Purpose:
The purpose of the Clear Standards for Housing in Residential Areas project is to ensure that the Lane County Code (LCC) complies with and implements certain Oregon state laws and legislation. Specifically, the project is focusing on implementing House Bill 3197 (HB 3197) which requires the County to adopt clear and objective standards related to housing development on land in unincorporated communities designated in the County’s Comprehensive Plan, and areas zoned for rural residential development. Those state requirements, which update Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) 197A.400, take effect July 2025. The goal of the project is to have updated standards in place when the law takes effect.
This project is a technical project not intended to change County policy. County staff, with support from consultants from the Lane Council of Governments (LCOG), will develop Code amendments to ensure the County’s zoning ordinances related to housing are clear and objective, and are consistent with applicable state statutes, rules, and guidelines.
With support from consultants from LCOG, County staff performed an audit of Lane County Code to evaluate existing standards that apply to housing throughout the County’s unincorporated areas, non-resource lands, and rural residential zones for any criteria that is not clear and objective, or that is solely discretionary in nature.
Current Status:
County staff have identified areas of the Lane County Code that are not incompliance with statute and are currently drafting revisions to address each issue. The amendments will be provided to the public, Lane County Planning Commission, and the Lane County Board of County Commissioners for review.
Project Milestones:
- Draft Code Revisions: After completing the audit of the existing LC, the work group (County and LCOG) will collaborate to propose changes to the LC, consistent with ORS 197A.400.
- ESEE Analysis: The proposed changes to LC related to natural resource regulations will be evaluated by the work group for potential economic, social, environmental, and energy (ESEE) impacts of the modifying regulations. Required for compliance with Statewide Planning Goal 5.
- Key Stakeholder Engagement: The work group will engage with Key Stakeholders to seek initial review and feedback.
- Adoption Process: The proposed changes to LC will be reviewed by the Lane County Planning Commission (LCPC) and the Board of County Commissioners (BCC). The amendments are intended to be adopted by the BCC by the end of September 2025.
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