Today the City of Portland will consider Resolution 2026-106, Eastside Area Planning Project. Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson submitted a letter supporting the resolution. She notes in her letter that zoning reforms would promote more housing construction and healthier, lower-carbon neighborhoods. Read the letter here.
The resolution would speed the development of zoning code amendments for City Council to consider. The Eastside Area Planning Project would re-legalize multi-family housing in areas currently zoned for lower density. The neighborhoods in Portland's inner Eastside are already among Portland’s most walkable and transit-rich areas, close to major job centers, and they have beloved commercial districts. This project would allow more housing to be built, letting more people live in those areas.