Transportation SDCs

A system development charge is a one-time fee imposed on new development at the time of development. The charge is intended to recover a fair share of the cost of system capacity needed to serve growth. System development charges provide a means for "growth to pay for growth".

Oregon City's Transportation System Development Charge (TSDC) includes Vehicle and Bike/Pedestrian fees. The Vehicle fee is calculated based on PM Peak Hour Trips generated by the type of use as identified in the Institute of Transportation Engineers (ITE), Trip Generation Manual, 9th Edition. The Bike/Pedestrian fee is based on bike/pedestrian trips and has 2 components, a general fee charged to all development, and a residential fee charged only to residential development.

Development and redevelopment within the Mixed Use Downtown and Willamette Falls Downtown Districts, as well as the 7th Street and Molalla Avenue Corridors, may qualify for a discount. Residential uses qualify for a 10% reduction of the Vehicle fee of the TSDC. Maps showing the discount areas are available in the Supporting Documents on this page.

2013 Transportation System Plan Update

In 2013, the City updated our guiding document, the Transportation System Plan (TSP), which included an updated list of roadway, bicycle, pedestrian, and shared-use paths and family friendly projects. That list of projects was never adopted as the Transportation Capital Improvement Plan. Additionally, various ancillary transportation documents have been completed since then which are also included in this update including the South End Concept Plan; the Willamette Falls Legacy Project; the Linn Avenue, Leland Road and Meyers Road Corridor Plan; and the Meyers Road Extension Plan. With this effort, the City aims to bring current its charges and "determine, using industry standard analyses, a fair and equitable TSDC methodology."

2017 TSDC Rate Update

In 2017, the City of Oregon City undertook an update of its TSDC.   Oregon Revised Statutes (ORS) 223.297 to 223.314 provides "a uniform framework for the imposition of system development charges by governmental units" and establishes "that the charges may be used only for capital improvements." An SDC can be constructed to include one or both of the following components:

• A reimbursement fee, intended to recover an equitable share of the cost of facilities already constructed or under construction
• An improvement fee, intended to recover a fair share of future, planned, capital improvements needed to increase the capacity of the system

The City had last updated its TSDC methodology and rates in 2009 and although those rates were increased annually to keep pace with inflation, the inflationary increases did not keep up with the cost of infrastructure improvements and the list of projects had not been updated since the 2013 Transportation System Plan was adopted.

The Transportation System Development Charge items were implemented in 3 components: the 2017 Project List, Oregon City Municipal Code Changes, and a Public Hearing on Methodology Changes and Rates.

The City Commission adopted Resolution 17-25 updating the Transportation Projects Eligible for Transportation System Development Charge Funding (under Supporting Documents).  An update to the Oregon City Municipal Code, Section 13.20 13.20 System Development Charge for Capital Improvements, was also completed.  These changes became effective through the adoption of Ordinance 17-1013 (under Supporting Documents).  

A final report for the TSDC addressing the methodology and calculation of the proposed charges Public Hearing on the Methodology Changes & Rates became effective through the adoption of Resolution 18-05 (under Supporting Documents).