Albany planning

And now, returning to Willetta and 53rd

Written January 12th, 2026 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 9 responses.

Plans are just plans, in case you forgot, and plans are subject to change. One example is playing out on property at the corner of 53rd Avenue and Willetta Street in southwest Albany.

Posted in: Bicycling, Commentary, News
Tags: 53rd Avenue, Albany housing, Albany planning, apartments, development, duplexes, land use, townhouses

Climate Friendly Areas: A skeptical view

Written March 4th, 2025 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 12 responses.

Bowing to a state mandate to slow global warming, the City of Albany is plowing ahead with the designation of six so-called “climate friendly areas.” It’s hard to imagine a project that is so ambitious and unrealistic at the same time.

Posted in: Commentary, News
Tags: Albany planning, city council, climate change, Climate Friendly Areas, Climate Protection Program, high-rise apartments, housing density, Planning commission

4-2 vote OKs change on Grand Prairie

Written November 6th, 2024 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 6 responses.

Residents south of Grand Prairie Road just learned what people elsewhere in Albany learned before: You can’t rely on comprehensive plans or zoning to keep your neighborhood composed of only single-family homes.

Posted in: Bicycling, Commentary, News
Tags: Albany planning, Grand Prairie Road, housing, zone change, zoning

Townhouse talk: A loss of local control

Written April 29th, 2024 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 37 responses.

The Albany Planning Division is preparing paperwork on a proposed subdivision of 80 townhouses off Gibson Hill Road in North Albany. Some people are upset about the project, but state law allows it and there’s not much they can do to prevent it.

Posted in: Commentary, News
Tags: Albany planning, Boshart Davis, Gibson Hill, housing density, North Albany, subdivisionsm townhouses

A plan for the corner of Santiam and Main

Written January 24th, 2023 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 14 responses.

Yohn Baldwin has filed the site plan for a proposed development on the corner of Santiam Road and Main Street in Albany. But whether the project goes ahead may depend on how much the city requires to be done on Main.

Posted in: Commentary, News
Tags: 401 Main Street SE, Albany construction, Albany planning, Benjamen Properties, Cumberland Church site, Main and Santiam, site plan review, Yohn Baldwin

Albany drops ‘family’ from city codes

Written October 17th, 2022 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 23 responses.

For some reason, the word “family” has become a bad word in connection with housing and zoning, at least in the eyes of the Oregon legislature and the governor.

Posted in: Commentary, News
Tags: Albany planning, Development code, dwellings, family, HB 2583, housing, Planning commission, single-family dwelling

What’s up at former Hertz lot? Let’s see

Written October 8th, 2022 by Hasso Hering

Comments: 5 responses.

A week or two ago, somebody asked me what was going on at the former site of the Hertz car sales lot on Airport Road in Albany. I had no idea but told him I would try to find out.

Posted in: Bicycling, Commentary, News
Tags: Airport Road, Albany planning, Hertz, Hyundai, Jackson Automotive