Active Project
Housing + Design Initiative - Code and Plan Update
The City continues to identify ways to provide more opportunities for housing, all while meeting State requirements for land use planning to more clearly allow housing and more clearly articulate people-oriented design for the public realm. This project will update Springfield’s Development Code and adopted land use plans to reduce barriers to allowing housing in mixed-use districts while also exploring ways the Development Code can include design standards in those districts and beyond.
Project Overview
This project will continue focusing on Springfield’s Housing Strategy and will help the City comply with mandated State housing-related requirements. Work will involve amending the City’s Development Code to include clear and objective development standards for housing in mixed-use districts in alignment with the City’s goals for facilitating housing production, affordability, and choice by reducing regulatory barriers. It will also ensure that the language in the City's adopted land use plans provides a consistent foundation for the Code updates where this policy connection could be more direct.
This project will also find opportunities to coordinate with State requirements to foster a welcoming pedestrian experience in and around Springfield’s residential, commercial, and mixed-use districts. To build efficiency into the City’s work, the project team’s review can simultaneously account for both sets of State requirements to identify if and how much Springfield’s Development Code and adopted plans already meet requirements and what we must update if not.
This project will also find opportunities to coordinate with State requirements to foster a welcoming pedestrian experience in and around Springfield’s residential, commercial, and mixed-use districts. To build efficiency into the City’s work, the project team’s review can simultaneously account for both sets of State requirements to identify if and how much Springfield’s Development Code and adopted plans already meet requirements and what we must update if not.
Objectives include:
- Streamlining and simplifying code language to provide easy to understand requirements in a user-friendly format
- Providing a straightforward application and review path for a diversity of housing types
- Enabling timely and efficient review of development applications
- Meeting State law, including:
· ORS 197 and 197A for allowed housing types, procedural requirements, and clear and objective standards
· ORS 227 for permitting and review related to city planning and zoning
· ORS 92 for land divisions (subdivisions and partitions)
· OAR 660 (660-012-0330 a focus) for pedestrian-oriented design in commercial, residential, and mixed-use areas
- Facilitating a diverse set of housing options
- Improving design outcomes of residential development
- Implementing, and amending where necessary, the City’s adopted land use plans to comply with State requirements
- Coordinating with the Climate-Friendly Areas effort
Background
Springfield City Council Resolution 2023-28 expresses support for developing clear and objective development standards for Mixed-Use Districts to comply with applicable housing statues and reduce regulatory barriers to housing. The resolution also supported the City's grant request from the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) as a way to fund the Development Code updates. The funding award provides additional capacity through a DLCD-provided consultant (Cascadia Partners) to continue carrying out a priority to update the Springfield Development Code as part of the larger, ongoing Development Code Update Project that began in 2018. It will amend housing-related sections of the Springfield Development Code that Phase 1 (Housing - focused on Middle Housing) and Phase 2 (Employment Lands) did not address.
Springfield City Council Resolution 2023-28 expresses support for developing clear and objective development standards for Mixed-Use Districts to comply with applicable housing statues and reduce regulatory barriers to housing. The resolution also supported the City's grant request from the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) as a way to fund the Development Code updates. The funding award provides additional capacity through a DLCD-provided consultant (Cascadia Partners) to continue carrying out a priority to update the Springfield Development Code as part of the larger, ongoing Development Code Update Project that began in 2018. It will amend housing-related sections of the Springfield Development Code that Phase 1 (Housing - focused on Middle Housing) and Phase 2 (Employment Lands) did not address.
Contact Us
We welcome your questions and are here to help!
Timeline
Update
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Fri, May 16, 2025
Upcoming May Meetings: Planning Commission/Committee for Citizen Involvement & City Council
Since March, we have been busy launching the first phase of our work! Project consultants started an in-depth audit of how well the Development Code and adopted plans meet State law for housing-related development, and staff has been out and about recruiting members for the project's Technical Advisory Committee (TAC). To discuss this progress and inform next steps, Planning Commission will hold a work session with staff and consultants on Tuesday, May 20 at 6:00pm, which will focus on reviewing the audit's findings. Following the audit discussion, the Planning Commission will meet as the Committee for Citizen Involvement to appoint TAC members. Click here to see how to watch the meetings and to review materials. We will continue the conversation with City Council on Tuesday, May 27 following another discussion that begins at 5:30 p.m. Council's meeting information will be on this webpage the week before the meeting.
Update
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Tue, Apr 1, 2025
Technical Advisory Committee Recruitment! April 1-May 9, 2025
Are you interested in helping make more housing happen in Springfield? Are you interested in reviewing how State requirements for people-oriented design could shape Springfield’s development outcomes? Do you generally want to be more involved in Springfield and in decisions that affect our community? If so, we encourage you to apply to join this project’s Technical Advisory Committee (TAC)! To apply, please see the application packet below. We are accepting applications April 1 - May 9, 2025!
Attachments
TAC Housing and Design Code and Plan Update Recruitment Fillable Form
( 0.99 MB )
Update
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Tue, Mar 18, 2025
Community Engagement Plan Approved by the Committee for Citizen Involvement
On March 18, 2025, the Planning Commission acting as the Committee for Citizen Involvement, approved the Community Involvement Strategy for the Housing + Design Initiative: Code and Plan Update.
Attachments
Approved Housing and Design Code and Plan Update Engagement Plan
( 0.44 MB )
Presentation Slides Housing and Design Code and Plan Update Committee for Citizen Involvement
( 0.38 MB )
Update
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Mon, Mar 3, 2025
Introduction to the Project - City Council Work Session
The project was introduced to the Springfield City Council on March 3, 2025. Council elected to create an ad-hoc Governance Committee and recommended that the Planning Commission consider the creation of a Technical Advisory Committee. The next Council work session to discuss the results of the Code Audit is scheduled for April 28, 2025. To view a recording of the work session or review the presentation materials and/or notes from the meeting please see below.
Attachments
Agenda Item Summary Council Work Session Housing and Design Code and Plan Update 3-3-25
( 0.09 MB )
Attachment 1 - Council Briefing Memo Housing and Design Code and Plan Update
( 0.2 MB )
Attachment 2 - Presentation Slides
( 0.49 MB )
Meeting Notes Council Work Session 3-3-25
( 0.1 MB )
Public Comments
Commenting is open until midnight on Tue, Jun 30 2026.
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