Oregon's growth limits help ease housing pain

“We must respect another truism: that unlimited and unregulated growth leads inexorably to a lowered quality of life.”

NORTH PLAINS, Ore. - Here at the western edge of the Portland metro area, green fields flow into fir trees and foothills and eventually the Coast Range. They are a developer's dream: flat, picturesque and a quick freeway spin from the region's high-tech center.

If this were Phoenix or the San Francisco Bay area, real estate experts say, master-planned subdivisions would carpet these fields all the way to the mountains. Instead, their foot-high grass faces out on just one new, 15-lot cul-de-sac, buffered by strict growth controls that help North Plains maintain its rural feel and help shield Oregon from the housing crisis stunting the national economy. Read more