In the late 1970s, an imaginary line was drawn around the Portland area. Inside the line, urban development could flourish. Outside that line the farms and forestland that characterize western Oregon would remain intact. This line, called the urban growth boundary, has saved much of the natural landscape that surrounds the city. But in the thirty years since the UGB was first drawn, it has expanded more than once. Now a lot of people in the region are saying it doesn't need to grow anymore.
On this Locus Focus episode we take a closer look at Portland's Urban Growth Boundary. Urban naturalist Mike Houck, with the Urban Greenspaces Institute; Amy Ruiz, sustainability advisor to Portland Mayor Sam Adams, Metro Councilor Robert Liberty, and urban planning guru Myron Orfield join host Barbara Bernstein to discuss how we can concentrate future development within the current UGB, while at the same time assuring that urban natural spaces and habitat are protected as well.
- KBOO