Urban Reserves
What are Urban Reserves?
The Greater Bear Creek Valley Regional Plan is the product of a comprehensive regional land-use planning effort undertaken by the cities of Ashland, Central Point, Eagle Point, Medford, Phoenix, Talent, and Jackson County to address long-term residential, commerical and industrial needs of the region.
On November 15, 2012, the Land Conservation and Development Commission (LCDC) approved the Bear Creek Valley Regional Problem Solving (RPS) Plan. The plan took over 12 years to complete, with hundreds of people spending many thousands of hours on the effort. That approval became final at the end of March 2013. These efforts created what are known as Urban Reserves. Phoenix has five Urban Reserves which can be reviewed by clicking on the links to the right.
Residential Land Needs
Phoenix is one of the oldest communities in the Bear Creek Valley, though it is one of the smallest. The Regional Plan allocates population growth over the planning horizon of Phoenix in rough proportion to the regional share of the population it presently comprises. This translates into approximately 500 acres of total gross residential land demand. Of this, the City estimates 84 acres can be accommodated within the existing Urban Growth Boundary (UGB). Therefore, the Urban Reserve residential supply should provide 416 acres of gross residential land.
Employment & Park Needs
Employment land demand for Phoenix over the planning horizon is projected to be 513 acres. Of 513 acres, Phoenix estimates that 137 acres can be accommodated within the existing UGB. Urban Reserve buildable employment land supplies could be up to 376 acres to satisfy the allocated employment.
The City of Phoenix has also identified needs for park land of approximately 49 acres. The park acreage demand is reasonably proportional with employment growth and population projections for the City of Phoenix. This is especially true when accounting for the transfer of employment and population in the Phoenix-Medford Urban Containment boundary which is essentially built-out and contains minimal urban amenities such as park land and for a fairly sizable built-out employment and population area