Portland council approves first reading of major Unified Development Ordinance update

Portland City Council on April 15 approved the first reading of ordinance 23-06, a comprehensive revision to the city's Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) intended to align zoning and subdivision rules with the 2023 comprehensive plan and recent state law changes.

The presentation by city staff and consultants outlined a long list of proposed changes. Erica Craycraft of Freese and Nichols said the amendments would expand site plan requirements to include multifamily and mixed-use projects; remove the minimum size requirement for residential planned unit developments; allow staff to approve plats that meet code (leaving waivers and appeals to the Planning and Zoning Commission); and standardize a 25% maintenance bond on public improvements.

“The proposed UDO updates are intended to align the code with the comprehensive plan and recent state law while streamlining submittal and review procedures,” Craycraft said. She described a new Leisure and Entertainment District (LED) overlay that limits certain uses, eliminates minimum off‑street parking for nonresidential uses in the overlay to encourage infill and walkability, and carries forward previously adopted alcohol and hours-of-operation standards for the area.

The LED overlay would make some currently permitted uses in the Old Town 2 base district nonconforming and would require a special use permit for other uses. Craycraft said existing nonconforming uses may continue indefinitely unless abandoned for more than one year or expanded beyond an existing building without an SUP. She also described additions for missing‑middle housing types (triplexes and quadplexes), accessory dwelling unit limits, bed‑and‑breakfast and short‑term rental supplemental standards, a connectivity index for street design, required traffic impact analyses for certain developments, stormwater pollution prevention plan requirements per TCEQ, and updates to sign regulations to comply with recent case law.

City planning staff said they held outreach with developers and property owners, including an LED property-owner meeting on April 2 and a Planning & Zoning public hearing. Sarah Munoz, the city’s Director of Development Services, noted one written comment received at the Planning & Zoning hearing about office/warehouse uses; staff advised that existing uses would be treated as nonconforming and new proposals would be evaluated at permit review.

Council questions focused on the LED overlay’s treatment of “civic organizations.” Craycraft and staff said the term was intended to cover entities similar to Rotary or Lions clubs and that the city does not intend to impede existing organizations that are already pursuing sites in the area.

Motion and next steps: Mayor Pro Tem Green moved to approve the ordinance’s first reading; the motion was seconded and the first reading passed. City staff said the second (final) reading is scheduled for the next council meeting, with publication and an effective date to follow.

Why it matters: The UDO establishes the rules that govern how land is subdivided and used inside Portland’s city limits (and subdivision standards in the ETJ). The proposed changes would shift some approvals from the Planning & Zoning Commission to staff, add standards aimed at encouraging walkable downtown development, and change how certain residential and lodging uses are regulated.

For now the changes are at first reading; details remain in the markup draft included in the council packet and available on the city website for public review.

Ending: If the council adopts the ordinance at second reading, staff said the code will be published and implementation will follow in city permitting and review procedures. Questions and requests for the full markup were directed to Development Services.