Obese Portland Loosens Belt (Urban Growth Boundary)

Less than seven months after voters outlawed further neighborhood densification, Metro expandeded the urban growth boundary more than had been planned for the next 36 years (2040). Metro expanded the boundary farther in 2004. At the rate since 1995, the urban growth boundary is on track for sprawling beyond what had been projected if the area's so-called smart growth policies had never been adopted. However, the weight of regulation has already distorted the market and driven housing affordability down and traffic congestion has become the worst among medium sized urban areas.