Wednesday, March 10, 2010, 3:38pm PST | Modified: July 23, 2010, 11:26 AM

Portland adopts new ‘green’ regulations

• Email
• Reprints
• RSS Feeds
• Share
• Comments

A package of regulation amendments has been adopted by Portland City Council that will make it easier to install solar panels, wind turbines, eco-roofs, rain or gray-water cisterns and mechanisms that produce energy from compost and other sustainable sources. The city also made a change to its policies concerning small housing units.

The package of amendments prepared by the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability is part of a regulatory overhaul designed to improve the city’s regulations and procedures. Other areas addressed in the package include easing limitations on family-oriented housing built around courtyards in multi-dwelling zones, updating loading space requirements, increasing the amount of bicycle parking for multi-dwelling development and a number of technical changes that will ease implementation of the zoning code.

“Portlanders are always looking for ways to live more affordably and sustainably,” said Mayor Sam Adams in a statement. “One way to do that is to make sure our development codes encourage people to choose these types of improvements.”

The city also made rule changes to allow larger “accessory dwelling units” — sometimes called mother-in-law apartments — which officials consider an earth-friendly housing options because the units use less energy, take advantage of existing infrastructure and require fewer materials to build.

Previously these units couldn’t be more than one-third the size of the main dwelling. The new rule allows for accessory apartments as large as 75 percent of the size of the house or a maximum of 800 square feet.

Commissioner Randy Leonard introduced a resolution on March 3, to waive the system development charges levied for new accessory apartments. An earlier report by the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability had identified the high fees as a strong barrier to development of more of these small housing units. Supporters of Leonard’s waiver argue that the impact of these small dwellings is minimal and that fees should be sharply reduced or eliminated.