Springfield. Asked if developers were trying to play the two cities off each other, Piercy
responded, “Whereas I see cooperation as being good for the success of this region, oth-
ers may see fueling the flames of supposed dispute as serving their purposes.”
Leiken also argued that the bill was about municipal freedom. “Local elected officials
are in the best position to determine the most appropriate course of action for their cities,”
he testified.
But that freedom came at Eugene’s expense. “They got the entire state Legislature to
impose their will on a neighboring jurisdiction,” Bettman said. “It is very bad public pol-
icy.”
HB 3337 may be bad policy, but it’s big profits for developers. Studies have shown
Race to the Bottom
that
cheap farm and forest land bought outside the UGB by land speculators can multi-
Another key argument by bill proponents was that Springfield should be free to com-
ply
in
value by a factor as high as 10 when the UGB expands.
pete with Eugene by luring away its residents and businesses.
Though developers may cash in, citizens may be left holding the bill.
The current joint UGB planning “does not address the reality of this [development]
More sprawl may mean higher taxes or cuts in services in Springfield to pay for it.
occurring by virtue of individuals selecting between one of two cities within the UGB,”
Eugene taxpayers will also have to foot the bill for the expensive land inventory
Leiken testified. A unified UGB “may indeed absorb future growth, but denies the
required by the bill. City officials say the residential lands mandate will also effectively
inevitability that people may choose to live in one city rather than the other.”
require the city to complete related commercial and industrial lands inventories at a total
Rep. Terry Beyer joked with a legislator that Springfield wants to annex Eugene, and
cost of about $200,000.
said, “We are certainly doing it one home-
Bettman said the cost could get even higher,
owner and one business at a time.”
‘They want unlimited land to build
“probably more than a million dollars,” as the
If Springfield is trying to compete with
low-density expensive housing.’
city tries to fix all of its interrelated planning
Eugene for businesses and residents, it has a
documents that assume a joint UGB.
long way to go. Since 1990, Eugene’s popu-
— Eugene Councilor Bonny Bettman
“It could be very complicated,” Piercy said.
lation growth rate has outpaced Springfield’s.
The Eugene City Council is waiting for a memo from the city attorney spelling out exact-
Eugene also remains the region’s job supplier. According to Census data, almost two-
ly what the bill may require of the city.
thirds of workers in Springfield work outside of Springfield, most likely in Eugene.
State law forbids “unfunded mandates” on municipalities, but the high vote margin in
From crime to income to education, Springfield, with its roots as a mill town, trails
the Legislature effectively waived the prohibition.
Eugene, a college town, in a host of common measures of desirability (see sidebar).
If Eugene’s study does force a UGB expansion, Eugene taxpayers could also pay
While Eugene routinely makes national best places lists, Springfield is struggling to win
more for sprawl. A city committee last week proposed to help defer that cost with a tax
a contest as the city most like the dysfunctional Springfield in The Simpsons animated
on windfall developer profits from UGB expansions. Piercy said the proposal “would be
TV series. Recently, The Register-Guard reported that residents of a huge new upscale
worth looking at.”
development in Springfield told people they lived in “MountainGate” to avoid the stig-
A less tangible cost of the measure may be regional cooperation. Piercy said in the
ma of the “S-town.”
past she’s gone out of her way to help Springfield. For example, she said she lobbied for
But while Springfield officials and their developer friends appear eager to egg Eugene
Springfield priorities in Washington, D.C., when their officials couldn’t make the trip.
into a race to the regulatory bottom, Eugene officials are trying to ignore it.
But Springfield’s recent surprise actions in Salem against Eugene “does put us in an
“Engaging in that level of destructive public discourse is not progressive; it doesn’t
awkward position,” Piercy said. “It’s going to cause us to be very cautious
get you anywhere,” said Eugene Councilor Bettman. “We have a city to run.”
and careful.”
“I certainly don’t feel it from our side,” Piercy said of the supposed competition with
ew
leading to more sprawl via “leap frog” development in outlying cities. But that’s not sup-
ported by U.S. Census and state population estimate data.
From 1990 to 2006, Eugene has accounted for 63 percent of the population growth in
Lane County, despite starting with only about 40 percent of the county population.
Outlying cities have grown faster than Eugene, but they started out tiny and remain small.
Since 1990 growth in Veneta has accounted for only 3 percent of the countywide popu-
lation increase while Coburg accounts for only 1 percent of the growth.
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