Today I want to report on something that few, if any, of you are paying attention to, and damn it; you need to. If you are unaware of the deal being cut in Salem to bring hundreds, even thousands of acres into the Urban Growth Boundaries in Oregon, you need to be. Change is coming in a way that it never has before. Oregon is racing to pull a come-from-behind win as the Billions in free Federal CHIPS ACT money are being printed and handed out. Landing any of that money means doing drastic things. Things like taking away METROS powers, not telling land owners they are being rezoned, and fighting to write a bill that no one can challenge in court. Led by Hillsboro Senator Janeen Sollman and Hillsboro Representative Nathan Sosa, the newly named SENATE BILL 4 is moving ahead fast.
This is our 6th article on this topic in the last few weeks, so if you need more background, read our stories.
The City of Hillsboro, led by Mayor Callaway and Economic Development Director Dan Dias, showed up at the hearings big time in the past two weeks. They articulated an aggressive plan for massive and unprecedented expansions to the West and South of our existing boundary. As Dias explained the City plan for bringing new Ronler Acres size Fabs to Hillsboro, he showed a colored map. On that map are districts in various colors. Each area was articulated very well by Dias as to what its use will be, when it can happen, and how it can happen.
Here is the map he presented with some notes we added.
I want to personally warn all of you who are living in the greater Jackson School area and who live in old town. Dias and our City are promoting the idea of industries, manufacturers, and semi-conductor fabs like Jireh Semiconductor being placed in the Green Area. That is adjacent to all of you. That is adjacent to Evergreen Middle School, near Jackson School grade school, Glencoe, and thousands of homes. The environmental risks of living next to such things are well documented. The light, noise, traffic, and decades of constant construction are enough to run a person off- believe me, we have lived this life for 30 years at the Orenco Station and Ronler Acres Fab.
Here is what Dan Dias said to the Joint Semiconductor Committee in Salem.
“The Green area to the lower left is approximately 700 acres in size, immediately adjacent to our urban growth boundary with urban services on both the Southern and Eastern sides. This area has the potential to provide near-term developable sites for smaller and legacy technology Fab sites, like Jireh Semiconductor who you have heard testimony from, Qorvo, and others. And it also has the ability to provide immediate near term capacity for those proximity sensitive supply chains that are currently here needing to expand and support our existing cluster.”
Watch him present that to them here – you can watch the entire 22 minutes and see all that is happening.
So let me show you some Google Earth images with an overlay of actual buildings from North Hillsboro placed upon it. These are the sort of uses Dias is supporting (“smaller and legacy technology Fab sites, like Jireh Semiconductor who you have heard testimony from, Qorvo, and others”)
For those of you paying attention, you have obviously noted the yellow road we have drawn showing the northern expansion of Jackson School Road. So many of you wondered why Jackson Road was rebuilt the way it was, why trees were cut down, a rotary was installed, and why it was a priority before airport road (25th) or Glencoe was. I think this land use action is all you need to know. Jackson School can quickly become an expressway as a North-South job commuter route, and it can handle a LOT of trips. It may not happen this way, but this has been talked about for years now in small circles around Washington County.
A discussion will be happening soon, and probably a community meeting. But I want to ask all of you, especially you Jackson School and NW Hillsboro residents, if you are ready. Because unless something changes, it is happening. And it will happen because your city leaders are making it happen. Money, Jobs, Influence. And you are all caught in a massive crossfire.
This is a bad decision- almost all of it is. We are off course. Money and corporate influences are doing this. This is NOT in the best interests of the people of Hillsboro. I hope some of you will wake up and speak up. If you are going to, now is the time.
You can track the hearings here at this link, and you can testify in writing or in person.
We will keep bringing you the story.
Testimony submitted. Cool that Dan Dias not only wants to park semiconductor factories (stop calling them “fabs”… it’s jargon, and it plays right into their hands) right across from schools and houses, but on my farm. Also super cool that he’s already running Jackson School Road through my garage. If you thought we were part of the “selling willingly” crowd, sorry Dan: We didn’t have plans to leave, and this will cost you.
I can not use enjoy emoticons to express how much I love this!
