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Planning staff: 2025 brought fewer site plan applications but the most housing units in a decade
Summary
Planning staff told the Portland Planning Board that 2025 had the lowest count of major residential site plan applications but the highest total number of housing units approved in a decade, including 392 affordable or workforce units and more than $4 million contributed to the housing trust.
Andrew (planning staff) presented the Portland Planning Board’s 2025 year‑in‑review on Jan. 13, saying the city saw fewer residential site plan applications but approved the largest number of housing units in the last decade.
The report, presented during the board’s communications segment, said the planning office approved 1,347 'totems' in 2025, including 392 affordable or workforce units — 107 of which met the city’s inclusionary zoning standard (Section 17.2.3C of the Land Use Code) and 285 that were IC‑exempt affordable units. Andrew said more than $4,000,000 was contributed to the housing trust fund in 2025 and cited other development metrics including 244 new trees planted, 64 electric vehicle charging stations, and 645 bicycle parking spaces.
Andrew highlighted large projects that drove the unit totals: 125 Thompson Point Road (6 stories, about 255 market‑rate units), 197 Oxford Street (three phases, 96 units with workforce and affordable components), and a proposed 7‑story project at 165 Washington Avenue expected to include 325 units and 82 workforce units. He also noted city projects such as 1125 Bridal Ave (50 city‑owned units) and two PHA phases in East Bayside totaling 119 units (about 109 affordable).
The staff presentation cited recent regulatory changes that shaped outcomes: the recode adopted in 2024, implementation of inclusionary zoning, the council’s adoption of recommendations from a VIN Loop study, an institutional overlay for the local university, and a pedestrian activities district amendment adopted last November.
Board members asked whether the figures included minor site plans and whether the dashboard distinguishes approved versus completed units. Andrew said the housing dashboard can be filtered to show completed projects and that the reported counts reflect planning board projects; smaller one‑ and two‑family or 3–4 unit projects may be captured differently on the dashboard and by staff review processes.
The presentation closed with board discussion about longer‑term trends: Andrew argued the data reflect a shift toward larger, master‑planned developments rather than small infill projects, while board members pressed for clearer tracking of approvals versus actual construction.
