An appeal filed by two Scappoose residents critical of the city’s plans to expand its urban growth boundary has triggered another public hearing on the matter, temporarily halting the momentum of growth plans until at least September.

On July 5, residents Pat Zimmerman and Mike Sheehan filed a jointly signed 48-page appeal against the Department of Land Conservation and Development’s (DLCD) June decision to allow Scappoose to grow its urban growth boundary — area targeted for future expansion — by 378 acres. Zimmerman and Sheehan’s arguments center on a belief the city used faulty population and job growth projections as a basis to prove its need for potential future expansion.

High-profile developers have for years taken an interest to build around the Scappoose Industrial Airpark on land just outside Scappoose’s boundary. Property within city limits is often more valuable.

The July 5 appeal required DLCD to set a hearing on the matter, which has been tentatively scheduled by the Land Conservation and Development Commission for Sept. 20 and Sept. 21. Because Zimmerman and Sheehan were the only people who appealed DLCD’s decision, only they, as well as representatives from the city of Scappoose and Columbia County, are allowed to make oral arguments at the commission hearing in Salem.