Infill means developments that plant large new homes in older neighborhoods, which is becoming more and more common in Tigard. The problem is that the original Tigard residents feel that the character of their town in being compromised. A survey showed most residents would rather have new developments be more compatible with current homes. Part of keeping with the style of Tigard would be to leave the bigger lot sizes the way they are. Most lots are cut into halves or thirds to make more houses, which makes more money. The problem is that more that 5000 people are expected to move to the Portland area in the next five years, and they have to live somewhere. Tigard residents would appreciate city planning to include more condos and townhouses in areas like downtown, along 99W and around Washington Square. These places are more urbanized and therefore more accommodating to this type of housing. That way their would not be such a demand for infill in Tigard; where city planners are already looking to update land-use policy to help determine look and design for new buildings. Of course infill cannot be completely avoided with the way land prices are skyrocketing. Only 43 lots larger than two acres remain and with the prices high it forces large numbers of houses on itty bitty lots.
- 27 Average number of residential demolitions a year since 2000
- 3,252 New single family houses built since 1994
- 19,468 Single family and multifamily housing units
- 6,058 Average lot size in square feet for new single family development in the past six years
- 2,415 Average building size in square feet for new single family development in the past six years
http://www.oregonlive.com/oregonian/stories/index.ssf?/base/metro_southwest_news/1178488503138220.xml&coll=7
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