Jason –
I noted the photo with a disclosure that the road and the overlays of Semiconductor plants were our doing. But they are an exact reflection, including the buildings that exist in North Hillsboro. I am not sure if you saw, but Senator Sollman is using City Hall for a gathering this weekend. I think someone like you might have quite a lot to offer at a meeting like that. We tried to participate in the last two hearings and sat online for almost two hours only to be left hanging and cut off- when I objected Monday at the end by unmuting myself online, she said she was sorry but was just trying to be equitable. This is after she brought forth a land use lawyer from Miller-Nash who used his knowledge of defending appeals to instruct the Committee on how to write the Bill to make sure that no one could possibly appeal it. Then she pushed for the 1700 Acres and more or less refused to have a debate in an open way at the committee level after Representative Nguyen asked her to.
Anyone with any background of knowledge of land use knows that this is an unprecedented process – but the way the rules and proper procedures are being thrown aside has become reprehensible.
Your voice is a needed one.
Dirk
I don’t see an issue with bringing in companies that hire local residents and pay good salaries. These hay feilds are useless for hillsboro residents. Growing hay and spraying chemical year round does not produce a positive impact to the community or environmental. The environmental impact is not any worse than a factory, plus hay fever sucks jun june/july…. Atleast a factory can employ local residents and create prosperity. Especially for local people without college degrees.
Your hit peice of an article comes off personal. I believe hillsboro should grow and take advantage of the CHIPS money.
We welcome all responses! Thanks for weighing in. A hit piece, which reports facts, is not much of a hit piece. And these articles have opinions in them which is mentioned on the article. So what part of it was a hit piece? That I am worried about my friends and neighbors health and well being? I mean I provided video testimony from our City via its Staff. But hey… we are all entitled to our opinions. This same land has been looked at for housing for a longtime. That could be a much better use for our citizens. Plenty of room for jobs, which by the way we have a whole lot of. Thanks for your thoughts, truly!
As a Hillsboro resident who uses alfalfa to feed goats and hay to give them bedding, I’d argue that hay has more use to Hillsboro residents than you realize. Also, if you knew anything about the area, you’d know that was fescue grass planted in those fields. The seed from that grass helps plant pasture that feeds cows, goats and chickens that, in turn, feed you.
Meanwhile, “hay fever” isn’t caused by hay. It’s caused by any allergen you come in contact with: Cats and dogs cause “hay fever,” birds cause “hay fever”… any tree that produces pollen causes “hay fever.” The tall grasses in the fields of North Hillsboro contain none of the above.
I know you desperately want to sell grandma’s house because you have no bankable skills and are the kind of lowlife who’d come onto a community comments field and show people how little you know about your city. Has Hillsboro not grown? Are there not good jobs here? Are companies here hiring local residents… or just hiring?
You seem as if you’ve been here a while, so you should know that it’s difficult—if not impossible—to get on the floor of a semiconductor factory without a college degree. That may be changing, but not any time in the immediate future. In the meantime, you’d like to put a factory directly across Evergreen from schools, houses, pools, backyards and playfields… why? So you can cash in on grandma’s house.
Here’s my advice for you, “Dre,” go screw.
Hillsboro can have both more job and a vibrant rural community. It doesn’t have to plow everything under and will never have a factory on Evergreen as long as I’m here. It can get CHIPS funding without dancing for nickels… and without giving away what nobody’s asking for.
P.S. The next time you feel like interrupting a meeting, just go down to Wilson’s and feed the lottery machine instead. At least that dumb, hollow gesture helps fund my weekend at the park.
Thanks for the detailed article, with the links and pictures. Without this information I would not have had such a realistic picture of what this would look like in the neighborhood. Well done, and much appreciated!
Gerry-
After I wrote this some within City Hall pushed back a bit- when I challenged them as to why they promoted the idea and supported it, it was all crickets. Yes- this could 110% happen, and maybe sooner than we think. So thank you!
That is a horrible location for the factory’s. The traffic on Jackson school Taos is already horrible. The revamp only helped pedestrians and bike riders. So now all the funds will be completely wasted because there will be no option other than to tear it out and put in more lanes. Not to mention Evergreen. The traffic in from of the Middle school is out of control in the mornings and afternoons. This are us not built for factory’s. It’s not hard to move these factory’s a little farther out. That’s the best thing to do for all who live in this area. There’s plenty of land just not right in front of schools and neighborhoods. Industrial real estate should never be up next to residential. Sadly Oregon doesn’t get that. SMH