Land Use and the BMCP
BULL MOUNTAIN COMMUNITY PLAN:
The Bull Mountain Community Plan (BMCP) was developed by Washington County in 1983. It was a thoughtful, visionary plan created through the involvement of many citizens and designed to protect significant natural resources and to create a vision for the future of Bull Mountain. The plan was to be implemented through Washington County Department of Land Use and Transportation. Planning was transferred from Washington County to the City of Tigard for a period of time by an intergovernmental agreement in 1997.
The maps and text of the BMCP identify areas of park deficiency and significant natural resource areas. It calls for development that conforms to the natural topography of Bull Mountain and new streets that conform to natural slopes. Because trees are highly valued by local residents, the BMCP requires protection of mature stands of trees and preservation of native vegetation to minimize run-off issues due to development. The plan also calls for a mix of housing density with the lowest density closer to the crest of Bull Mountain, increasing to higher density where practical along the arterials at the base.
Unfortunately, for over two decades Washington County, and later the City of Tigard, failed to enforce the plan and to develop certain specific codes and ordinances to address the unique needs of the area. In June of 2007 the Intergovernmental Agreement that transferred planning from Washington to Tigard was terminated and planning was returned to Washington County’s Department of Land Use and Planning.
The Bull Mountain Community Plan has not been updated since 1983. In response to a 2007 request to update the plan in conjunction with Tigard’s comprehensive plan update and the West Bull Mountain Planning process, the City of Tigard and Washington County declined community requests to look at all of Bull Mountain and plan it as the “complete community” residents have indicated they desire and a concept which both Metro and Washington County support. INSERT PPP
Three Greatest Challenges:
The three biggest issues Bull Mountain residents have faced since 2003 are: 1) annexation 2) incorporation, and 3) expansion. Prior to 2003, Bull Mountain residents faced issues of rapid development and changing character from the once rural community to a dense community of new homes on small lots. With new development came the removal of trees, terracing of the natural slopes, loss of natural wildlife habitat and traffic congestion. Since the Bull Mountain community had been without an organized citizen’s voice from the early 1990’s, Friends of Bull Mountain was formed and the dormant CPO 4B was re-activated http://extension.oregonstate.edu/washington/cpo/index.php, primarily in response to issues relating to annexation, governance, parks and planning.
Tigard’s once hostile annexation policy (often referred to as “Hostage Annexation”) of withholding building services in exchange for building services otherwise available through Washington County, has been replaced, for now, by a policy whereby Tigard encourages piecemeal annexation of properties that are contiguous to the Tigard city limits through the extension of CITY services at the time of development or through property owner request. Few properties have been annexed into Tigard since 2006.
West Bull Mountain Planning Area:
Nearly 500 acres on Bull Mountain was added to the Urban Growth Boundary (UGB) in 2002 by Metro. The area is commonly referred to as UGB areas 63 & 64. Since the areas are not under the jurisdiction of a city, the concept planning and community planning is being conducted by Washington Co. planning department. In addition planning areas 63 & 64, Washington Co. has added approximately 200 acres of Exclusive Farm Land at the the corner of Beef Bend and Roy Rogers Rd. to the concept planning process that started in January, 2008 and is to be completed by October, 2009.
** See the “Events and Accomplishments” page for more information on annexation and incorporation.
Urban Services:
Urban Services are the critical services needed by an urban community. See below for an explanation of how those services are provided to unincorporated Bull Mountain by Washington County and Special Service Districts and to Bull Mountain/Tigard through city services.
