Comment on Land Use Applications (Effectively)

Public Involvement Is the Oregon Way

Public involvement is a requirement of the land use planning process in Oregon. This requirement is one thing that makes Oregon's land use planning system unique. It is represented as Goal 1 (of 19) of Oregon's Statewide Land Use Planning Goals.

Goal 1 calls for "the opportunity for citizens to be involved in all phases of the planning process." In Oregon City the public comment process is just one of many opportunities available to the public for involvement in land use planning.

What Projects Can I Comment on?

Type II Land Use Applications all come with a 2-week window for public comment that begins the day an applicant posts the Public Notice signs for their project.

For Type III, Type IV, and Legislative applications, public comments may be submitted both prior to and during the public hearing process until record is closed to public comment by the Historic Review Board or Planning Commission for Type IIIs within their respective jurisdictions, or the City Commission for Type IV and Legislative applications.

Who Can Submit Public Comments on a Land Use Project in Oregon City?

All residents - and even non-residents - of Oregon City have the opportunity to comment on such land use applications in Oregon City during the public comment period. Each comment received during the comment period is reviewed and addressed in either a staff report or at a public hearing.

Your comments matter.

Guide to Making Effective Comments

1. Familiarize yourself with the application. You can find recent land use applications and supporting documents on our Project Page.
2. Talk to the Planner responsible for reviewing the application and feel free to ask any questions you may have. You can email Planning or call 503-722-3789. We are here to help.
3. Understand the approval criteria that is used to decide if the development is approved or not. Comments which address the code criteria provide a fair and objective basis by which to review applications.
4. If you think that a proposed development does not meet a particular approval criteria, please cite the standard(s) in writing during the public comment period. This provides you, the applicant and the City a basis upon which to respond to your concerns prior to issuing a decision.
5. If you believe an application meets all of the criteria, feel free to state that too.

We look forward to hearing from you!