Oregon Senate Bill 1537

Adjustments to Standards for Housing Developments

Oregon Senate Bill 1537
SB 1537 was passed in 2024 to address Oregon’s housing crisis. The bill is part of the State’s ongoing efforts to increase housing production and affordability. SB 1537 includes a process called Mandatory Adjustments, which requires cities to approve adjustments (variances) to certain design and dimensional standards.

As allowed by the bill, the City requested an exemption from Mandatory Adjustments because we provide local pathways to adjust those standards. The exemption request was approved by the Housing and Accountability and Production Office (HAPO) in July 2025. The HAPO decision and staff report can be found here

Housing in Lake Oswego
If you are proposing housing in Lake Oswego, there are local adjustments available to deviate from certain design and dimensional standards, such as required setbacks, lot coverage, floor area, open space set asides, wall articulation, materials, window areas, and more.

Local Adjustment Pathways
Lake Oswego offers multiple ways to request an adjustment. This Local Adjustment Process Handout outlines the procedures and criteria, but broadly. Whether a standard applies, and what type of adjustment process is available, will depend on many variables. If you have a specific site or project to discuss, we recommend that you contact the Planner on Duty planning@lakeoswego.city or 503-635-0290. 

Limited Availability of Mandatory Adjustments
There are limited cases where City regulations are superseded by SB 1537, specifically adjustments to Special Street Setbacks, City Charter Height Limit, and Maximum Unit Density. In these cases, additional design and dimensional flexibility may be available for eligible housing projects. See Part 6 of the Local Adjustment Process Handout.

Required Notice to Applicants
Under the approved Exemption, the City must provide the following Attachment B - Required Notice to Applicants, which states:

• All housing development applications must be eligible to request adjustments under SB 1537 Section 38(4) and (5);
• The City has an obligation to review and approve at least 90% of requested adjustments, consistent with SB 1537 Section 39 (2)(a) and (b);
• The City will continue to use its local processes to review adjustment requests. If a proposal is ineligible for a local adjustment, the City will apply Section 38 directly to ensure compliance with SB 1537.

For additional information, please contact planning@lakeoswego.city or 503-635-0290.