- Water
The Tigard Water District (TWD), through an intergovernmental agreement with Tigard, King City and Durham provides water to unincorporated Bull Mountain and other smaller nearby unincorporated areas. The city of Tigard is the water provider for Bull Mountain/Tigard. An intergovernmental water board (the IWB) is made of one representative from Tigard, King City, Durham, the Tigard Water District, and one at large member and acts as an advisory board to the city of Tigard. - Sewer
Sewage treatment for Washington County is provided by Clean Water Services (CWS - www.cleanwaterservices.org). The Washington Board of Directors also act as the managing board of Clean Water Services. The city of Tigard’s public works department is also involved within Tigard’s city boundary. - Storm Water
Clean Water Services also manages surface water for all of urban Washington County. In cooperation with Washington County and the 12 cities in the district, CWS builds, maintains and enhances the public drainage system to meet public needs and to comply with strict water quality regulations set for the Tualatin River drainage area by the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). CWS plays a big role in water quality, stream and watershed protection. - Air Quality
The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) www.oregon.gov/DEQ monitors air quality statewide. It inspects vehicles for emission levels. - Street Lighting
Street light in most areas of unincorporated Bull Mountain is provide through Washington Co. as lighting districts. Homeowners pay a fee for the street lighting. Street lighting within Tigard’s city limits is provided through Tigard. Washington County provides lighting on other main roads. - Animal Control
The Washington County Animal Services & Bonnie L. Hays Small Animal Shelter (www.co.washington.or.us/deptmts/at/dog/dog.htm) provides care and protection for an estimated 80,000 dogs and 90,000 cats. Cities rely on this countywide service. - Garbage and Recycling
The Washington County Solid Waste & Recycling Division provides overall management of waste collection and disposal in unincorporated areas through the franchised services of 26 different haulers. Garbage and recycling collection is handled by Pride Disposal or Waste Management Services throughout all of Bull Mountain. Metro controls rates and other aspects of the region’s solid waste disposal. Recyclewise is the recycling information website. - Electricity:
Portland General Electric (PGE) www.portlandgeneral.com provides electricity to all Bull Mountain residents. - Natural Gas
Natural gas is provided to all of Bull Mountain by Northwest Natural Gas. - Telephone, Cell, Internet
Numerous companies provide telecommunication services. Landline and mobile phone, fiber optic and cable lines all provide access to the Internet. Verizon provides the majority of the landline telephone services and Comcast provides cable, although both are busy competing in each other’s traditional service area these days. - Fire and Rescue
Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue TVF&R, a special service district, serves the fire and rescue needs of all Bull Mountain residents. 22 fire stations are spread throughout the district with a target response time of six minutes to your house or business. Only about 25% of their calls are for fire protection; the majority of their calls are for medical response, incident control (traffic accidents) and rescue. - Emergency Preparedness and Services
The Washington County Office of Consolidated Emergency Management (OCEM) develops and maintains a county-wide, integrated system to prepare for, respond to, recover from, and mitigate against disasters. - Police Services
Law enforcement is provided in a tiered fashion where responsibilities are well defined. All cities in Washington County provide their own police departments. Unincorporated Bull Mountain is served through an Enhanced Sheriff’s Patrol Special District by the Washington County Sheriff’s Department (ESPD). The Enhanced Sheriff’s Patrol District provides police protection additional to the basic level provided through out the county The county provides jail space for all offenders so cities only need to provide their own holding space. If an offender’s sentence is less than 1 year, that sentence is served in either the county’s jail or at the Community Correction facility both of which are in Hillsboro. For sentences greater than 1 year, offenders are placed in an Oregon State correction facility. Tigard’s police department provides policing services to the Bull Mountain/Tigard area. - Justice and Courts
Washington County provides all parts of the justice system: prosecution, public defenders, judges and courts. - Transportation Services
The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) has responsibility for several roads that serve the greater Bull Mountain area, including Hwy. 99W and Hall Blvd. - The Washington County Land Use & Transportation Department Capital Project Management Division provides all aspects of capital transportation projects, building county roads, bridges, intersections and making system improvements.
Cities have responsibility for all the streets within their jurisdictions except for County, State and Federal roads. The county is responsible for maintaining all the urban/suburban neighborhood streets that are built to county standards. Maintenance is paid for in unincorporated Bull Mountain by the Urban Road Maintenance District (URMD). This is a road maintenance tax to homeowners in the area. As a result of the URMD tax, most roads on and around Bull Mountain are in very good condition. - Tri-Met
Mass transit is currently unavailable to Bull Mountain except for stops at Bull Mountain Rd. at Hwy. 99W and just south of Beef Bend Rd. at Hwy. 99W near King City, www.trimet.org.
**Our thanks to Bruce Bartlett and Marc SanSoucie for providing a large amount of the Washington County urban services information.
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