News

New Vacation Rental Rules for Hood River

The number of homes in Hood River that are being converted to vacation rentals has skyrocketed in recent years with the advent of Air BnB, Homeaway, VRBO and other online platforms. In 2000 about 4% of the City's housing stock was reserved for seasonal use (vacation rentals and second homes). By 2015, that number had shot up to 12%. About 2/3 of vacation rentals are investment properties owned by someone who lives outside of Hood River County (see maps from Livable Hood River). Concerned with protecting the integrity of residential neighborhoods from "the party house next door" and preserving Hood River's limited housing stock for year-round residents instead of out-of-county investors and second home owners, the City Council decided that Hood River needed rules to govern STRs. The City's draft regulations use a "cap and density" approach--they the limit the total number of whole-house non-owner occupied vacation rentals in residential zones (143…

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Trailbuilding at Punchbowl Falls Nature Park

  This summer we will start building a new trail system at Punchbowl Falls. Just like the mountain bike trails at Post Canyon, the walking trails at Punchbowl will be built by volunteers. Trail Keepers of Oregon has kindly offered to help us with the technical stuff, but we need local volunteers to get the work done. We especially need some folks to be crew leaders. If that sounds like a fun and rewarding way to give back to this special place, let us know. We encourage anyone interested in trailbuilding to go to college--Columbia Cascades Trail Skills College! This is run by the Pacific Crest Trail Association and will teach you everything you need to know to be a crew leader at Punchbowl. Trail Skills College, April 22-24 in Cascade Locks Registration begins today, and it will fill up very quickly. The courses range from beginner to expert, so it’s…

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Bad Bill HB 4079

Oregon's land use program, its communities, and its working and natural lands are under attack this legislative session. HB 4079 has been declared a MAJOR THREAT by the Oregon Conservation Network! HB 4079 would bust open urban growth boundaries on to farm and forest lands and natural areas, using affordable housing as the ruse, when no affordable housing is likely to ever be developed. This bill would allow two “pilot project” cities, one large and one small, to expand their urban growth boundaries by 50 acres each for residential use without showing that they need more land. The bill allows that expansion onto farm, forest and natural lands first.  In exchange, an unspecified portion of the 50 acres would be available for affordable housing – the definition of “affordable,” the percentage that would be “affordable,” and other terms are not defined. Make no mistake, the bill is a trojan horse…

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Polallie Cooper Timber Sale

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The Mt Hood National Forest is holding a public meeting to discuss the Polallie Cooper II Timber Sale. The meeting will take place on February 10, 2016 from 5:00-7:00 p.m. in Hood River, Oregon at the Hood River Fire Department located at 1785 Meyer Pkwy. We encourage you to attend. We are concerned about this sale because it involves logging and road building within the Crystal Springs Special Resource Management Unit, an area that is supposed to recieve special protection as part of the 2009 Public Lands Omnibus Bill. Unfortunately, these protections don't occur unless the Forest Service completes the Mt. Hood Meadows/Government Camp land trade, a process that the Forest Service has dragged its feet on for more than 5 years past the 16 month deadline set by Congress. We have sued the Forest Service over their unreasonable delay and the case will be argued in Federal court later this…

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City of Hood River Endorses Inclusionary Zoning

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Hood River City Council is backing a bill--SB 1533-- before the Oregon legislature to repeal the state's ban on Inclusionary Zoning. Inclusionary Zoning --or IZ-- is a tool used effectively by hundreds of jurisdictions to create a larger supply of affordable housing. Under IZ, a developer is required to include a certain percentage of below market units in a new development in exchange for incentives like increased density, fee waivers and fast tracked permitting. Oregon and Texas are the only two states in the nation that prohibit the practice. Affordable housing is not just a big city problem, more and more people are finding themselves squeezed out of the market because of the high costs of home ownership and monthly rents. Our Executive Director, Heather Staten wrote an article for 1000 Friends of Oregon's annual magazine on the topic: Landmark on Affordable Housing A basic introduction to IZ:   2016 IZ one Sheet_12117 A more comprehensive…

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HRVRC Endorses Water Protection Ballot Measure

