This corner of Laura Vista Drive and Ellis Avenue is in the middle of the planned “middle housing” subdivision of 80 lots in North Albany. (Photographed on June 6.)
As expected, a referee has ruled for the City of Albany in two property owners’ appeal over a planned 80-lot subdivision in North Albany.
Audrey Eldridge and Brad Dennis, both owners in North Albany, had challenged the city’s approval of Riverwood Crossing, a development of 80 townhouses along a new section of Laura Vista Drive south of Gibson Hill Road.
Originally approved as a 22-lot subdivision for single-family houses, the 7.4-acre development changed owners, and the new developer sought and won approval to create 80 “child lots” instead.
As provided by state law on appeals of middle housing projects, the city had to appoint a referee to decide the appeal.
Referee Catherine M. Pratt, an Albany lawyer hired for this case, compiled an 11-page decision. She wrote that she approved of the child-lot subdivision “based upon the facts and findings herein.”
The appellants had based their case on concerns about traffic and the water system, citing among other things the draft of a new water master plan that says two pump stations serving North Albany are near their capacity.
Pratt, though, concluded that the subdivision met all the applicable criteria spelled out in the city’s development code in effect when the application was filed. The criteria include that a development can be served by the street system and city utilities.
This is the first time the city has had to hire a referee under the state’s new middle housing laws.
Planning Manager David Martineau said Pratt had not yet submitted her bill. But he was pretty sure it would be more than the $300 filing fee for the appeal. (hh)
Is ANYONE surprised? I didn’t think so. We need to change our state and local government. For those who don’t think so, wait until this happens in YOUR neighborhood.
It already is, behind us off 21st and Edgemont where 24th is. But 24th is not built to support that traffic. Our neighborhood not happy. City did not respond to our emails about this .
The plan is to density, densify, density. How does anyone not understand this? Here’s everything you need to know and understa: https://www.oregon.gov/lcd/housing/pages/choice.aspx#:~:text=Middle%20Housing%2C%20codified%20in%20Oregon,all%20income%20levels%20can%20afford.
Wow! I expected this outcome, but it is going to make North-Albanyites mad! Their kingdom is undergoing changes.
They could always move out of Albany and that would make more housing available for those that need it.
As a North Albany resident, my goal is to leave before this project is completed. By then my ordinary home will be worth $600K or more. For those wanting to move that’ll require a $60,000 down payment and monthly payments of $3800. Not exactly tailored for low-income families. Don’t be fooled by the stories developers tell you.
Why should we have to move when we’ve lived here for years. You don’t think we need a place to live also?! North Albany can’t handle all the additional growth. Our roads are going to be like the side streets in downtown before long — oh, we have to be able to get over the bridge first!
Who did you vote for? Why?
Why??? Why not put an 80 unit complex in a less densely populated area and not in NA? It makes absolutely no sense!
Low-income families need starter homes. We need to help with that.
I promise you these homes will not be affordable. Can low-income families afford a starting price of 400K or higher? This is all about generating more tax revenue. As a resident of this area, I won’t be sticking around to see the traffic nightmare this debacle will generate.
Is it low income???? I bet they will be expensive.
I would have sold them my starter home. My wife and I were looking forward to this development so we could buy a bigger home for our growing family and have a nice yard for them to play in. This ruling and middle housing laws have destroyed everybody’s chances of moving from starter home to family home.
Middle Housing is NOT about low-income housing. Rather it is about building as many house “units” as possible, with minimum oversight or planning to ensure compatibility with the community and infrastructure.
Recently a 4 unit townhouse in Albany was sold for about 1.2 million – and somehow I think that was not a purchase made by a family wanting a home – rather by investors who will find a way to charge rents that are not considered “affordable.” See this link https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/222-28th-Ave-SE-Albany-OR-97322/2054617640_zpid/
More Examples? Recent townhouses for sold in Corvallis >$500,000 are now being rented for ~$3,100! https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/2781-NW-Huckleberry-Dr-Corvallis-OR-97330/351716878_zpid/
Your a sucker if you believe these homes will be affordable to low income or even lower middle income people. The homes will be from 350,000 to over 500,000. Plus investors will come in and buy up many homes and then ask for high rent. Check out below.
https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/2781-NW-Huckleberry-Dr-Corvallis-OR-97330/351716878_zpid/
Dense housing belongs in the center of the city, where the people do not have to be dependent on vehicles. This housing does not really fit low income people because now they have to have a working vehicle to get to work, buy groceries, visit Dr.’s, etc. It is just plain a bad decision for the future of Albany streets, the flustration of residents, and future air quality.
The center of Albany is a big historic district, and there’s no indication residential density will substantially increase there. It will continue to be pushed to other areas.
Several Albany residents (like me) have jobs in Corvallis. Corvallis refuses to deal with affordable housing, so we came here because (it used to) be cheaper. I don’t love that these townhomes will most likely be more “market rate” rentals. But, increasing housing options in North Albany could ease commuter traffic on the bridge, which needs repairs. If I lived in North Albany, I’d rarely drive into Albany.
