Portland agency places public infrastructure project on homeowner dividing property

PORTLAND, Ore. — A Portland homeowner told KATU that requirements placed on him by the Portland Bureau of Transportation threaten to upend his retirement plan – and could cost him tens of thousands of dollars.

Glenn Tyler decided last year to divide his Northeast Portland lot in two – through a process called a land partition. The new lot – about 8,000 square feet – will become a flag lot that he can sell to someone to build a home on.

Tyler told KATU he expected to spend about $30,000 to $40,000 on the partition process, but that cost has gone way up, largely due to city work requirements.

PBOT told Tyler he could partition his land if he demolished the 5-foot sidewalk in front of his home and make it one foot wider. He would also have to remove a tree and add an ADA mid-block ramp across the street at the edge of his property. The city also told him he needed to redo the apron of his driveway.

RELATED | Portland put costly corner improvements on business owner despite upcoming state project

He worries the project will cost more than $100,000 once it’s completed.

“It just seems excessively expensive for an average homeowner like me who has no plans on developing the land themselves,” Tyler told KATU.

Tyler emailed KATU after a series of KATU investigations found these work requirements sometimes cost six figures. He worries the final cost of his partition will prevent him from making much money on the sale and cut into his retirement fund.

“I don’t know about you Wright, but I don’t have $120,000 in a shoe box, in my house waiting for me to spend it on something,” Tyler said. “All of this money is literally coming out of my retirement fund.”

Tyler hoped the city would reconsider the frontage improvement requirements and waive them. KATU asked PBOT if there was any flexibility; right now, the answer is no.

RELATED | Portland development requirements cost thousands of dollars, small business owners say

“Subdividing land is a key step in real estate development, creating a dramatic change in land use,” a PBOT spokesperson said in a statement. “It is our practice to require improvements at the time of land division, so the property is ready to build upon and we don’t surprise a future property owner with an expense they didn’t foresee.”

Tyler told KATU he has no plans to develop the land or sell it right away. Instead, he said he wanted to partition the lot now, so it was ready to sell in the future. PBOT recommended delaying the project until closer to sale time.

“Nobody from the city has ever called and tried to get some information on who I am or what I’m going to do with the property,” Tyler said.

KATU asked PBOT if the landowner’s intentions matter when it considers what public frontage work to require for a project.

“When determining public right-of-way improvement requirements, PBOT applies criteria that are as objective as possible. It’s crucial that everyone is treated fairly and to ensure that essential public infrastructure is provided, regardless of the nature of the project or applicant. We apply right-of-way improvement requirements based on the nature of the project or land use action,” the agency said. “If we exempted development that only involves a single lot or a handful of lots, we’d see home production or small business development all over the city with substandard infrastructure. Portlanders would not tolerate that and pushed for City Code changes over generations to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

The city said Tyler has not filed an appeal through the alternative review process – the process Commissioner Mingus Mapps recommended in past conversations with KATU about these projects. Tyler told KATU he was unaware that was an option until we told him about it.

RELATED | Portland’s transportation bureau removes costly work requirement from business following KATU Investigation

He plans to do that, now.

“I mean, ultimately, it would be wonderful if they waive the public works permit so that I didn’t have to replace the sidewalk and put in the ADA ramp,” Tyler said. “I would be willing to still donate two feet of my property to the city so that at some point in the future they can come and do it themselves.”