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Mayor warns state housing rulemaking could limit local discretion
Summary
Mayor Kathy Clark told attendees that DLCD and HAPO rulemaking tied to HB 2138 and HB 2258 could reshape system-development charges and middle-housing policy, and urged Keizer to engage in rulemaking to protect local priorities.
Mayor Kathy Clark used Keizer’s State of the City address to caution that recent state housing bills and rulemaking could affect local development policy and infrastructure funding.
Clark identified House Bill 2138, which directs model system development charge (SDC) methodology and aims to increase middle housing, and House Bill 2258 (the "Oregon Homes" program), which establishes permit-ready building plans for eligible sites. "If DLCD is going to tell you how to do your SDC methodology, you better be paying attention," Clark said, arguing that local SDCs are based on actual costs and are critical for funding infrastructure.
She noted that over 400 pages of HAPO-related rules have been adopted and more rulemaking is underway. Clark said Keizer will monitor and participate in joint rulemaking advisory committees to ensure the city’s circumstances and cost realities are represented.
On housing markets, Clark said middle housing (duplexes, triplexes, cottage clusters, townhomes) accounted for about one-third of new home starts in the Salem area in 2025, but that elevated interest rates and high construction costs still constrain affordability. Quoting a local industry speaker, Clark said, "Affordability is the defining factor," and said many middle-housing units have remained rentals rather than converting to ownership.
Clark urged local builders and residents to engage with the city as state rulemaking advances, and said staff will keep council and the public updated on potential local implications.
(Reporting based on Mayor Kathy Clark’s State of the City address.)
