The Latest

Ahead of the legislative session, we’re advocating for a housing bill that prioritizes our communities, not profit. That means investing in the missing piece within our UGBs: infrastructure. It’s not flashy, but it’s smart.

Help us protect Oregon’s unique land use planning program – and even more importantly, protect Oregon and Oregonians – for generations to come. Donate before the end of the year and you could win a picnic with alpacas in Bend.

We can meet the housing needs of Oregonians – if we work smart within the land use system. Oregon is short approximately 140,000 homes for people who are living here today, but anyone who has ever struggled to find or afford a stable living space knows our housing crisis isn’t only about sheer numbers: What we build and where we build it is just as important.

From newspapers to the halls of the Oregon capitol, our statewide land use system became part of headline issues this year. Our 2023 Annual Report includes major highlights – all made possible thanks to Oregonians working together to make a better today and tomorrow possible.

1000 Friends of Oregon, Neighbors for Clean Air, and Northwest Environmental Defense Center filed a legal challenge today to the building permits for the controversial Prologis freight warehouse slated for construction on the former Kmart site at NE 122nd and Sandy in Portland, taking the appeal to the Land Use Board of Appeals. The petitioners are represented by Crag Law Center.

As we prepare for the 2024 short session, we know that legislators who voted to protect Oregon’s land use system need to hear that protecting our urban growth boundaries matters. Join us in debunking the false promise that more soil is the missing factor in solving our housing crisis.

Following passage of the landmark semiconductor expansion bill, SB 4, Oregon has proven we found a win-win approach. We've seen zero executive orders and compromised zero working acres, plus Oregon has had at least 15 competitive semiconductor applications and we've identified 10,000 suitable acres inside our UGBs.

Wendy and Kate worked at 1000 Friends of Oregon as part of our development team from 2017 through 2021. In their new roles, Wendy and Kate will work with our staff, board, donors, and program participants to expand membership and deepen philanthropic engagement with Oregon’s unique land use planning system. 

In Washington County, where Tigard meets the Metro urban growth boundary, we’ve spent the past two years working with local residents to defend the values of the land use system and prevent the building of unnecessary commuter roads that neighbors have summarily rejected. Now, Ordinance 882 – the effort at the heart of this battle – is coming back for a vote in December. 

About 3,400 Oregonians call North Plains in Washington County home. When North Plains City Council voted to expand its urban growth boundary by more than 850 acres out onto working farms, residents came with questions, concerns, and solutions.