Maybe this will be the wakeup call for Albany residents. The city has contaminated our water and literally sold us down the river. People from other states have come in with money trying to tap the influx of people from other states coming here due to many reasons ( inexpensive to live, medical jobs at the school in Lebanon, earthquakes etc.) The economy here consists of low paying jobs. We recently interviewed another guy who was homeless, no experience, and heavy weed use. Said he worked at one of the weed stores and loved it due to the access to good weed but could not live on the wages. He had received “drug” treatment many times without success. Many people from other states do not love what Oregon has to offer. It is boring to people used to living in big cities and they hate the weather. There is nothing to keep them here. There are no jobs to replace what they earned else where. The local government will fill up their pockets then retire in Arizona and Nevada, leaving us with a trashed city. The people that love to live here need to stick to their guns and make it known that being a good community is our goal. We do not want the city to focus on getting “the bigger better deal” and instead focus on a sustainable healthy economy. We have the right to prosper and afford to live here too.
Chris Jay,
AMEN! You hit the head on the nail! Very well said! Thank you
It’s funny how indignant people are about this development.
I think it’s pretty shady to get approval for 22 homes and then build the infrastructure for 80 only to ask for approval of that major change later.
But you know what prevents developer abuse? Regulations. You know how Albany votes?
And then at the same time, all these people wanting to block the development would be out there whining about housing affordability and all the homeless people.
Well…I’ve been waiting for this day to simply say: “I told you so”. Read my previous posts and you might understand my attitude. It’s about to be a very expensive lesson for the two people who filed the appeal- probably several thousand dollars of the referee’s time.
You have the same options I outlined before. First- stop blaming the city, the state passed the law. Second- stop complaining and be part of the solution, provide more housing yourself. Third- if your NIMBY brain is going to explode then sell and move elsewhere.
Pretty simple. We have a housing shortage nationwide. It’s supply and demand, the only way to make it better is to build more housing. The State of Oregon felt this was the best option given the limited amount of land available and not wanting urban sprawl like other states have.
We had no problem in collecting donations from residents in North Albany to cover more than the $300 filing fee and potentially a $500 assessment.
Per ORS 197.375, The referee shall assess the cost of the appeal in excess of the deposit for costs, up to a maximum of $500, including the deposit paid under subsection (1) of this section, against an appellant who does not materially improve his or her position from the decision of the local government. The local government shall pay the portion of the costs of the appeal not assessed against the appellant. The costs of the appeal include the compensation paid the referee and costs incurred by the local government, but not the costs of other parties.
Thanks for the clarification, I am now fully informed. That $500 limit on the uninformed complainer (appellant) means that other taxpayers like myself will foot the rest of the bill- even though we understand the law and already knew the outcome.
Poor North Albany will have to accept what the rest of us South Albanites have been dealing with…over crowding, and extra traffic!
Albany needs to deal with adding an I-5 exit off Millersburg area to alleviate congested traffic to North Albany…. Expensive… YES, affect farmlands… yep, but it’s going to happen sooner than later!
Maybe they shouldn’t have invested in the train docking area (that appears to not be used) and looked into traffic issues to North Albany…
Addition of I-5 exits? ODOT.
“train docking” boondoggle? Your Linn County Commissioners.
Quit trying to blame the city for things that are not theirs.
For those blaming the city, you’re just mistaken. The city is following state law.
For those saying it won’t help with affordable housing, yeah, this development won’t solve the problem. But this along with other middle housing developments will help cut into the deficit of needed units. That will eventually help with affordability. And a $400K unit is more accessible than the $550K+ the single family dwellings would have been.
Is this a good place for it? Probably not, but the housing shortage is a bigger problem than the traffic that it will add.
The edict from Salem regarding “Middle Housing” is spelled out in HB2001 which was passed in 2019. HB2001 basically flushed down the toilet decades of community planning in favor of build whatever and wherever you want.
However, HB2001 does have at least one exception. That exception applies to developments that have CC&Rs (covenants, codes and restrictions) that limit all buildings within the development to detached single family dwellings. Those CC&Rs had to be codified (recorded and signed) prior to the passage of the bill in 2019. Now the question is, does the property in question lie within a development, AND if so does that development have CC&Rs, AND do the CC&Rs limit construction to detached single family homes?
CC&Rs are connected to property sales and as such serve as a type of contract that is implicitly agreed to when property is bought. The really frustrating part of that is the city and county CANNOT enforce them. They don’t even look to see if they exist. In addition, developers know about them but blatantly ignore them since the city and county do not enforce them. CC&Rs are only enforceable through legal action in the state courts. In addition, the referee that recently reviewed the appeal is only bound by the building requirements that pertain to the development. It was NOT within the scope of the referee to consider CC&Rs (if in fact they do exist) or contractual obligations in her appeal review. That lies with the jurisdiction of the courts.
CC&Rs are recorded at the county records office. In this case, the Benton County Records Office in Corvallis. Concerned property owners need to go to Benton County Records Office and look for any CC&Rs that MIGHT be attached to this property. If CC&Rs do exist and contain language limiting construction to single family dwellings, legal guidance from an attorney would be required for further action in the courts.
Remember, City and County officials are only concerned with building requirements and if they are met permits are issued. They cannot enforce contractual obligations like CC&Rs. That task is left to property owners and individuals within the affected development in the state courts.
Finally, I should note that this is not impossible and I speak from experience in another county on the north coast. The individual property owner and neighbors can and do prevail.
It is unbelievable that people tell people that live here to leave. We have an older population that built Albany to a beautiful city until recently. Parks were donated for future and long time residents to enjoy. Local activities were created to better the community that lived here. All of these useless efforts to create an artificial community are shameful. What happened to respecting the now elderly people who worked hard to make the United States great? Politicians did not make us great, the working people did. The one’s who paid taxes, contributed sweat equity and sacrificed during the wars. It is snotty and childish to expect to reap the benefits of others work. People need to pull up their big kiddo pants and show some respect and compassion for the people who live here.