Mid-County Service District #14 for Street lights. The District's function is primarily administrative, to collect the revenues to pay PGE for lighting services. The district charges a flat annual fee for street lighting services. Portland has a property tax levy to finance street lights.
ORS 222.120(4) provides that the City may declare in its ordinance annexing territory that the territory will be withdrawn from a county service district. The effective date of a withdrawal from a county service district is the effective date of the annexation.
16. Access to the site is provided by SE Clatsop Street, most of which is already within the City. The portion on SE Clatsop adjacent to this parcel might logically be brought into the City at this time.
CONCLUSIONS AND REASONS FOR DECISION
Based on the Findings, the City Council determined:
1. The Metro Code at 3.09.050(d)(1) calls for consistency between the City’s decision and an agreement adopted pursuant to ORS 195.065. There are no such agreements in this area.
2. The Metro Code at 3.09.050(d)(2) calls for consistency between the City’s decision and urban planning area agreements, or other agreements. The territory to be annexed is within both the urban planning area boundary and urban services boundary of the City of Portland recognized in the City / County urban planning area agreement (UPAA). The agreement recognizes that Portland will eventually annex and service the area. The annexation is consistent with the UPAA. Portland has agreements with other service providers but none contains criteria that are directly applicable to annexation decisions.
3. The Metro Code at 3.09.050(d)(3) calls for consistency between the City’s decision and any "directly applicable standards or criteria for boundary changes contained in comprehensive land use plans and public facilities plans." The Council has reviewed the Multnomah County Comprehensive Plan which currently applies to this site. The County plan contains no criteria that are directly applicable to annexation decisions.
Policy 4 of the Portland Urban Services Policies contains criteria related to annexation. It says that the city shall “consider” requests for the delivery of services within the urban services boundary when certain conditions exist. This policy is not a mandatory approval criterion, but rather contains a set of factors to consider.
The first factor is “residents and property owners within an area to be served desire delivery of services by the City of Portland.” The area to be served is limited to the parcel that is proposed to be annexed. The owner has petitioned for annexation.
The second factor is “the City can meet the new demands without diminishing its ability to serve existing City of Portland residents and businesses.” As discussed above in Findings numbered 9 through 16, urban services can be provided to the site.
The third factor is that “the City can supply the needed services most effectively and efficiently.” The urban service policy found that a full-service city government can provide urban services most cost-effectively. The City of Portland is the only available city to provide services to this area.
The fourth factor is “the City can expect to recapture its service investment.” The existing and any future additional development will produce very little demand on sewer, water, police, fire or other City services.
The Council concludes that the annexation is consistent with policy 11.1 B. (4).
Policy 5 says that Portland will deliver services by annexing areas. This proposed annexation is consistent with policy 11.1 B (5).
5. Metro Code 3.09.050(d)(4) requires the City’s decision to be consistent with directly applicable standards or criteria in the Regional Framework Plan or any functional plan. The Council has reviewed these plans and found no directly applicable criteria.
6. Metro Code 3.09.050(d)(5) states that another criterion to be addressed is "Whether the proposed change will promote or not interfere with the timely, orderly and economic provision of public facilities and services." The Council concludes that the City’s adequate services can be provided to serve this area, based on Findings 9 through 16. Therefore the proposed change promotes the timely, orderly and economic provision of services.
7. The City may specify in its annexation Ordinance that the territory will be simultaneously withdrawn from the Clackamas County RFPD #1 and Mid-County Service District # 14 for street lights. The City’s property tax levy includes revenue for City fire protection. The Service District for street lights levies an annual assessment against benefited properties. To prevent the property from being taxed and/or assessed by both the Districts and the City for the same services, the territory should be simultaneously withdrawn from the Clackamas County Rural Fire Protection District #1 and Mid-County Service District # 14.