Population growth estimates raise questions in La Center

Posted

LA CENTER – As they work to update their Comprehensive Land Use Plan, city leaders in La Center are trying to figure out to accommodate expected population growth, provide an adequate mix of housing and more than triple that city’s number of jobs inside the city limits.

At the La Center City Council’s work session on Jan. 27, planning consultant Eric Eisemann gave councilors an in-depth look at what La Center might look like in 20 years.

At the heart of Eisemann’s presentation were numbers related to the city’s projected population growth and the type of housing, infrastructure and employment needs that accompany a surge in residents.

“The county has scaled back on population numbers,” Eisemann said. “The recession had impacts.”

Still, even with the lowered population estimates, the city of La Center is still projected to add more than double in size over the next two decades – jumping from its current 3,100 residents to more than 7,900.

Additionally, the county requires cities to work toward meeting a 25-75 percent mix of medium-density and low-density housing. Of all the cities in Clark County, La Center has the lowest number of medium-density housing units, which typically include apartment or townhouse complexes and often provide more affordable housing for lower-income residents, with less than two percent of the city’s housing units qualifying for medium-density designation.

On Jan. 27, Eisemann told the council that the city currently has 1,166 housing units. To meet population growth estimates for the year 2036, the city will have to add 1,479 new units.

Additionally, the city needs to increase its number of in-town job opportunities. Currently, there are 690 jobs inside La Center’s city limits. To keep up with its growing population and meet the benchmark of having one full-time job per household, the city will need to add 2,072 new jobs.

La Center Mayor Greg Thornton said those new jobs will be impacted by the planned casino-hotel complex being built by the Cowlitz Indian Tribe on nearby reservation land. Although the planned casino could add hundreds of new, higher-paying jobs, those numbers won’t count toward the 2,072 new jobs La Center needs to add inside its city limits.

“Those 2,072 new jobs don’t look at the number of jobs at the (planned tribal) casino,” Thornton said. “It (the casino) is here, but it’s not here.”

What’s more, the planned tribal casino could impact the jobs that La Center already has. Of the 690 jobs inside La Center, 47 percent (325 jobs) are within the “arts/entertainment/recreation” category, with a large percentage coming from the city’s three privately owned card rooms. Many La Center leaders fear that the addition of a Las Vegas style casino on the nearby Cowlitz Reservation will negatively impact the card rooms’ business and decrease the number of jobs available inside the city.

“(The casino) is going to impact every single part of our city,” said City Councilor Joe Valenzuela. “How do we plan for the impacts of the casino?”



Other interesting numbers that came out of Eisemann’s Jan. 27 presentation included a detailed look at La Center’s working population:

• Thirty-nine percent of La Center’s workers earn between $1,251 and $3,333 per month; 15 percent earn $1,250 or less per month and 45 percent earn more than $3,333 per month

• Of the 690 jobs inside La Center, 47 percent are in arts/entertainment/recreation and 22 percent are in education

• Of the 690 jobs available in La Center, only 54 of them are filled by La Center residents. The rest of the workers come from outside the city, with the vast majority coming from the Vancouver/Portland metro areas

• There are 961 “primary workers” living in La Center, but only 54 of them stay inside the city for their jobs. The other 907 (94 percent) commute from their La Center each day to work in Vancouver (28 percent), Portland (21 percent), Woodland (7 percent), Battle Ground (2 percent), Ridgefield (1.9 percent) and other nearby cities.

Other issues that city leaders must consider when updating their Comprehensive Land Use Plan include:

•  A possible move to a more flexible zoning plan, which Eisemann said would “be more responsive to market demands and will make the city’s processes more attractive to investors.” At their Jan. 27 work session, most councilors seemed to favor the new zoning plan, which would allow for more flexibility in approving medium-density housing unit developments and help the city meet the county’s 25-75 percent medium-density versus low-density housing requirement.

• The issue of gated communities and whether the city would allow gated communities in single-family developments or multi-family developments – or in both or neither. Eisemann said that developers have asked if the city leaders favor, disfavor or do not have an opinion regarding gated communities. “Without any expressed preference or standards, they are allowed,” Eisemann told the council. On Jan. 27, a few councilors, including Al Luiz and Joe Valenzuela, said they were not against gated communities but would like to make sure that those types of developments were still easily accessible to emergency vehicles and provided safe walking access for school children.   

• Possible requirements for parks inside low-density subdivisions. Currently, the city’s code requires that medium-density developments – those with 35 units or more – provide recreation facilities such as parks, community centers and yards. However, the code says nothing about subdivisions with low-density, single-family units. “For example, the recently approved Sunset Terrace, a 120-lot low-density subdivision on the northeast side of town, provided no parks or recreational facilities.” Eisemann explained in his report to the council. “We asked, but that Hearings Examiner could not require the dedication or construction of any park or recreational facilities in the new subdivision.” Eisemann said there are pros and cons for requiring recreational facilities inside low-density subdivisions, and suggested that the city leaders consider this issue when updating their Comprehensive Land Use Plan.

The La Center Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on the proposed updates to the city’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan on Feb. 9, and the city council is expected to have a public hearing at the regularly scheduled Feb. 24 council meeting. The city must approve and adopt the updated plan before the end of March, Eisemann said.