A site plan proposed to the city calls for 22 apartments to be built behind this house at 2941 Salem Ave. S.E. The shed would go. At left, Waverly Place Assisted Living.
Housing is being added in Albany at a steady pace and in many variations of type and size, and the planning for more continues.
On Monday, Nov. 8, for example, the Albany Planning Commission will hold hearings on a proposed site plan for 22 apartments on Southeast Salem Avenue and a preliminary plat for a 23-lot subdivision on 7.5 acres on Northwest Gibson Hill Road.
The apartments are being planned behind an existing house at 2941 Salem Ave. S.E., on a long and narrow lot that stretches from Salem Avenue to the Union Pacific rail line, between Waverly Place Assisted Living on one side and the Wright Prototype machine shop on the other. The plan would preserve the house on Salem as well as, presumably, the trees lining the street.
The subdivision, proposed in two phases, would extend south from 3118 Gibson Hill Road. It’s to be called Riverwood Crossing, and eight trees would be felled.
These are among about a dozen housing-related development projects listed since June on the Albany Planning Division’s website. Some are shown as still under review and others as already approved.
In size, they range from a single two-unit duplex at 6122 Pacific Blvd. S.W., to the Meadowlark Subdivision of 113 detached single-family houses on Southeast Lochner Road.
In between on the size range are projects such as one for 16 three-bedroom townhouses with garages on about one acre at the corner of Southwest 53rd Avenue and Willetta Street. There’s also a 15-lot phased subdivision at 1294 West Thornton Lake Drive in North Albany.
There also are at least two pending projects for new types of housing downtown — apartments above stores in one case, and attached townhouses in the other.
Three major housing projects are off the “under review” list because they’re already under construction.
One is “The Banks,” where 120 apartments are being built on the Willamette River next to the entrance to Bowman Park on the Willamette River.
Another is “Brandis Meadows,” a complex of 268 apartments on Timber Street, just south of the Knox Butte roundabout.
Yet another is Henshaw Farms, a traditional subdivision of more than 200 lots for detached single-family houses at Columbus Street and Ellingson Road.
Growth and development, pro and con, were one main subject of discussion by City Manager Peter Troedsson, other city officials and a handful of other residents Thursday night during a community conversation at the DeLuxe Brewing Co.
In line with a legislative mandate, Albany is adopting changes in its development code to allow and encourage more so-called “middle housing.” As the list of current projects suggests, developers are still concentrating on apartments and detached houses for single families. But already, some builders are planning other types as well. (hh)
The story has been edited to correct the date of the upcoming planning commission hearing, which is this coming Monday and not, of course, in April.
The 268-unit Brandis Meadows apartments are being built here, south of the Knox Butte roundabout.
“The Banks” apartments under construction opposite Bowman Park.
Just more traffic for a bridge that has already reached capacity. I suppose the Ambulance can drive to Good Samaritan in Corvallis instead of Albany when it is busy. The bridge will simply not be passable.
What are the plans to resolve the congestion on the Bridge?
What are the city’s plans to improve that situation which affects more people on a daily basis than anything else. How many more apartment building can we build before the bridge breaks?
Can you imagine life if that bridge were no longer available for crossing? But hey, that’s the States problem right? Let’s pass it off till another day. It’s so much eaiser collecting taxes from new development.
I hate to see our open spaces filled with housing but am in favor of housing infill
I am concerned about the infrastructure involved. Our roads are already at capacity. What is being done to address that??
“””On Monday, April 8, for example, the Albany Planning Commission will hold hearings …”””
Something’s amiss. April 8, 2022 is Friday.
Obviously. It’s this Monday. No idea where “April” came from.
It’s disgusting! I don’t think our current city government will stop until we’re wall to wall houses. Along with that we’ll get increased crime, our infrastructure will be stretched beyond its capability, our only “green” areas will be golf courses and cemeteries. You want to see our future? Look at Southern California.
Albany is mature in one realm, childish in another. I sense the spreading of a wing.
I’m happy for my former hometown.
I assume “spreading of a wing” means you’re happy that things are actually being approved and built. So am I.
You must be familiar with the planning forms (examples in the Nov. 8 agenda) which lay out in great detail all sorts of picky requirements and restrictions. It just screams out “NOTHING DIFFERENT ALLOWED … INNOVATION UNWELCOME … EVERYBODY WANTS THE SAME THING.” I started with an interest in parking requirements and left with my head spinning.
There’s a famous 1970’s project in Davis, CA you may have heard of called “The Village.” The developers, Mike and Judy Corbett, had a big struggle with city officialdom because the project was “DIFFERENT.” Worth checking out, easy to search for. A wonderful place. I walked through it in 2000 and almost moved to Davis.
You still can!
This is where former mayor Konopa was wise. She advocated for slow growth, well planned and with an eye toward the cost of growth. Growth costs tax payers who then have to fund more police, more fire fighters, more infrastructure. It costs us in terms of livability. The current development code also seems very weak when it comes to addressing fire danger, future water needs and other things that could be affected by the climate crisis.