Metro Residential Readiness

Metro, the regional government for the Portland region, is tasked with preparing an Urban Growth Report every 6 years to support Metro Council decision-making regarding land sufficiency and potential urban growth boundary expansions. Anticipating the need to address complex issues of housing affordability, residential readiness, and risks of gentrification and displacement, Metro contracted with ECONorthwest to prepare a series of reports on timely housing topics and assist staff with evaluating land sufficiency. ECO’s research has addressed development patterns across the region and factors impacting development readiness, the potential for middle housing development, market viability of converting office spaces into housing, and gentrification and displacement risks and patterns across the region. The project will culminate in a decision-support matrix to summarize crucial quantitative and qualitative factors to inform regional growth management choices and resources to address likely questions from the Metro Council, leading to more grounded and informed regional decision-making.