Regional Growth Concept to Promote Densification and Mixed Land-Use in the Suburbs of the Portland Metropolitan Area

Abstract

This study attempts to address two questions. First, what factors influence the categorization of neighborhoods into regional and town centers under a regional planning framework (the 2040 Growth Concept) for the Portland Metropolitan region? Second, have the regional and town centers fulfilled their goals of fostering densification and diverse land use, as indicated in their strategic plans, or have they fallen short of these goals? The multinomial logit model was used to answer the first research question, and propensity score matching and a paired t-test were used to answer the second research question in this study. This paper found that (1) the factors influencing the categorization of neighborhoods into regional and town centers within the regional growth concept were primarily transportation-related, and (2) both centers that considered transportation-related features have evolved into neither densified nor mixed-use neighborhoods after approximately 20 years of the plan's implementation, according to the findings. Whether or not government intervention through urban design and planning aids in the production of spatial patterns sought by the planning authority is discussed in this study, as well as why the normative concept may or may not be beneficial.