SALEM, Ore.-- Oregon Gov.Tina Kotek is using a new land use law to propose a rural area for a semiconductor facility, as officials seek to lure more of the multibillion-dollar semiconductor industry to the state.Kotek has proposed expanding the city boundaries of Hillsboro, a suburb west of Portland that's home to chip giant Intel, to incorporate half a square mile of new land for industrial development, Oregon Public Broadcasting reported.
The land would provide space for a major new research center.A group that supports Oregon's landmark land use policy, Friends of Smart Growth, said in a news release that it would oppose Kotek's proposal, OPB reported.The public hearing on the proposed expansion will be held in three weeks at the Hillsboro Civic Center, according to Business Oregon, the state's economic development agency.The Oregon Legislature also chipped away at the state's land use policy earlier this year in a bid to address its critical housing shortage.That law, among other things, granted a one-time exemption to cities looking to acquire new land for the purpose of building housing.
