Clark County OKs vast urban expansion
Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to allow development on 19 square miles of rural Clark County , a major step in the county's long journey from sleepy military and farming community into full-fledged metropolis.
It was among the biggest urban expansions since the state of Washington started regulating growth in 1994, and might be the biggest ever, a state planner said.
Businesses will line long streches of Interstate 5, state Highway 503 and the north shore of Lacamas Lake . Hundreds of acres of new residential subdivisions, apartments and row homes will be allowed on the outskirts of each city in the county except Yacolt.
"Our small towns can grow, our school districts have a chance at a tax base and we've provided abundant jobs," Commissioner Betty Sue Morris said.
Also Tuesday, commissioners lifted a two-year ban on most new development in much of Salmon Creek and Hazel Dell, determining that the county can now afford to build new roads to ease congestion in Salmon Creek.
This article is republished courtesy of the The Columbian:
County OKs vast urban expansion