Vote YES on Measure 14-55 Ballots for the May 17 election should be landing in voters' mailboxes any day now. HRVRC encourages a YES vote on Measure 14-55 which prohibits commercial bottled water production in Hood River County.  Read our endorsement from the official Voter Pamphlet: Water Ballot measure endorsement. HRVRC Board Votes to Endorse Water Protection Ballot Measure 14-55 The board of the Hood River Valley Residents Committee voted decisively at our January meeting to endorse the citizen-initiated Hood River Water Protection Measure which helps to safeguard the future of our county's water supply. Sponsored by the Local Water Alliance, the countywide measure prevents large-scale bottling and export of public water and will go to county voters in May. "Water is the currency of our county's future," said board President Polly Wood. "This measure helps protect that future and our legacy. Forward-looking land-use decisions and vigilant water use are inseparable…

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Kate McCarthy Honored in Congressional Record

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Kate McCarthy was a founding member of the Hood River Valley Residents Committee. Before her passing in November, she devoted much of her life to protecting Oregon's iconic wild places, especially Mount Hood. Sen. Ron Wyden worked with Kate on many occasions and he recently honored her with a tribute in the Congressional Record. Reflecting on Kate's life, Sen. Wyden wrote "Born in 1917 adjacent to the snow-capped peaks of Mt. Hood in Parkdale, Kate spent most of her life in awe of the natural beauty that surrounded her. Kate drew from that passion as she worked to preserve many of Oregon's most iconic outdoor spaces. For several years, Kate worked closely with local organizations, as well as my office, to protect the north side of Mount Hood and Cooper Spur from a massive destination resort in the Hood River Valley. After years of hard fought battles, Congress passed the…

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Walmart Expansion Denied by Oregon Supreme Court!

It's Over. . . Finally! Walmart Expansion Denied by Oregon Supreme Court   Walmart's expansion plans for its Hood River store finally reached the end of the road this week when the Oregon Supreme Court denied review of Walmart's case. If you remember, the City of Hood River denied Walmart a permit to expand its non-conforming store by 30,000 square feet for the second time in December 2014. Walmart appealed that decision to LUBA which upheld the City's denial. Walmart then appealed again, this time to the Oregon Court of Appeals. In October, the Court again upheld the City's denial. After losing at the City, LUBA and the Oregon Court of Appeals, we all thought that would be the end. But Walmart has vast resources, so they directed them at one last hail mary, an appeal to the Oregon Supreme Court. Unlike the lower courts, the Supremes get to choose…

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Cell Tower Ordinance

The County's long awaited Cell Tower Ordinance has a second hearing before the Planning Commission onApril 6th at 5:30 pm (See staff report). A Citizens' Advisory Committee organized by HRVRC worked with the County for 18 months to come up with the draft proposal which seeks to strike a balance between providing a necessary service and minimizing visual impacts on residential areas and our county's scenic views. In January, ATT sent a team of lawyers to review the draft ordinance and propose a "redline draft" of industry-written changes, often at the expense of the scenic and quality of life values the original draft was designed to protect. The Planning Commission will now need to decide standards for where cell towers can go, how high they can be and what they can look like. Meanwhile, a proposed cell tower at Windmaster Corner has been appealed by neighbors to the project (hearing April 13th). Our…

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Mt. Hood/Cooper Spur Lawsuit to Move Forward

Our case against the US Forest Service had its first test in Federal District Court on Wednesday and we emerged with a win! Last July, we filed suit against the Forest Service for "unreasonable delay" after waiting more than six years for them to complete the Mt. Hood/Cooper Spur land exchange ordered by Congress way back in 2009. The Forest Service had sought to have the case thrown out, saying that the court did not have jurisdiction to compel the agency (USFS) to act. Judge Anna Brown disagreed and denied the  Forest Service's Motion to Dismiss. At the hearing the judge said that the "agency can't ignore a mandate of Congress, put it on a shelf and let years go by." In such situations, the court can enforce a mandate of Congress. In denying the Forest Service's Motion to Dismiss, Judge Brown noted that the sheer lapse of time would…

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