Cornelius Planning Commission Approves Laurel Crown Development - February 24, 2026
Cornelius Planning Commission Approves Laurel Crown Development - February 24, 2026
On February 24, 2026, the Cornelius Planning Commission held a public hearing to consider the Laurel Crown Type 3 conditional use permit, planned unit development (PUD), and subdivision application. The meeting was called to order at 8:00 PM by Chair Dave Waffle. The project proposes a 230‑lot residential subdivision on property owned by the Hillsboro School District, located south of Tualatin Valley Highway and west of 345th Avenue. The commission voted unanimously to approve the application with specific corrections and conditions, including a five‑year phasing timeline.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Larry Wright (2801 South Dogwood) opposed the project, arguing that without completion of 345th Avenue, the two existing roads (Dogwood and Alpine) cannot handle the additional traffic from 230 units (estimated 460 cars). He also expressed concern about construction traffic and speed bumps hindering traffic flow.
- Timothy Pomeroy (2706 South Dogwood) opposed the project, raising concerns about the change from a planned high school to an elementary school, inadequate emergency services, potential damage to concrete streets from heavy equipment, and traffic congestion. He noted that 345th Avenue is not scheduled to open until phase three (around 2029).
- Sam Dell Rumpel (448 South 28th) opposed the project, objecting to the reduced lot sizes west of 29th Street (R7 zoning) and requesting that lots match the existing 8,276‑square‑foot average. He also recommended restricting all construction vehicle traffic to 345th Avenue to avoid damage to concrete streets.
- Stuart Kelsey (452 South 28th) opposed the project, emphasizing that without a left‑turn lane at 345th and TV Highway, residents will likely use 26th Avenue, worsening existing congestion. He called for better planning of ingress/egress.
All four speakers opposed the development as proposed.
Discussion Items
- Staff Report (Ms. Freyer): Presented the project overview, applicable criteria, and corrections to the staff report (page 2: March 2 not March 3; page 33: 230 lots not 220; conditions of approval 13 and 27 clarified for phasing). The applicant requested a five‑year phasing window (option 2B) to allow for market conditions and to align with the city’s 345th Avenue improvements.
- Applicant Testimony (Mimi Ducas, AKS Engineering): Described the project as a continuation of Laurel Woods, with a mix of detached and attached homes, alley‑loaded homes off collectors, a central park (71,000 sq ft of recreational open space vs. 69,000 required), and a mini‑roundabout at Dogwood and 345th. The applicant noted that the design reflects lessons learned from Laurel Woods, including traffic calming and parking solutions.
- Traffic Impact (Todd Mobley): Explained that the adopted standards allow for congestion and that the 345th connection will reduce trips on 26th Avenue. The applicant committed to restricting land development construction traffic to 345th Avenue.
- Construction Access (Paul Selke): Stated that concrete streets are stronger than asphalt and that heavy equipment will be routed via 345th, not through existing neighborhoods.
- Commission Deliberations: Chair Waffle expressed disappointment about the lack of a high school but supported the project. Commissioners discussed the phasing option, with consensus to choose option 2B (five‑year extension) to provide flexibility. The motion included the staff‑report corrections.
Key Outcomes
- Motion: The planning commission voted unanimously (4‑0) to approve the Laurel Crown Type 3 conditional use permit (CUP 2025‑4), planned unit development (PUD 2025‑02), and subdivision preliminary plat (SUB 2025‑02) based on the findings in the staff report, public testimony, and evidence, with the following corrections:
- Page 2, basic fact number 5: change from March 3 to March 2.
- Page 33: correct lot count from 220 to 230.
- Condition of approval 13: street names shall be noted on the final plat for each phase.
- Condition of approval 27: within each phase, public streets must be constructed to city standards and substantially completed before building permits are issued for that phase.
- Phasing: The applicant was granted the five‑year phasing option (2B) for submitting final plats.
- Next Meetings: The commission scheduled a work session for March 24, 2026 (fourth Tuesday), and noted that no applications are currently pending for April. Future work sessions will focus on code amendments.
Meeting Transcript
Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Dave Waffle, and I uh uh chair the planning commission. We will call this meeting to order. It is February 24th, uh 2026. We're in the uh uh city council chambers of the city of Cornelius, and we will pause a moment as our uh fourth planning commissioner comes in. Thank you. Um the uh and uh that guarantees that we have a quorum, which is important to all of you since you came out on this rainy night. And we're glad we're glad that you you are here. Um we have uh one major uh piece of uh business tonight that I'm sure uh drew you all out, and uh we will uh get into that uh uh without uh undue delay. We'll if I could have the staff uh call the roll, please. Commissioner Baker. Present. Commissioner Heinze, present. Vice Chair Owens, present. Chair Waffle Present. All present. All right, thank you. Um we uh do not have any uh past meeting minutes to approve. Uh there is no new business, and we will go right into then uh the uh public hearing, the attraction of the evening. Uh please bear with me. I have to read a script uh that uh sets up the the rules for how we are going to operate tonight. Um so now is the time and place for a public hearing on the Laurel Crown Type 3 conditional use permit, plan use development, and subdivision application. The file numbers are CUP uh 2025-4, uh PUD 2025-02, and sub 2025-02. The Planning Commission's decision in this application will be based upon the record staff report and testimony and evidence presented in this hearing. I will now uh uh I will then uh re I will then open the hearing uh after a bit here. Um the order of business on this application will be as follows the city staff report, uh the applicant's testimony, uh, and then uh members of the audience in person or virtually who wish to speak on the proposal, applicants rebuttal, staff closing remarks, and then we will close the hearing and begin deliberations among the planning commissioners. So that's the basic script uh of how the night will run. Um the applicable criteria for this application are as follows. And these are sections of the Cornelius Municipal Code, chapter 17.5.40 is subdivisions, uh 18.10 and 18.15, application review procedures 18.20, uh the low density R7 zoning uh regulations, 18.35 is the multi-residential A2 uh zoning regulations, 18.95 is the natural resources overlay, and 18.110, planning and development conditional use permit, and 18.145, off-street parking and loading, and 18.155, uh solar access for new development. So tonight testimony, arguments, and evidence must be directed toward the listed criteria or other criteria in the comprehensive plan or municipal code, which the person believes to apply to the decision. Evidence means facts, documents or data or other information offered to demonstrate compliance or non-compliance with the standards believed by the proponent to be relevant to the decision. Now is the time for commissioners to declare any actual or potential conflicts of interest, ex parte contact or personal bias. Uh please indicate the nature of the ex parte contact, bias or conflict of interest. Would you like to begin, ma'am? Yes, um, I do live in one of the Laurel Woods communities. I do not believe this would impair my judgment. However, I am open to objections. If there are any, I will recuse myself. Thank you. Uh I have visited uh portions of Lower Woods before. I also travel through TV Highway. I do not believe this will impair my bias or judgment in this case. But I don't believe either of these things will impair my judgment. Okay, thank you. I'm certainly familiar with the with the property. I have no, I believe I have no conflicts of interest. I did have uh a brief ex parte contact with a neighbor just about development current development in Cornelius, and we got into this uh just uh a little bit. I don't think that uh uh will influence we didn't we certainly didn't he didn't urge me to do anything and I didn't ask him. Um does any member okay. Does any commissioner wish to disqualify themselves based on these declarations?
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