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West Linn Council adopts ordinance clarifying density calculations, lot-shape rules
Summary
The West Linn City Council unanimously adopted Ordinance 1763 to consolidate and clarify how minimum and maximum residential densities are calculated, tighten exemptions for small partitions, and require rectilinear lot shapes where practicable to promote consistent neighborhood development.
West Linn — The City Council on Oct. 14 unanimously adopted Ordinance 1763, a package of text amendments to the West Linn Community Development Code intended to centralize and clarify rules for minimum and maximum residential density, exemptions to minimum-density requirements, and the acceptable shape of newly created lots.
Darren Wise, the city’s principal planner, told the council the amendments do not change policy but make the code “clear and objective” and easier for property owners and developers to apply. “The city’s minimum density is at 70% of the maximum,” Wise said, describing the metric the amendments will standardize to meet Metro’s urban growth management plan.
Why it matters: staff and the planning commission told the council that inconsistent phrasing in multiple chapters had generated differing interpretations from developers about how to count developable area and apply exemptions. The ordinance consolidates the measurement method in a newly defined measurement section and references it from affected chapters to avoid duplication and ambiguity.
The ordinance addresses three principal areas: a single, clear method for calculating developable gross and net area (Chapter 5); explicit limits and exemptions for minimum-density calculations (Chapter 85), including a specific treatment for small partitions and planned-unit developments; and a requirement that newly created lots be rectilinear (square or rectangular) where practicable to support future street-extension and predictable building placement.
Wise said the code retains an option to exempt significant heritage trees from developable-area calculations and that legal counsel recommended a clarifying addition for how heritage trees are measured. “We’re not changing any policy around this. We’re just cleaning up the language to make it clear and objective,” Wise said.
The public hearing drew no public testimony, and the council moved quickly to deliberations. Council President Baumgartner moved first reading and later moved to approve second reading and adopt the ordinance; the second reading and adoption passed unanimously on roll call. Mayor and council thanked planning staff and the planning commission for multiple work sessions and review.
What’s next: The ordinance updates will be implemented through the Community Development Code and reflected in staff checklists and measurement figures referenced in Chapter 5. Council and staff said the changes aim to reduce procedural disputes and streamline future land-division reviews.
Sources: Staff presentation by Darren Wise, principal planner, and the council hearing record for the Oct. 14 West Linn City Council meeting.
